Finance Minister's mother, Dr Maura Imbert, laid to rest

Dr Maura (Mary) Imbert, who was laid to rest on Tuesday, was described as an extraordinary woman by her son Minister of Finance Colm Imbert.

Imbert, 94, died on November 9 after suffering a stroke four months ago.

Although one of her sons is a well-established politician, that was not her "claim to fame."

Reading one of the eulogies during the funeral at the Church of the Assumption, Maraval, her brother-in-law and chairman of the board of governors of the University of TT Prof Clement Imbert said Maura – as she preferred to be called – had numerous successes in her work in biochemistry, literature and, especially, astronomy.

For her work on the latter, she was awarded the Chaconia Gold Medal in 2019.

She was a co-founder of the TT Astronomical Society, where she served as president for 30 years and was involved in the videotaping of a star near one of Uranus' moons which is considered to be a once-in-a-lifetime event.

Imbert also researched the archaeoastronomy – the study of how past people incorporated their understanding of spacial phenomena in their culture – of Amerindians and the possibility of a "tropical Stonehenge" in Antigua.

This Stonehenge, named after the organisation of prehistoric stone monoliths in Salisbury Plain, England, is a series of stone features in Greenhill Castle, Antigua, which is also believed to be an ancient observatory.

In his eulogy, Colm Imbert said he was surprised at the outpouring of condolences from people in astronomy.

"Even Dr Amery Browne (Foreign and Caricom Affairs Minister) told me he studied under my mother or visited when she was in charge of the Astronomical Society.

"I was introduced to astronomy at age five, so by the time I was ten, I had enough of it. So as she became president of the Astronomical Society I was not involved."

Colm is one of Imbert's three children along with Michael and Fiona (deceased).

In paying homage, the Astronomical Society commended Imbert's work on Lee's Funeral Directors website's tribute page.

"Dr Imbert was instrumental in inspiring and educating many in the field of astronomy and leaves an illustrious and distinguished legacy unmatched.

"We are forever thankful and privileged for her publications and her determination in acquiring telescopes and materials to improve the viewing of the cosmos."

Imbert was also the principal scientist at the Caribbean Industrial Research Institute (CARIRI), where she patented a food preservative based on spices that could be used as a substitute for chemical preservatives in some beverages.

Clement said the preservative was successfully incorporated into local soft drinks and rum punch.

He said Imbert also introduced the idea of microbial-enhanced oil recovery to Trintoc, where she was a director.

The Finance Minister said his mother's achievements were so vast that he was not aware of some of them. With these, he said, she lived a full life.

"She was a remarkable woman, from all of the expressions of condolence and fond memories that I've had, from all of the people who would have interacted with her."

Clement thanked the medical teams at the Mt Hope and Arima hospitals for taking care of her in her last moments.

Among those at the funeral were the Prime Minister, several members of the Cabinet, members of the PNM executive and staff of the Finance Ministry.