Maria Anderson Roberto

Maria Anderson Roberto
Born	1880  Guam
Died	Culion
Occupation	Nurse
Employer	United States Navy

Maria Anderson Roberto (born 1880) was a chaperone for the Native Nurses program in Guam from 1914 to 1924 during the US Naval occupation of the island.

Early life

Roberto was born in 1880 on Guam.[1]

Career

Guam's naval hospital in 1917, while Roberto was a Nurse Chaperone

In 1914, Roberto was hired by the US navy as a chaperone for the Native Nurses program.[1] Roberto's employment as a nurse chaperone was a concession by the US Navy, who realized they needed a culturally-appropriate woman to care for the CHamoru nursing students.[2] In CHamoru culture, unmarried women were always accompanied by a chaperone, who was typically an older woman or close male relative.[2] Her presence allowed these women to participate in the program without breaking cultural traditions.[2] She protected and nurtured the students as they trained at the naval hospital, helping them pass exams and serving as a "surrogate mother."[2] Additionally, as a respected CHamoru woman, Roberto bridged the general distrust for the naval administration and Western healthcare practices. She was an important intermediary figure, translating between Chamorro and English.[3] In Della Knight's 1922 tribute, which was published in the American Journal of Nursing, she stated that Roberto held "together the fabric of the work built up by the Navy nurses."[3] She was well-respected by parents, students, and navy hospital staff.[2]

Hansen's disease diagnosis and death

In 1924, Roberto contracted Hansen's Disease.[1] She was deported to Culion, where the US Navy had established a leper colony.[4] Roberto's deportation caused mass community outrage and grief throughout the island.[4]

Her fate after deportation is unknown.[1] It is assumed she died on the island.[1]

References

1. "Maria Anderson Roberto - Guampedia". www.guampedia.com. 2012-03-11. Retrieved 2023-06-29.
2. Hattori, Anne Perez (2004). Colonial Dis-Ease: U.S. Navy Health Policies and the Chamorros of Guam, 1898–1941. University of Hawai'i Press. p. 83. doi:10.2307/j.ctvvn1xk. ISBN 978-0-8248-2808-0. JSTOR j.ctvvn1xk.
3. "Foreign Department". The American Journal of Nursing. 22 (9): 736–738. 1922. doi:10.2307/3406400. ISSN 0002-936X. JSTOR 3406400.
4. Hattori, Anne Perez; University of Hawaii at Manoa (2004). Colonial dis-ease: US Navy health policies and the Chamorros of Guam, 1898 - 1941. Pacific islands monograph series. Honolulu: Center for Pacific Islands Studies, School of Hawaiian, Asian, and Pacific Studies, University of Hawai'i Press. pp. 112–113. ISBN 978-0-8248-2808-0.