Remembering Sherma Jackson
18th August 2021
Ministry of Agriculture mourns the loss of one of its most dedicated workers
The mood at the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Barbuda Affairs is somber today (Wed), as it mourns the loss of one of its hard working staff members.
Sherma Jackson who was a Field Labourer passed this morning after a short illness.
She was 37.
Her Supervisor Mrs. Maudevere Bradford, in reflecting on her invaluable contribution to agriculture, said that Jackson was a Labourer at the highest scale of the Field Labourers.
“A very hard worker who was always consistent with her duties. She could have been relied upon to complete any given task in a timely manner without supervision,” Bradford recalled.
Jackson also excelled in a number of training programmes at the GARD Center and emerged at the top of the class in a programme held a few years ago.
Former Extension Officer –Administration, Mr. Sereno Benjamin was extremely proud of her achievement.
Jackson was also a top performer at a training course in Biogas that she attended in China in 2019.
Biogas is a renewable fuel produced by the breakdown of organic matter such as food scraps and animal waste.
Jackson was also very fond of organic agriculture and played a lead role in the management of the Vermiculture bin at the Experimental Station in collaboration with IICA.
She became ill in March this year, after she was seconded to CARDI to assist in field work activities.
She worked along well with Dr. Greg Robin and Bradbury Browne in the sweet potato characterization project done by CARDI in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture.
Bradford who has kept in touch with Jackson throughout her illness, fondly recalled, “ I spoke with her almost every day and she told me one day to buy her a pink dress and a pink converse sneakers because she wants to go to a party . Her last request was for me to buy her a diary with rainbow coloured pens. I spoke with her last night, she was hearing me, and they said she was responding but she was so too weak to let the words out. I told her to walk well and sleep well as she was tired.”
The Management and staff of the Ministry of Agriculture express sincere condolences to the family of Sherma Jackson and her contributions and passion to the growth and development of the agriculture sector will always be remembered.