WelCom December 2023
Jane Langham
A farewell afternoon tea was held for Srs Francine McGovern sm and Margaret Vaney sm, at Our Lady of Hope, Tawa, on 28 October. The Sisters are the last of many Marist Sisters who have ministered in the Archdiocese of Wellington over the last 70 years, including in Tawa for 27 years.
Several parishioners, past and present, along with Sr Margaret’s brother Fr Neil Vaney and their sister, gathered to hear tributes from parish priest Fr Rico de la Torre and parishioner Eileen Mackey. Sr Francine and Sr Margaret spoke with affection of their many years in Tawa.
Marist unit leader for Aotearoa New Zealand, Sr Jane O’Carroll, who was unable to attend, sent her thoughts that were read out.
‘The story of the Marist Sisters in the Archdiocese of Wellington has its roots in 1940 when the Karori-Northland parish was formed. The Marist Sisters were invited to respond, but being wartime, their arrival was delayed. They arrived in Wellington on 31 January 1942, the Saturday before school opened. A house in Karori was made available to the Sisters. They stayed in the area of St Teresa’s School Karori until the early 2000s. Four Sisters moved to Tawa in October 1996. October 2023 – twenty-seven years later, we are about to leave. Time flies so fast!
‘King Solomon made a profound statement in Ecclesiastes 3:1 that there’s “a season and a time for every purpose under heaven”!
‘That verse is like the fabric of our Marist religious life, lived out in mission and ministry, wherever we are and with whomsoever God sends.
‘We are missionary by the nature of our Marist charism – it is a life of being in a place and with people for a while and then moving on as needs change.
‘I thank God for the Assumptionist and present clergy and parishioners, past and present, in our parish of Tawa. You have all been a tremendous blessing to Francine and Margaret and to all the Marist Sisters who have been here. I’m sure their hearts are full of memories and I know they appreciate you all very much.’
The parish of Our Lady of Hope wishes Sr Francine and Sr Margaret every blessing for their next stage of life with the Marist Sisters in Auckland.