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LEADERSHIP Business Leader Profiles
FINDING A VOICE John Oke-Thomas isn’t from Springfield, but for him, this is home. Now he’s making sure minority leaders and business owners also have a home and a future in the Queen City. BY TOM CARLSON
rowing up in Nigeria, it took awhile for ohn ke- homas to feel at home after he left his native country with the goal of continuing his education. fter stints in Italy, rance and the nited ingdom, ke- homas eventually landed in Springfield, issouri. In some ways, Springfield reminded ke- homas of home, but the Nigerian native was constantly reminded that he was a minority in his new country. s the chamber worked to include more
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minority members on its board and in leadership roles, ke- homas found a chance to serve as a voice for a community that felt left out of the conversation. s a young boy in Nigeria, ke- homas didn’t reali e his father’s social activism would rub off on him In fact, ke- homas’ social activism wouldn’t kick in until later in life. is father, after graduating from pharmacy school in London, moved back to Nigeria and oined the
nity arty, which ke- homas says promoted free education for everyone in the country and was often at odds with other political parties. he various parties were constantly at war with each other, ke- homas remembers. If your party was out of power, you might end up in ail as my father did. fter high school, ke- homas left Nigeria and headed for urope to continue his education. e received an ssociate egree at he
Photo courtesy Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce
John Oke-Thomas grew up in Nigeria and eventually moved to Springfield to pursue an education and a career as an architect. One of his first major projects was helping Drury move and reconstruct the historic Washington Avenue Baptist Church.
