New Year's Eve wreck claims life of Ghanaian 'saint'

A 46-year-old Ghanaian missionary returning to her suburban home from a New Year's Eve church service died Monday in a Homewood car crash.

Flossmoor resident Josephine Bansah, called "Sister Lizzy" or "Missionary Lizzy" by those who knew her, was in high spirits during the Sunday night service at Church of the Living God in Englewood, said youth pastor Dr. Sheila Crawford Simms.

Bansah danced with her hands raised and publicly thanked God for blessing her in 2006, Simms said.

Simms and Bansah, who had known each other since Bansah arrived in Chicago 20 years ago, helped clean the church kitchen after the service ended. "If ever there was a saint, she was a saint," Simms said. "And she was so happy."

"She had a glow," she said. "When we went in and saw her at the hospital [after she died], it looked like there was a smile on her face."

Bansah visited the sick and taught Ewe, her native language, Spanish, English and math to children at the church's day school, Simms said.

Early Monday morning, Bansah got into the back seat of a 2005 Chevy Malibu driven by her 19-year-old nephew, Emmanuel Bansa, a University of Illinois pre-med student from Flossmoor who played organ for the church. Bansa's girlfriend Kaci Boston, 19, rode up front.

The car was heading south on Dixie Highway when it struck a traffic signal pole at Willow Road around 1:25 a.m., said Homewood Deputy Police Chief James Gannon.

He ruled out drugs or alcohol but said wet conditions may have played a role in the single-vehicle crash.

"There's no rhyme or reason why," Gannon said. "Only the driver probably knows and I didn't talk to him last night."

Homewood firefighters removed the car's doors and roof to extricate Bansah and her nephew. Boston walked away.

All three were taken to St. James Hospital in Olympia Fields. Boston was discharged Monday from the emergency room, the hospital said. Bansa, who remained in intensive care, was transferred to Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood for surgery on his face and stomach, Simms said. Bansah, who has a married daughter living in Ghana, was pronounced dead at 1:54 a.m.

All three had been wearing seat belts, Gannon said, adding the belts and airbags probably saved the lives of Bansa and Boston.

Simms said about 100 people gathered at St. James after hearing of the accident. A funeral service for Bansah is planned, but no date has been set. Simms recalled their parting words as she left Bansah at the church Sunday night:

"I said, 'I love you.' She said, 'I love you, too.'"