From Markets To The Altar: Prince Ukeme Ukpong Closes His Birthday Week With ₦1.5 Million Church Empowerment, Chairs, And Solar Lights

From Markets To The Altar: Prince Ukeme Ukpong Closes His Birthday Week With ₦1.5 Million Church Empowerment, Chairs, And Solar Lights

If you thought the celebration had ended with the markets and the breakfast tables, Prince Ukeme Ukpong had one more stop left, and it happened at the altar, where it all started spiritually.

On Sunday, June 21, 2026, the Chancellor of the Prince Ukeme Ukpong Mega Foundation led members of the Foundation to a thanksgiving service at Mount Zion Lighthouse Full Gospel Church, Ebenezer Diocese, Uyo, closing out a week that had already seen ₦3.5 million go into school fees for students and ₦5 million distributed to traders and small business owners across Akwa Ibom State, and setting the tone for what tomorrow holds.

Unlike the breakfast and the market tour, which had drawn public attention through nominations and announcements, this particular stop had quietly remained part of the plan all along, known only within the Foundation until the day itself. It turned out to be far more than a simple thanksgiving visit.

His Lordship Bishop Benjamin Green personally received Prince Ukeme Ukpong and the Foundation team at the church, offering prayers over the celebrant and everyone who had walked the journey with him through the week’s activities. For a man who had spent days handing out grants in markets and at breakfast tables, this was a moment to return thanks to the source he believes everything flows from, before stepping into the day the entire celebration has been building towards.

In a special moment during the service, the Chancellor was honoured by both the Women’s Fellowship and the Men’s Fellowship of the church, who presented him with awards in celebration of International Men’s Day, recognising his exemplary leadership, generosity, and the example he continues to set as a man committed to lifting others. It was a fitting tribute, coming on the very week he had spent giving without measure to widows, students, traders, and now, the church itself.

But true to character, the Chancellor did not arrive empty handed. The Foundation donated 40 banquet chairs to the church, a practical gift that will serve the congregation for years of gatherings, services, and celebrations to come. Solar lights were also installed within the church premises, addressing the cost and unreliability of power supply, especially for evening services and programmes.

Then came the moment that tied the entire week together. In the same spirit that saw widows restocked, students relieved of fees, and traders blessed on the streets, the Foundation extended its hand to members of the congregation itself, empowering some church members with a total of ₦1.5 million.

It meant that by the time the thanksgiving service drew to a close, the 22 June For The People celebration had touched students, traders, market women, artisans, and now, members of a worshipping community, all within a single, deliberate week of giving, with the main celebration itself still ahead.

Taken together, the figures tell their own story. ₦3.5 million in school fees for 20 students at the Student Impact Breakfast. ₦5 million in business support across 25 traders in markets and streets throughout Akwa Ibom State. ₦1.5 million in empowerment for church members, alongside chairs and solar lights for the church itself. It adds up to a birthday celebration that chose to spend itself entirely on other people, even before the birthday has arrived.

For Prince Ukeme Ukpong, the thanksgiving service was not just a religious formality to round off the festivities. It was the proper closing of a circle, acknowledging that every Naira given out this week, every shop reopened, every fee paid, and every life touched, came from a place of gratitude long before it became generosity.

As Bishop Benjamin Green’s prayers settled over the church, it was evident that this is a birthday that gives more than it receives, and a celebration that proved, once again, that impact does not wait for the right moment. It starts wherever you are, and sometimes, it ends right where it began, in worship and thanksgiving.

And now, with the week’s work already speaking for itself, all eyes turn to tomorrow, Monday, June 22, 2026, the actual birthday, as Akwa Ibom State and well-wishers everywhere prepare to celebrate a man who chose to give before receiving a single gift.

One Birthday. Many Impacts.