Veteran actor Mary Khavere, best known for her role as Mama Kayai in the popular TV series Vitimbi, has been honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award in Performing Arts at the Myogenic Excellence Awards in the United States.
The ceremony took place at the United Brethren Restoration Centre in Raleigh, North Carolina.
The awards coincided with the Myogenic Africa Mentorship Programme, which supports emerging creatives in Africa and the diaspora.
“We’re looking forward to an amazing event, the 2025 Myogenic Mentorship Program and Excellence Awards at UBRC Raleigh, North Carolina, on July 19th,” said Solomon Omboto, the CEO of Myogenic Africa Talent Academy.
The celebrated thespian rose to fame playing alongside her on-screen husband, Mzee Ojwang’ (the late Benson Wanjau), in Vitimbi, which aired on KBC for four decades.
The duo was widely regarded as Kenya’s power comedy couple.
They also performed Vitimbi situational comedy skits during national events at stadium podiums until Benson’s death in 2015.
In an interview with The Standard last year, she shared that his passing deeply affected her and the Vitimbi team for years. She began acting as a single mother figure to continue the legacy of the beloved comedy series.
The Vitimbi skits also became a staple of weekend family entertainment at the Shade Hotel in Ngong.
Other Kenyans recognised at the awards include actor Abel Amunga; former Kenya Film Classification Board CEO Ezekiel Mutua; comedian and media personality Walter Mong’are, also known as Nyambane; and Hon. Huldah Momanyi, a Kenyan legislator serving in the State of Minnesota.