SHE is a year shy of 100, but the achievements of Sybil Francis could not go unrecognised.

Known for her work as an esteemed social worker for over 70 years, garnering the respect of her peers, the Jamaica Government and international organisations, Francis has earned for herself a name well known in the social work environment.

As she celebrated her 99th birthday with fellow social workers, family and friends in the Sybil Francis Seminar Room at the UWI last Monday, a humble Francis sat listening to the accolades bestowed on her as Strength of a woman by Shaggy and She’s Royal by Tarrus Riley thumped in the air.

The room was named after her in 2004 out of respect for her contribution to social and welfare services.

“I feel wonderful to have served in this field,” a beaming Francis told the Jamaica Observer after the formal celebrations were over.

“This was my dream since I was young. I have always done social work — all my life I could imagine. Voluntary social work is something that is good to do, it just seems like the natural thing,” Francis said. “It didn’t seem as if we were doing anything special. In fact, I believe I have learnt more than I have given,” she said humbly. “I think that is the case with all of us (social workers),” she added.

In 1999, the North American and Caribbean Association of Schools of Social Work (NACASSW) presented its first award for distinguished service in the field of Social Work Education — both regionally and internationally to Francis.

During her 80s, Francis was still very actively involved as a consultant and part-time lecturer in various aspects of services for the aged in social welfare, social development and social work education functions.

From 1940-1962 she worked with the Government of Jamaica as a pioneer social welfare officer, undertaking a variety of community development programmes in rural land settlement areas and housing development projects.

From 1958-1962 she was one of the first women to hold the post of assistant permanent secretary in the Ministry of Housing and Social Welfare.

Francis also participated in major planning and policy development activities as Executive Committee member of the Council of Voluntary Social Services from its inception in 1940, later serving as chairperson from 1966 to 1968.

She was a board member of the Jamaica Social Welfare Commission (the National Community Development Agency) from 1952 to 1962, and also chair of the Planning Committee for a seminal national conference on ‘Social Needs of a changing community — Social development in Jamaica’ (1961).

Francis joined the University of the West Indies, Department of Extra Mural Studies in 1962 as the first tutor in Social Work, with responsibility for the University’s short-term and outreach work training programmes offered at the Social Welfare Training Centre in the Department of Extra Mural Studies (now named School of Continuing Studies).

She served in the post until 1979 when she reached retirement age but was retained as a consultant to the vice chancellor to continue working in a variety of social work/social development education and programme initiation functions for a further 10 years.

During her 27 years at the UWI, Francis spearheaded the development of the Caribbean Child Development Centre which began in 1972, with major sponsorship from UNICEF; In 1974, initiated with the support of SIDA (the Swedish Development Agency), a Family Planning/Family Life Education Programme for training health and education personnel as a unit of the SWTC. In 1976, she helped to introduce the University’s first programme in Human Resource Development; and in 1977, she initiated the development of what became established as an autonomous unit in the Extra Mural Department – the Woman and Development Unit (WAND).

Francis also ran a number of short regional training workshops in Community Development in various parts of the Caribbean.

Francis said that when the Social Welfare Training Centre was started in 1962, the university was not aware of its existence on its property.

“When we started, we started very simple. The university didn’t even know that we were here until it was finished,” Francis recalled with a broad smile. “But it turned out to be more than we had expected. One of the things that I am proud of is that we never had to ask the university for money. In fact, we brought money to the university.”

She stated that money to fund the centre came from collective begging.

“I tell you we could each look a job as professional beggars,” Francis laughed. “That is putting it lightly, but the people have been so supportive of the programme. And the university supported every single thing that we have done.”

While she never had children of her own, Francis was quick to inform that she mothered many.

“I don’t have any children of my own but I have dozens of children,” she said.

Francis attended Wolmer’s Girls’ School and was one of the first persons to receive formal social work education, completing a two-year Certificate in Social Sciences and Administration at London School of Economics in 1946.

While in England, she got a job working with British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) doing the programme Girl about Town, where she travelled across England interviewing Jamaicans for her on-air programme. This she did for three years.

Francis was in England during the war and her sharp memory and quick tongue will readily produce stories of occurrences during that time… incidents including the ride on the famous Banana boat from Jamaica to England, along with the blackouts that occurred, and the D-Day.

Prof Denise Eldemire-Shearer, director of Mona Aging and Wellness Centre, describes Francis as a gentle woman who was a powerhouse with a lot of passion for whatever she was working on at the time.

“She left no stones unturned to achieve what she needed to achieve and she did this without offending anyone,” Eldemire-Shearer said. “She was very generous in sharing her knowledge. She knew how to mobilise and empower people. Her heyday was when she was in her ’70s and ’80s, we just couldn’t allow her to retire and go home and sit down with all that knowledge. She is 100 years ahead of her time,” Eldemire-Shearer said.

As a result, after her retirement, Francis was a consultant and lecturer at the University of the West Indies, in private sector companies and with NGOs in the area of pre-retirement planning.

From 1994-1996 she was consultant to the minister of labour, welfare and sports on matters relating to the elderly and in 1995, she was a member of the National Preparatory Committee for the International Conference on Women (Beijing 1995) and she was an invited international observer at the White House Conference on Aging.

Francis has done a number of publications including a hallmark piece on “Evolution of Community Development in Jamaica 1937-1962” published in The Caribbean Quarterly Journal; articles on community development and aging, in the International Journal of Adult Education, and the Danish Medical Bulletin.

In 1997, she was a contributor to a Continuing Education Manual for Young Adults published by the Caribbean Regional Council for Adult Education.