The Sisters of Mercy have been honoured for their lifelong commitment to education and health care in Killarney at a civic reception accorded by the town council.
KillarneyToday.com reports on what was a very special night for those who have dedicated their lives to caring for and encouraging others
THE remarkable contribution made by the Sisters of Mercy in the areas of education and health care in Killarney has been recognised at a civic reception hosted by the town council.
The order will celebrate its 170th anniversary this year and the milestone event was celebrated at the function, hosted by acting mayor Cllr Michael Gleeson, in the town hall on Thursday night.
Cllr Gleeson said it was a very special privilege to recognise the sisters who had enhanced and enriched the lives of the young and the unwell in the community for so many years.
The order was established at a time of great poverty and hardship and they devoted their lives to caring for the sick and educating thousands of children in such an impressive and dedicated manner, he said.
“Killarney owes you a deep gratitude for the work done, for the dedication shown and the commitment you have given. We acknowledge your honest endeavour,” he added.
Reflecting on the order’s work in education, Cllr Gleeson remarked: “You filled young minds with literacy and knowledge. You gave them the ability to dream dreams and to look beyond circumstances that were not always favourable. You lead and inspired by word and example.”
He also praised the sisters for their work in health care, particularly in the Killarney hospitals where they tended to the sick and the less fortunate in the community.
“Many people in this town benefited from the consolation of a kindly word or the reassurance of a gentle touch. There is no greater accolade in life than knowing that those entrusted in your care emerged with the benefit of an education and better health,” Cllr Gleeson added.
Cllr Seán Counihan said he has very fond memories of his days attending the Mercy Convent primary school and he still takes great pride from the fact that he captained the first Mercy football team to beat their counterparts in the Presentation Convent.
Cllr Niall O’Callaghan, another past pupil, thanked Sr Colette Dennehy for giving him his first “star” on a copybook but he also recalled the day he was the cause of a screech filling the corridors of the convent when a nun spotted him kicking the heads off all the daffodils in the flower garden.
Cllr Tom Doherty told the nuns at the civic reception that they must have had a big influence on Cllrs Counihan and O’Callaghan as he never saw them sitting up so straight in their seats.
“170 years is a lot of history and you have earned great respect for the quality of your work in education and in the hospitals,” he said.
Cllr Donal Grady said that although he was a Pres boy, the Sisters of Mercy were all very familiar to him, as they have played a part in everybody’s lives in Killarney.
“The hospitals of today are a lot poorer because we don’t have the order of nuns there,” he said.
Cllr Cathal Walshe, who was educated by the Mercy Order in Galway, paid particular tribute to Sr Pius O’Brien for her terrific work with the Kerry Stars Special Olympics Club and he said she was most passionate about her involvement with that organisation.
“My granddaughters, Rebecca and Amy, both go to the Mercy primary school in Killarney and they are so contented and so happy there. I hope you’re as happy with them,” he said.
Responding on behalf of the order, Sr Carmel O’Leary said it was the then Bishop of Kerry, Cornelius Egan, who invited the Mercy nuns to set up in Killarney in the mid 1800s when he contacted the Mother Superior in Limerick.
Four sisters duly arrived in the town at a very difficult time, when there was no convent, no services and real poverty. They set up home in a house owned by Mr and Mrs Galwey on High Street – where O’Shea’s Tyre and Battery Centre now stands – and they later opened classrooms on College Street on the site currently occupied by the Arbutus Hotel.
The Earl of Kenmare later donated a site where the convent and primary school now stands, on the Rock Road/New Road junction.
“Those four sisters were the foundation stones for the Mercy Order in Killarney,” said Sr Carmel.
The nuns soon built up primary and secondary schools and the old workhouses and Famine hospital were developed into St Columbanus’ Home and St Anne’s District Hospital.
The order was soon spearheading a number of innovative community enterprises such as the Mercy Laundry which created employment for local girls and provided a top class service to the local hotel industry.
The lace and embroidery industry also became a very successful venture and it is said that Queen Victoria actually purchased some of the Mercy lace when she visited Killarney in 1861.
