The Odighizuwa Foundation is dedicated to maximizing the valuable potential of single parents and their children by supporting initiatives that affords them equitable access to education, resources, and opportunities both locally and nationally!
About Foundation
The Odighizuwa Foundation is for Owamagbe (Owa) and Osawaru (Osa) an opportunity to fully honor their mother Abieyuwa. She has been their biggest inspiration and motivation to do great things both on and off the playing fields. Owa and Osa want the Odighizuwa family name to be forever associated with her hopeful promise of a better future. Just as her legacy of love and strength was their foundation, they want the Odighizuwa Foundation to offer the resources and support that can literally change lives.
Challenges/ needs single parents and their children face
It is our vision as an organization to create this incredible community in which single parents can thrive with and for their beautiful children. Support our efforts so that together we can maximize valuable potential everywhere!
Meet Our Team of Odighizuwa Foundation
Abieyuwa Odighizuwa
(CEO)
Abieyuwa Odighizuwa (AB), a single mother of four young boys, who became the shining example of strength and courage in the face of severe adversity. Her husband was sentenced to life in prison and that immediately tasked her with the responsibility of raising her four young sons by herself. Working full time as a CNA, and in pursuit of higher education while raising her sons, meant she spent many nights in tears. Slowly the years of stress, working, going to school and trying to provide for her family began to change. Abieyuwa had defied all the odds stacked against her as she raised her beloved boys to be very successful men.
Owa Odighizuwa
Board Member
Owamagbe, the eldest son, attended University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) and went on to play in the National Football League (NFL) with the New York Giants. When Owa initially thought about forming the foundation, it was Osa's enthusiasm and support that motivated him to begin building the board that would help make the Odighizuwa Foundation not a dream, but a reality. Together with the full board they will engage their networks, share their access and influence as former and current pro athletes, and make a difference for those in need.
Osa Odighizuwa
Board member
Osawaru, the youngest, also attended UCLA and is currently playing in the NFL with the Dallas Cowboys. Osa, the youngest, was an early standout football player who also excelled at wrestling. He would letter in wrestling and win three straight state heavyweight championships. He was undefeated in the last three years and practiced track. When it was time to decide where to go to college, Osa followed his oldest brother's path and selected UCLA, making his time as a Bruin a success.
Ighodaro Odighizuwa
Board member
Ighodaro Odighizuwa (Iggy) is the second son of Abieyuwa, and brother to Owa and Osa. An athlete who also excelled at David Douglas high school, he played football, and basketball, and ran track throughout his four years. He feels strongly about making a difference in the lives of single parents and their children and has joined in the work of building the Odighizuwa Foundation without hesitation. Iggy’s commitment to the foundation will help him leverage his gifts, and his wide community of connections to further the family’s shared mission to honor their mother through the work they do together.
Greg Carradine
Board member
Currently the principal at David Douglas High School (DDHS) in Portland, Oregon, Greg Carradine has served the school community for nearly twenty-five years. Greg Carradine played an instrumental role in Owa’s life as his football coach from 2008 till he graduated in 2010, but really Greg was often like a father figure to Owa. With his encouragement to be the absolute best football player he could be, he grounded Owa in the principles of always being kind and remembering his mantra to “respect all, fear none!” Thus, when the dream of the The Odighizuwa Foundation began, Owa knew that his journey would again include Greg Carridine.
Michael Fuller
Board member
Michael finds that the mission of the Odighizuwa Foundation is especially important to him because he too comes from humble beginnings. Raised by a single mother, he grew up in a trailer park in Oregon. Michael seeks to ‘pay it forward’ by creating opportunities for families like his who did not have the resources necessary to adequately foster an environment of growth and education. His service as a board member and General Counsel to the Odighizuwa Foundation will utilize his professional skills to provide critical knowledge and experience to building the organization, ensuring its vision and mission are sustained into the future.
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