Our mother came from a family, which contributed for over three generations to the health of Jamaica. Her father, a medical doctor practised in New York, London, West Africa, Montego Bay, Hanover and Trelawny. Her sister, Kathleen practised in Montego Bay and was the Medical Officer of Health in St. Ann. Another sister, Isobel, was one of Jamaica's first masseuses. Cynthia, a third sister, was one of the two first lecturers at the Jamaica School of Public Health and a founding member of the Nurses Association of Jamaica. Cynthia is here with us today. Her brothers also studied medicine although Hector ended up an eminent Lodge Master and entrepreneur and Willie the politician, the first Mayor of Montego Bay.

Evelyn too, was a highly professional nurse and registered midwife, a little known fact about her life. In the 20s, she studied at Greenwich Naval Hospital and came second in the Sister Tutor's examination held throughout England She also served as theatre sister at the Elizabeth Garrett Anderson Hospital in London founded by the first English woman doctor. On returning to Jamaica she worked as a much sought-after midwife with many doctors such as Aubrey McFarlane and David Tate. She traveled widely through rural Jamaica and, as was the practice in those days, would live in the expectant mother's house sometimes for several weeks until the baby was born. One such sojourn, at The Mount in Morant Bay, when Raymond Lightbourne came into the world, led to a lifelong friendship with the Lightbournes, resulting in my having three Lightbourne godparents, Mother Lightbourne, Uncle Bob and Dr. Hyacinth.

Born on Church Street, Montego Bay, that town held a strong fascination for Ma. At the Worcester property, she was quite a tom-boy, riding horses and racing cars with her brothers. In MoBay itself, she was often at Doctor's Cave Adiscovered by Doctors McCatty, Tate, Thomson and Vernon. Although my grandfather being of a darker hue was never quite acknowleged in that historic move which in the 20s and 30s gave a tremendous boost to tourism in the Island's west. A fact brought to light by Lady Bustamante in her recent autobiography.

Later in 1936, it was as a member of the St. James' Parish Church choir that Ma first heard my father's voice as he preached a sermon entitled, AI Opened the Book. She apparently fell in love with his voice and later with him, and just to make sure there were no slip ups, Ma had him escorted by Norman Dickenson to the Creek where legend has it that whoever drank its waters would marry a Montegonian girl. Can you imagine doing that now! She got her wish and two years later they were married by Archdeacon Harrison at the same church.

For a Jamaican woman born in 1904, she had a great love of travel, By her twenties this drive led her to travel to England, Europe including Switzerland and Italy where she visited Naples and Pompeii. She lived for nearly a year in Cairo, Egypt. Peter and I and several of her nieces and nephews learned our first geography lessons from her photo album of these trips. In Paris she sent a postcard dated 12 May 1927, to her mother from the top of the Eiffel Tower. She was 23. Kathleen and herself had been watching airplanes flying around Le Bourget Airport, a novelty in those days. In her words, AWe have been living very much in the air today. Only lack of tin (money) left us on earth as the flight cost 7/6 (seven shillings and sixpence).

In Cairo Ma stayed with Kathleen who was married to my uncle Ahmed, an Egyptian doctor. There she encountered women who lived in purdah. She also had to sustain and contain Kathleen, a feminist before her time, who initially was forbidden to practise medicine, as she was a woman. Ma later assisted her in her Surgery when the ban was lifted as so many professional male colleagues of my Uncle found that she, being a woman doctor, could treat their wives whereas male doctors could not treat women patients under the Muslim tradition.

For Ma, her life's work was her partnership with my father. She provided a calm, creative balance with elegance and humour against his fire. As Mrs. Tappin of St. George's put it, she threw herself energetically and with love into the work of being rectory mom and parson's wife. She was fully integrated into the St. Georges' community including the Girls School, the Ramson Hall, the community of John's Lane on which we lived, and the wider community of downtown Kingston. Whenever Pa travelled, she virtually kept the church running by organizing various clergy to come and preach for him. Many was the time, when Pa was either overbooked or forgetful, she would rope Pete and myself into writing or delivering sermons, reading lessons or saying prayers. She of course, led the way.

She truly came into her own at St. George's and Port Royal. when the Rectory became a centre not just of the social and spiritual life around the church, but for visitors from the House of Representatives, located opposite the Rectory on Duke Street, from around Jamaica or abroad: from the Bishop of London, Billy Graham and Paul Robeson to Cheddi Jagan.

Many who worked with her during this 23-year period felt she was an inspiration to them . In a sense she had her own ministry. She worked most closely with the Mothers Union. Just as convinced as her husband that no child was Aillegitimate and that all children had a right to baptism, she lead MU members to canvass young expectant mothers to encourage them to have their children baptised in the church and to me themselves and be confirmed and baptised. If they subsequently married, fine, but that was not the objective; it was to enter into the fellowship of Christ through His church. As a result St. George's Church as the Synod Journals attest, boasted for many years the largest number of baptisms in the Anglican Church and in Kingston. In today's mores, this may not seem unusual, but for most Anglicans of the day, if a child was born out of wedlock, that child was Aborn in sin and could not be baptised.

