Gertrude Roberts is dead. She was the former minister for community development and women affairs. She was aged 90. Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit and several top personalities have continued to pay tribute to her memories. The UWP and the Dominica National Council of Women (DNCW) also sent their condolences.
Gertrude Roberts was a foremost teacher and school principal in her lifetime. She was a one-time UWP parliamentarian who represented the Morne Jaune/Riviere Cyrique constituency. Originally from Grand Fond, she was appointed Minister for Community Development and Women Affairs from 1995 to 2000, and also worked as an advocate for women rights, gender equality, and better life for the poor.
She taught at the Delices Government School in 1950 and became the principal of the school in 1957. She qualified as a teacher after finishing from the Leeward Islands Teachers College in Antigua in 1959 and later the University of New Castle Upon Tyne in 1970. She worked as the Headmistress of the Grand Fond School and later the La Plaine School, where she diligently helped many students to pass their Common Entrance High School examinations.
Roberts was awarded the Meritorious Award in 1973 for her introducing the Community Oriented Approach to Primary Education in Dominica. Many people in the education sector regarded her as their mentor and guide. She was the other of Gretta Roberts, the DLP candidate for Grand Fond, Morne Jaune/Riviere Cyrique constituency in the coming elections.
Prime Minister Skerrit said she was a maternal figure to many people across the country, and gave credit to her immense contribution to the educational sector.
“We have all been touched in some way by her contributions to Dominica at various levels, from her community outreach to her stellar teaching career, followed by her leadership as a parliamentary representative,” Skerrit stated.
Josephine Dublin Prince, Public Relations Officer of the Dominica National Council of Women (DNCW), commended the departed educator for helping charity organizations to sustain the interests of the aged and those in various career fields.
Former UWP Prime Minister, Edison James, also praised Roberts for being of significant help to the UWP party during her lifetime, saying she was an outstanding individual and examplary citizen.
Tributes continue to pour in from various quarters of the country and the Caribbean to eulogize the lifetime of the departed politician and educationist.
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