After giving birth to twins via cesarean section at a metropolitan hospital on Friday, November 11, Evelyne Ogutu, a former journalist for Standard Media Group, passed away.
Ogutu oversaw communications for the Heinrich Boll Foundation until her death.
According to a source close to the dead, the newborn twins were healthy and under strict medical observation.
Her friends and coworkers in the business acknowledged their shock at Ogutu’s passing and paid tribute to her as a devoted, kind, and loving media professional.
She was also referred to as an industry mentor and dedicated friend.
“There are people who we meet and make our friends, then there are those who become our friends before our first meeting, then one day, you go to a WhatsApp group, and you meet the news that she will never call again,” Dennis Itumbi, a digital media strategist, eulogised.
“Condolences to the family and friends of Evelyne Ogutu. Such tragic and bad news,” economist Mohamed Wehliye added.
“This is devastating news. I can’t believe this,” ODM Communications Director mourned.
Ogutu has had a distinguished career in the communication sector, working for reputable companies.
She claimed to be a self-made practitioner of communication, having a childhood interest for the field.
Ogutu pursued a communications course at the Kenya Institute of Mass Communication (KIMC) in Nairobi after completing her secondary education before continuing her studies at Kenyatta University (KU).
She began working as a writer for the Standard Media Group in Nairobi and then at the Nyeri Bureau.
Ogutu built her reputation in the profession during her seven years at the Standard, where she was also credited with starting the periodicals Instinct and Eve Woman.
Later, she would leave the newsroom to work in public relations, where she had a successful career.
One of the well-known initiatives associated with her name is the East African Community (EAC) integration in her capacity as a strategist.
But she acknowledged that she had faced challenges in the past and had thought about leaving her profession.
Ogutu did, however, gain from high-profile jobs in terms of networking with the famous people she met.
At the 25th anniversary of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD), which was held in Nairobi, she was also chosen as the lead communication consultant for MediaEdge Public Relations.
Three elder children and the twin newborns were among the deceased’s five children.
