Maria Conceição Fernandes

Maria Conceição Fernandes — Aunty Concy to the whole of Aldona — was born on 8 December 1940, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, a coincidence her mother always said was no coincidence at all. She spent her entire life in the same house in Aldona, Goa, where the jackfruit tree in the courtyard grew taller than the roof and her kitchen was the most beloved room in the village.

Maria completed her schooling at Our Lady of Grace High School and trained as a teacher, spending 32 years at the local primary school teaching English. Former students — now doctors, engineers, and grandparents themselves — still write of her with a reverence that says everything about the impression she left.

She married Eduardo Fernandes in 1964 and they built a life of simple joy: church every Sunday, the Feast of St. Francis Xavier every December, and a table that was never too small for one more person. Eduardo preceded her in death in 2018, and Maria spent her remaining years surrounded by her four children, eleven grandchildren, and a garden she tended with ferocious devotion.

She was a gifted cook whose sorpotel, bebinca, and prawn curry were legendary in three parishes. She made her rosary every evening without fail and believed, absolutely, that prayer was the most practical thing a person could do.

Maria Conceição Fernandes passed peacefully on 22 October 2024, holding her daughter's hand, completely at peace. She is survived by her children Anthony, Clara, Joseph, and Rosa, and a community that loved her completely.

• 32 years as a primary school teacher, shaping generations in Aldona
• Awarded Best Teacher by the Goa State Education Department, 1987
• Founded the parish women's choir at St. Thomas Church, which she led for 28 years
• Preserved 40 traditional Goan recipes in a handwritten book passed to her children
• Organised annual village feast celebrations for over three decades