Her creative skills blossomed when she introduced the St. George's Passion Plays which became an Easter tradition known throughout Kingston She managed to bring together an array of characters such as Dudley Soutar as Director/Producer, Albert Huie as scenery painter, Douglas Forrest as selector of dramatic music (the Pathetique Symphony, the Rienzi Overture) to set the scene and enhanced the drama of Christ's last days. And, of course, she gathered as a team, the most wonderful component --- the actors, some veterans some novices.

They found themselves thrown together in this creative effort year after year, and became a most professional team. Among them were Louis Boothe, Alvaro Casserley, Winnie Dixon, Stanley Hall, Coleen Hoo, George Levy, Merrick McGilchrist, Earl and Carlton Madden, Lloyd Reckord and David Reid. And her material? Ma created plays drawing liberally from several texts, oblivious of copyright. Each year a new element was highlighted C the sorrow of Mary Magdalene, the jealousy of Judas, the indecision of Pilate or the wonder of the empty tomb. Not satisfied with preparing the material, Ma also found new skills in making the costumes based on sketches from our illustrated children's books.

Ma also worked with the youth and one of her favorite experiences was getting to know the 100 or so candidates who came to Confirmation Classes. She helped to make the Confirmation Day for them one of pride and of becoming part of Christ's community. In the aftermath of the 1951 hurricane Charlie, she visited young and old alike immediately after the disaster to ensure that members were unhurt and had enough food and clothing.

One of the Saturday night chores was the Communion bread. My father was instructed on arriving as Rector of St. George's that it was Alow as opposed to Ahigh church and that they did not use Communion Wafers but bread. Ma's first attempts were dismal until she discovered the value of hard dough bread. Saturday nights found her cutting neat symmetrical squares of bread and wrapping exactly 20 in each grease paper parcel so that Pa would be able to tell at a glance how many communicants had participated and the Church's scruples met! At Christmas and Easter over a thousand squares had to be cut.

All of this sounds like a very straightlaced lady full of purpose, vigour and dedication. She had another side. Somewhat daring, somewhat iconoclastic, but always practical. On one occasion when no one could rid St George's of rat bats, She finally turned to her brother Hector, an avid bird shooter. He arrived in the church with his rifles. In no time, guns blazing, he rid the church of the menace. To avoid a literal bloodbath, Peter, the beadle and I rushed around with buckets catching the falling carcasses. Guns in church ! Deep chagrin and disapproval followed.

On another occasion, Peter relates that on one half-term holiday at DeCarteret School in Mandeville, Ma arrived to drive him to Kingston and back the same day. Another parent, an army major, arrived in a sports car with enviable horse power. Ma proceeded to show that the Vauxhall 12 was not to be outdone and raced him neck and neck until they reached Williamsfield where the Vauxhall finally careened off the road and into a banana walk. No one was hurt, but Peter had to promise not to tell Pa. He never did.

Among the family, Ma is known for her sense of family history and tradition. She kept old photographs of generations of Vernons and Salmons, Kings, Macdonalds, Arnolds, MacFarlanes Jameses and Lopez. Many of her nieces and nephews lived under a rectory roof at one time or another. She made us all feel part of one family, even those abroad like Ramez and Sheriffe. In addition to the visual history she had a vivid memory and a lively way of telling the oral history that went with each photo. This gave us a sense of where we were coming from.

As a Mother she was loving and gentle and taught us to hold up our heads no matter what. Once Pa was negatively portrayed in The Gleaner as demonstrating the pocomania religion by beating drums at a clergy conference in Canada. No one bothered to ask him if this were true. The day the story was published was the day of the Bishop's Annual Children's Party. Undaunted, we arrived at Bishop's Lodge, Ma donned one of her jaunty hats, dressed us to the nines and had us hold our heads high.

Ma we love you. Your spirit and humour will always cheer us. Your life has been a celebration. You can truly have said as your schoolmate from Hampton and lifelong friend, the poet Una Marson, wrote:

I regret nothing C I have lived, I have loved, I have known laughter and dance and song, I have wept, I have sighed, I have prayed,

I have heard laughter of little children at dawn, I have seen exquisite sunsets.

I have found comfort with my friends, And griefs with my foes. I have pressed little white daisies to my lips.

But, so God bless me, I have no regrets C And should death come close beside me now and bid me follow Smiling still would I go, For though I leave some friends on earth, I go, I know not where, to join those who wait for me. Why should I sorrowing go? Have I not lived?

Goodbye Ma, and God's speed, from all of us who loved you.

St Andrew's Parish Church, Half-Way Tree

February 16, 2001

Lillian was a 14th. Generation Vernon.