Twelve years ago, Nigeria was thrown into mourning when a Sosoliso aircraft crashed, claiming the lives of 107 passengers including Pastor Bimbo Odukoya and 61 students of Loyola Jesuit College, Abuja.
One of the two survivors of the crash was Nkechi Onwuchi, who despite the trauma and physical scars she got from the crash is today redefining her life.
Only last week, Kechi as she’s fondly called, was on song on popular American talent hunt show, X Factor, where she wowed the judges including hard-to-please Simon Cowell.
Kechi did an emotional rendition of Ed Sheeran’s ‘Thinking Out Loud’ and so powerful and inspiring was her performance that she got a standing ovation from guests and judges.
Kechi began by telling the judges her amazing story of survival and Cowell was so moved he asked: “How do you deal with something like that, Kechi?”
Responding, Kechi said: “Lying in the hospital bed, bandaged head to foot and not able to move or do anything else, music was my escape and that is why music means so much to me.”
The audience erupted with applause.
And then, Kechi proceeded to deliver a heart-warming performance of Thinking Out Loud, which instantly reduced supermodel, Heidi Klum to tears. Kechi, who was 16-years-old at the time of the crash, had undergone reconstruction surgery and in 2015 graduated with a First Class degree from University of Thomas, Houston, Texas. She was the most outstanding student for her major in Economics and has already been accepted into graduate school for her MBA.