Sister Mary Ignatius is one of the Roman Catholic nuns who nurtured several generations of Jamaican musicians at Alpha Boys' School over the last 60 years. She was one of Rico Rodriguez teachers when he attended Alpha school in the late 1940s.
She was called a mentor and friend to many of her pupils, often children who did not know their parents, among them some of the great Jamaican musicians.
She received the Badge of Honour for service to the nation in 1996.
Her most recent project is the development of a museum of musical memories at Alpha. Mounted on display are Don Drummond's trombone, Tommy McCook's tenor saxophone, Roland Alphanso's flute and Bertie King's alto saxophone.
Sister Ignatius was taken to the
UHWI on Saturday, Feb. 8, 2003 after a heart attack. She died at
the University Hospital of the West Indies (UHWI) the next night.