Veteran Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC) presenter Gladys Adisa Erude has passed away.
Her son, Sylvester Erude, confirmed to Kenyans.co.ke that the celebrated presenter passed away on the morning of Thursday, August 5.
She died aged 70 years while receiving treatment in Nairobi after a long battle with cancer.
"She passed away after a long battle with cancer and heart disease in Nairobi," stated Sylvester.
Erude is celebrated for her steadfast career in media since joining the station in 1976. She served as a presenter on both Idhaa ya Taifa and KBC TV.
Before joining the media, Erude, a trained teacher, worked as tutor at Tigoi Girls High School.
"I was first a teacher. I studied at Kenyatta College (now Kenyatta University) and became a teacher at Tigoi High School.
"When I left, I joined the Kenya Institute of Mass Communication in 1975 before I moved to Voice of Kenya before it was turned into KBC. I worked at KBC for 25 years," she disclosed in a 2017 interview.
She noted that she was inspired to join the media after her uncle gifted her a radio that she would listen to more often. She joined the media after applying for a job advertised in the newspaper.
After retiring in 2001, she ventured into the business world until 2008 before moving to the United States where some of her grandchildren are based.
She further noted that she suffered after her husband died while she was just aged 24 years. She had her property taken away from her after refusing to be remarried.
"Traditions demanded that I should be inherited but I said, 'No way, love cannot be transferred.' The elders were not happy and so I was mistreated and beaten. They claimed that I plaid I role in the death of my husband but it was due to diabetes," she explained.
She decided to move to Nairobi and educated her children on her own.
She is survived by her six children, four of which live in the United States of America.
