The spirit of Bermudian philanthropist the late Maria Benn-Ible is still remembered by many.

A plaque commemorating the contributions she made to children at the Sunshine League was recently erected in Hamilton.

Maria Benn-Ible's annual block party, at the end of the summer, was the highlight of the year in a Sunshine League calendar which four decades ago did not see too many interesting activities.

Brownlow Adderley attended his first Maria Benn block party when he was just five years old.

"I went to her seventh party and from then it was the highlight of the year for me,'' he said. "We all looked forward to the annual party because there were very limited things for us to do. It was great because it happened right at the end of summer and was the last activity before we went back to school.'' Now more than 30 years later, Mr. Adderley -- president of Children of Hope -- said he realised the difficulty and commitment it took to carry out such a charitable venture.

"Just getting involved recently in charity I recognise the effort and commitment it takes to putting something like that on,'' Mr. Adderley said, "and when I thought that she had been doing it for 40 years, I came to realise that she was a really great woman.'' The plaque has been erected on a wall at the corner of King and Elliott Streets. It was here that for 40 years the road was closed off to vehicular traffic and transformed into the celebratory block party.

Maria Benn in bronze: Brownlow Adderley, president of the Children of Hope, stands next to the plaque commemorating the work and spirit of businesswoman and philanthropist Maria Benn-Ible.