“Award affirms what I’ve been missioned to do”: Kenyan Catholic Sister Sees Recognition as Call to Serve More Deeply

Nairobi, 15 December, 2025 / 6:39 PM

When Lapid Leaders Africa named Sr. Prof. Agnes Lucy Lando among its 2025 Top Purpose-Driven Leaders, the Kenyan Catholic Sister did not receive the honour as a personal triumph. Instead, she discerned it as a confirmation of a vocation already well underway.

“The award affirms what I have been missioned to do,” Sr. Lando told ACI Africa in an interview following the December 12 recognition by the non-governmental organization that seeks to nurture leaders who champion justice and lasting social impact.

A member of the Congregation of the Sisters of Mary of Kakamega (SMK) and a Professor of Communication and Media Studies and Director of the Graduate School at Kenya-based Daystar University (DU), Sr. Lando located the meaning of the award firmly within her religious calling. 

“My primary apostolate is teaching the faith by witnessing it and bringing holistic healing to all I encounter,” she told ACI Africa on Monday, December 15, grounding her ministry in the SMK charism of “Sharing in the Redemptive Mission of Jesus Christ the Great Teacher (Lk 4:31–32) and Healer (Mk 10:46–52).”

Yet even as she welcomed the recognition, the Kenyan-born Catholic Sister was clear that Religious Life is not driven by public accolades. “As Religious, we go out to Love and Serve (SMK Motto) without expecting any appreciation, reward or award,” she explained. For this reason, Sr. Lando revealed, she has previously declined what she described as “‘lucrative’ awards,” especially when she had prior knowledge of them.

This time was, however, different. The Lapid Leaders Africa honour came unexpectedly, she confessed, saying, “I accepted it because it came as a surprise.” Sr. Lando added that she would have declined had the process involved public voting. “If I’d come across such, I’d have declined. But, this did not circulate.”

Her peace with the recognition, she told ACI Africa, was strengthened by the wording of the organization’s official announcement marking Kenya’s 62nd Independence Day: “Today, as Kenya marks 62 years of independence, we pause to honour the leadership shaping our future – quietly, consistently, and with intention.” 

“Going by the message on their official release, I’m content,” she affirmed. 

The words, “quietly, consistently, and with intention”, resonated deeply with Sr. Lando because they mirror a ministry she has been carrying out largely behind the scenes since 2020. She has been offering research and thesis remedial sessions to master’s and doctoral students from universities around the world, accompanying those who often stall at the dissertation stage of their studies.

“I’ve been conducting research and thesis remedial sessions for graduate students (master’s and doctoral) from different universities across the globe,” she said, describing the effort as a support system to help students “successfully complete their master’s or doctoral studies.” 

Through an online platform, Sr. Lando patiently guides learners step by step through thesis and dissertation writing, she told ACI Africa during the December 15 interview.

For the communications scholar, the joy of this apostolate lies not in visibility but in transformation. “The students are many, I don’t know them!” she said, and added, “I find fulfillment when a number of them voice or text to say that they are now progressing, or what was initially difficult for them has been clarified by the sessions. This gives me joy!”

That joy deepens when students successfully complete their studies. “I get more joy when they eventually graduate! My belief is that they will go and transform others,” Sr. Lando said, noting with gratitude that many former beneficiaries now return as volunteers. “This is great, because it’s an assurance that the mission continues,” she added.

Lapid Leaders Africa recognized 12 honourees in 2025 for contributions to shaping Kenya’s future across governance, education, media, technology, and civic life. 

Announcing the awardees, the organization’s founder and CEO, Esther Mwaniki, said, “We honour those who choose responsibility over applause, and who carry the work forward for the generations to come.”

For Sr. Lando, those words echo a Gospel logic she has long embraced – a life of service offered quietly, faithfully, and with intention, where recognition becomes not a destination, but a renewed invitation to mission.