In Pace Christi

Cosmas was born on 17 June 1991 in the village of Camgweng, in Kitgum district, in northern Uganda. He was the third of four children of Anthony Okech and Sabina Mego Anek. Anthony was a catechist in the Namokora parish and Sabina a committed Catholic. His family embodied the Christian faith.

In 2011 he was a student at the Daniel Comboni Vocational Institute in Layibi, Gulu, and in December 2012, he obtained a certificate in mechanical engineering. He then began to frequent the nearby Comboni postulancy: he made himself known to the formators who invite him to take part in events and initiatives that take place in the formation house. He began to get to know Daniel Comboni, the history of the Institute and the charism that animates the many Comboni missionaries who pass through the postulancy.

In August 2013 he "officially" entered the Comboni postulate of Layibi, and continued his studies in mechanics.

What struck his formators was that Cosmas was almost the only one among the new postulancy candidates to be fully familiar with the life and activities of the Church. He was at ease in the liturgical celebrations, not only as an active participant but also as an animator.

On 16 April 2016, Cosmas - then 25 years old - wrote to Father Sylvester Hategek'Imana, provincial superior of Uganda, asking to be admitted to the novitiate. The answer was affirmative and on 23 August 2016, he went to the novitiate in Namugongo. The two years of novitiate flew by. He didn’t mind working and always found something to do. With Brother Rinaldo Pendin, he completed many repairs and renovations of the house. On May 1, 2018, Cosmas took his first temporary vows.

In September, he flew to Bogotà and the International Brothers Centre (CIF). Cosmas would have liked to continue his mechanical engineering studies, but the trainers did not agree. He then dedicated himself with all possible commitment to other courses that the scholasticate prescribes and to the apostolate among Afros, touching the lives of many young people and families.

At the end of March 2021, he received his final destination in Uganda: the provincial council is looking for a person like Cosmas for missionary animation, vocational promotion and apostolate among young people.

At the end of 2021, Cosmas went to Kampala as a member of the community of the parish of Mbuya, but resident in a community in the sub-parish of Banda, 7 km from Mbuya, where the Centre for vocational promotion and missionary animation is located.

Brother Cosmas immediately enrolled in the first level degree course in Mechanical and Production Engineering at the University of Kyambogo where, a few weeks later, he was chosen as spokesperson for the Acholi Students' Association. In the parish he dedicated himself to the apostolate, animating Catholic associations and imparting splendid catechesis to students who wished to receive the sacraments.

In January 2023, the Comboni Missionaries of Uganda created the Laudato Si' Comboni Centre (LSCC) to coordinate the activities of the newly formed organization called “Combonian Action for the Environment and Human Promotion” (CAEHP in the English acronym), and entrusted it to Brother Cosmas, appointing him director.

On 7 October 2023, Cosmas organized the "Laudato Si' Mbuya Symposium" in the large (and important) parish of Mbuya. Its success was amazing: the next day, the radio, TV and newspapers were full of it.

On the afternoon of Saturday 6 April 2024, Brother Cosmas had to go to Mulago Medical School, where he was called to attend an important function of the Acholi Students Union Association but the boda-boda on which he was traveling collided head-on with an oncoming van at high speed. Cosmas suffered numerous fractures and wounds and lost a lot of blood. He is taken to the nearby hospital of Naguru but his wounds were serious and he had to be taken to larger Mulago Hospital where he was operated on; he seemed to be out of danger but on Sunday 7th, at 10.00, he has a sudden internal haemorrhage. The doctors rushed to help but nothing could be done and he died a short time later.

That same evening a memorial Mass was celebrated at the Banda Vocational Centre. On the 8th, a memorial mass was celebrated in the parish of Our Lady of Africa in Mbuya. The funeral took place on the 10th, in the parish church of Namokora after which he was buried in the local cemetery. (Father Anthony Kibira, mccj, Father John Kennedy Onoba, mccj, Father Franco Moretti, mccj)