A Nigerian woman has shared the inspiring story of how her mother turned commercial driving into a means of raising her children, paying their school fees and building a better future for her family.
According to Louisa Eseke, her mother worked as an inDrive driver for five years while raising her children as a single mother. Despite the financial pressure and the doubts of people around her, she remained committed to providing for her family.
From Starting Over in Lagos to Building a New Life
Louisa recalled that the family had once lived in Lagos before relocating to Abuja. However, her mother eventually decided to return to Lagos with her four children because she believed the city offered better opportunities to make a living.
The decision came with no clear accommodation or job waiting for them.
For about a year, the family stayed with one of her mother’s friends while she tried to find a way to support them. During that period, she took a loan and made a down payment on a car through a hire-purchase arrangement.
The repayment was demanding, with her mother paying ₦20,000 every week.
Rather than allow the difficult circumstances to stop her, she continued working until she eventually completed the repayment. She then rented a home for the family and returned her children to school.
Today, Louisa said her older sister, her brother and she have graduated from higher institutions, while another sibling is still at university. A cousin who was also supported by the family is currently in secondary school.
She Chose Commercial Driving Despite the Doubts
Louisa said many people questioned her mother’s decision when she announced that she wanted to become a commercial driver.
Some warned her that the job would be too stressful, while others doubted that she could succeed in it.
She went ahead regardless and has now spent about five years driving.
For her daughter, the experience became a powerful lesson in perseverance.
“She remained consistent as both a mother and a father.”
Louisa said her mother’s biggest lessons to the family were hard work, consistency and the importance of continuing to show up even when things become difficult.
Driving Became More Than Just a Job
For Louisa’s mother, driving was not simply a way to earn money. She had always loved being behind the wheel.
Louisa recalled that when she was about six or seven years old, her mother was eight months pregnant when she drove the family from Lagos to Edo State following a disagreement with her father.
She described driving as something her mother also used as an escape from difficult circumstances.
Through inDrive, her mother met different people and built friendships. She even became involved in the lives of some passengers, including advising a man about his marriage before eventually being invited to his wedding.
Louisa also said her mother had helped women facing abusive relationships.
Beyond her driving work, she belongs to the Ladies on Wheels Association of Nigeria and serves as its Public Relations Officer.
Her Children Now Want Her to Drive for Pleasure
After years of driving to provide for her family, Louisa’s mother is now stepping away from commercial driving.
However, Louisa explained that the family does not see it as a complete retirement.
Instead, they want their mother to know that she no longer has to drive simply to survive.
With her children now doing well, she can choose to drive because she enjoys it.
Louisa said her mother still loves driving so much that she has joked about continuing to take occasional trips even after leaving commercial driving behind.
She even joked that the family should bury her with her car.
‘She Doesn’t Have to Wear a Cape to Be a Hero’
Louisa said she was particularly happy that her mother’s story was being recognised because, despite everything she has done for her family and others, her mother sometimes doubts herself as a parent.
She described her as courageous, hardworking and consistent.
For Louisa, her mother’s story is proof that heroism does not always come with fame or recognition. Sometimes, it is found in an ordinary parent who keeps working, sacrificing and showing up for her children every day.
The recognition of her journey, she said, gives her mother an opportunity to see the impact of everything she has done.
A Mother’s Sacrifice That Changed Her Children’s Lives
From borrowing money to acquire a car, paying ₦20,000 every week, raising four children and helping educate a cousin, Louisa’s mother turned a difficult chapter of her life into a story of perseverance.
Her journey from struggling to provide basic stability to watching her children graduate has become a powerful reminder of what determination and sacrifice can achieve.
For her children, the greatest reward may not simply be that their mother can finally stop driving for survival, but that the years she spent behind the wheel helped give them opportunities she fought hard to create.
