Bidding Farewell to Lete, Former Patient and Beloved Colleague
May 11, 2026
In early April, the team at Hamlin Fistula Ethiopia lost a much-beloved colleague when Lete - known as ‘Weleliye’ meaning sweet – passed away at the Hamlin Fistula Hospital in Addis Ababa.
One of the earliest patients of Drs Reg and Catherine Hamlin, Lete was referred to the Princess Tsehai Hospital in Addis Ababa for obstetric fistula treatment - the Hamlin’s first workplace in Ethiopia.
This chance meeting with the Hamlins would change the course of her life.
At around the same time, Mamitu Gashe met Lete when she too came to the Hamlins for treatment for her own childbirth injury. Both women would go on to dedicate their lives to supporting the Hamlins’ work and caring for Ethiopian women seeking treatment.
Years after moving to Addis Ababa, Lete was involved in a car accident which resulted in her needing a wheelchair. Despite this, her commitment to supporting patients and the daily life of the hospital never wavered.
She once described her routine like this: “Every day, I do rounds in my wheelchair to comfort the patients. I tell them they will be cured and share my own life journey as an example. This helps them feel relaxed and hopeful about their recovery. I also remind them to be grateful for the compassionate care they receive here.
Lete will be remembered for her kindness, encouragement and steadfast devotion to the women in Hamlin’s care. Here, Mamitu and her colleagues reflect on the impact Lete had on their lives and work, and on the loss that will be deeply felt following her passing.
Mamitu Gashe, world-renowned fistula surgeon
I first met Lete in 1962. She had arrived three months before me.
I was very weak at the time, and she stayed by my side, comforting me constantly. We slept in the same room, and she looked out for me with a special kind of care. We did everything together. Whenever I went out to sit in the sunlight, she would join me to chat and keep me company.
When she was cured and ready to leave, no one came to collect her. When Abaye [Dr Reg Hamlin] arrived, she told him that the people supposed to take her had not appeared. He assured her that she would be his child. She was so happy that she went back to her room and changed her clothes. She never left the hospital after that.
Abaye would visit us when we sat outside. Even though we didn’t always understand his words, we understood from his expression that he was asking how we were doing. He would give us coins to buy soft drinks. We lived together in a hostel with the other girls.
Lete and I started formally working for the Hamlin’s, even though she had already been helping previously. Everybody loved her - Emaye [Dr Catherine] and Abaye, the patients, and the nurses alike. She couldn’t bear to see anyone sad and offered comfort to every patient she met.
We grew up together, helping Emaye and Abaye in the delivery room and working in the wards alongside the nurses.
Lete respected me and took such good care of me until her passing. We lived our whole lives together. She was truly more than a sister to me. When I would visit her in bed after finishing my work in surgery, she would always say: “Mamitu, you’re tired. Go and take a rest.”
I will never be able to stop speaking about her kindness and the respect she had for all of us. Even when she was in a wheelchair, she continued to give foot and hand massages to the patients and helped them with their exercises. She was so helpful to the hospital, greeting every patient and encouraging them to stay strong.
She was so strong. She never complained and thanked God for everything He did for her and our patients. She was a respected woman who found a warm home in this hospital. May she find peaceful rest now. God rest her soul in peace.
Honouring Lete's life and legacy
To mark Lete’s passing, a memorial service was held at the Hamlin Fistula Ethiopia hospital in Addis Ababa, where colleagues shared personal memories and tributes.
Misgana Chelebo, Nurse Aide, said: “I cannot find the words to truly describe Weleliye. I once asked her, ‘You are our mother; what will happen to us when you go to God?’. She replied, ‘God is here, and He will be with you forever’.
“Her kindness was beyond measure. I don’t know how I will walk into the ward knowing she is gone. She was everything to us - our mother after Emaye.”
Catherine Hamlin Fistula Foundation acknowledges the Traditional Owners and Elders past, present and emerging throughout Australia and the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, the Traditional Owners of the land and waterways on which our Australian office is situated. We acknowledge the many ethnic groups in Ethiopia and their ancestral and cultural connection to the land where our work is undertaken.