Please join us in wishing birthday blessings to Sister Susan Frazer, RSM, MSW, Area Administrator of the Sisters of Mercy in Jamaica who operate the Alpha School of Music and the Alpha Vocational Training Centre.
Born in Michigan in the United States, Sister Susan arrived in Jamaica in her mid 20s and has now spent the better part of her life in Jamaica. Sister arrived in 1973 but wasn't sure if this was the right fit, until she had to leave.
"I went home for four years and worked in a hospital," Sister Susan told the Jamaica Observer. "And then I knew [Jamaica] was where I had to be. So, I turned right around and came back."
From her base in Mandeville on the property of the St John Bosco Vocational Training Centre, Sister Susan supervises all the activities of the Sisters of Mercy in Jamaica. Over the past few years this has included major renovations at St John Bosco, the Alpha Vocational Training Centre and the Alpha School of Music in Kingston. Each of these training institutions are now among the most modern in the region.
"People ask why I am doing this thing at [at my age], and I say it’s not about me,” she said. “It’s only God that continues to keep me here and the work that I do is not mine. Every religious community has something that’s special. The Mercy Sisters, for me, did things more with the poor. They were educators... if they wanted to teach, they wanted to teach the poorer schools. That was it.”
The Sisters of Mercy are always focused on the bigger picture. Vocational training is a stepping stone to professional and personal development. As Sister Susan says, "Life lessons are woven through this work, the ups and the downs,” she said. Thanks to Sister Susan and the Sisters of Mercy, things are looking up at Alpha.
