Obituary of Mildred L. Roberts

Mildred Leonore Roberts (née Levy) was born on the 25th day of May 1944 in Russells, St. Elizabeth, Jamaica, to Olive Levy (née Findley) and Hurdley Levy. She was the fourth of six children. When Mildred was four years old, she went to live with her mother’s sister, Maisie Keane Dawes (“Aunt Maisie”), in Spanish Town. Mildred was a very bright child, and for high school, she was awarded a free place at Clarendon College where she boarded from 1957 to 1961. After graduation, she worked for the Parish Council of St. Catherine as part of the Clerical and Accounting Staff. Growing up, Aunt Maisie and her husband were very protective of Mildred and their daughter Pat, and wanted a safe space for the young women to socialize. To accomplish this, they built a club in their backyard called the Spartan Club, where young people could meet and have a good time. It was at the Spartan Club that Mildred would meet her future husband, David Norris Roberts. In 1965, Mildred was crowned Miss St. Catherine and subsequently competed in the Miss Jamaica Pageant. During the time Mildred and David’s relationship was developing, David was accepted to Cornell University, and he moved to Ithaca, New York. In January of 1966, she and David were married in Harlem, New York, and they began their lives as a married couple in Ithaca. Mildred worked as a bookkeeper for NCR, and in 1967, their first son David was born. In 1970, after her husband graduated from Cornell, the family returned to Jamaica and lived in Spanish Town. Shortly thereafter, in 1971, Mildred gave birth to their second son Jeffery (“Jeff”). In Spanish Town, the family lived in Bernard Lodge, Innswood, and on the Roberts family homestead (Angels Farm), before settling in Stony Hill, St. Andrew. Mildred worked in the school office at St. Andrew Prep in Kingston, where David and Jeff were students. Life in Jamaica in the 1970’s was an exciting time shared with several families who were also raising their young children and starting their careers. Mildred, her husband, and children spent numerous weekends and vacations with the Sun, Menzies, Rawles, and Christie families. In 1980, due to political unrest in Jamaica, the family emigrated from Jamaica to the United States and settled in Miami, Florida. Mildred resumed her bookkeeping career in Florida while raising her family. Five years later, in 1985, David was accepted to Cornell University, his father’s alma mater. And four years later, in 1989, Jeff was accepted to the University of Florida. After her marriage ended in 1990, Mildred’s home continued to serve as the home base for the family. Over the years, Mildred was not only a mother to David and Jeff, but she also embraced and became a second mother to family and friends who needed a place to live. Her big heart and kindness were shown in opening her home to her cousin, Pat, her nephews, Noel and Sean Roberts, and Jeff’s best friend, Gary Chin, and his brother Mark. Her sons’ friends from the neighborhood, high school, and college knew Mildred would always welcome them into her home. Mildred loved being a grandmother and showered her grandchildren with love and affection. Mildred’s favorite past-times were reading, window shopping, playing dominoes, and binge-watching Netflix. In 2011, Mildred retired and moved to Century Village in Pembroke Pines to be closer to her son Jeff and his family. During her retirement, Mildred spent time with her sons and their families and traveled to the annual summer family and friends reunions in Naples, FL. A highlight of her retirement years was a family cruise to Honduras, Belize, and Mexico in 2017. Mildred is preceded in death by her siblings Hubert, Derrick, Lorna, and Delroy. Mildred is survived by her two sons, David and Jeff; her sister Viris; cousin Pat; daughters-in-law Delcina and Jasmine; grandchildren Corena, Kyle, Solomon, Kendall, Cory, Jeffery, and Jaden; three great-grandchildren; and numerous nieces, nephews, grand-nieces, and grand-nephews. Please keep the Roberts family in your prayers. The Joseph A. Scarano Pines Memorial Chapel is Honored to assist the Roberts family with the arrangements.