‘A family man’: Friends, family remember man who drowned in South Portland pool
Days after Evariste Niyitegeka drowned in a swimming pool at an apartment complex in South Portland, a bouquet of flowers was threaded between the chain locking the pool gate.
The pool was mostly still on a humid and sunny Wednesday afternoon after a storm rolled through, and the area was silent. No splashing. No chatter.
Evariste Niyitegeka (Courtesy of Eugenie Mukamuhigirwa)
In a third-floor apartment a stone’s throw away, friends and family sat together in the absence of a family man, a hard worker and devout Catholic. Worship music played on the television. Children ran around the coffee table.
Through tears, Eugenie Mukamuhigirwa, his wife of almost eight years, said that her husband was special.
She will always remember his sensitive, grateful and optimistic nature. He was an attentive and loyal partner, she said, who always volunteered to vacuum or do the laundry even after a long day of work. A dedicated father who wanted the best for his children, Niyitegeka prayed for them every night after tucking them into bed.
“He took care of me for everything,” Mukamuhigirwa said.
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Niyitegeka, born in 1981 in Rwanda, moved to the United States more than 10 years ago. He worked various full-time jobs, like at a group home, while completing his bachelor’s degree at the University of Southern Maine. He started working as a postal worker in 2022.
“He was so hardworking,” said Maurice Habimfura, Niyitegeka’s friend. “He never took a break.”
Evariste Niyitegeka and his 2-year-old daughter. (Courtesy of Eugenie Mukamuhigirwa)
His family joined him in South Portland in November, according to Baptiste Kayitare, Niyitegeka’s roommate of five years. Until then, he called his wife every day, usually while he was falling asleep, and visited home multiple times a year.
“He understood that it was a process for his family to come over,” Kayitare said. “He did his part, working to provide for them back in Africa.”
When he wasn’t working, Niyitegeka loved to cook for himself and others, mainly steak and chicken dishes and baked potatoes, often while listening to Christian gospel music. And he loved watching sports, specifically soccer. His friends watched the World Cup games with him and rooted for the same teams.
He took his faith very seriously, rising early before work to pray the rosary, and picking out Bible verses to show his kids, a 6-year-old son and 2-year-old daughter. He didn’t force his religion on them, Mukamuhigirwa said. He just showed them his faith.
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Niyitegeka’s children were also in the pool at the time, according to Habimfura.
Niyitegeka had been pulled from the bottom of the pool at Cortland Court on Westbrook Street before the South Portland Fire Department responded to the call just before 1 p.m. Monday, according to Fire Chief Phil Selberg. The pool is 8 feet at its deepest.
The crew provided care for about 30 minutes, but were unable to revive Niyitegeka.
South Portland Police Chief Daniel Ahern said that preliminary information indicates that it was an accident.
Niyitegeka’s friend Steven Kabandana said that he didn’t think Niyitegeka knew how to swim. When the pair traveled on vacation to Mexico, they stayed in the shallow water.
His children are too young to fully understand that he’s gone, his wife said. The oldest child asked when he was going to come home from the hospital. It broke Mukamuhigirwa’s heart to tell him the truth, she said. That’s when he cried.
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Mukamuhigirwa doesn’t know how she’s going to live without her husband.
“How will I handle the responsibility of two people?” she said. “How will I have time to work to feed the kids and get us money?”
“I have fear for the next step,” she said, wiping away tears on her yellow, patterned skirt.
Her world turned upside down in one afternoon.
“It’s a lot,” she said. She tries to remember him as he was in Africa when they first met, when they were happy together.
She smiled thinking about her wedding in Uganda in December 2018, about the big party that followed the church ceremony, about the delicious food and mingling families.
Her husband was good at accepting things he couldn’t change. She said she never possessed that kind of wisdom.
“Life will continue,” she sniffled.
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Dana Richie is a community reporter covering South Portland and Cape Elizabeth. Originally from Atlanta, she fell in love with the landscape and quirks of coastal New England while completing her undergraduate. More by Dana Richie
