Achilla Orru

Dept: Achilla Orru, blinded at age 6 in his native Uganda after a bout of measles, never let his handicap get in the way of his mission, to be the best lokembe player in the world, be it on the subway platform at Bloor and Yonge or concert halls around the globe, the 100 people who attended his funeral heard Saturday, according to The Star. His teenage son from a previous relationship, Benjamin, came in from Dartmouth to hear his father best friend laud him as a great man and A blind man who entertained thousands of commuters every day in the Toronto subway with a thumb piano was eulogized as a king, a giant and a visionary who used his musical talent, wisdom and wit to mesmerize everyone he met. A former Juno Award nominee, Orru was found dead in his apartment Feb. 4, an apparent victim of heart disease and diabetes. Orru, who arrived in Canada as a refugee in 1989, was in the process of arranging for his wife, Rose and their three young children, to join him here in Toronto. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.