Jun 19, 2026
Hospital founder Br. Rosario at the Paediatric Oncology Ward
Mary Immaculate Hospital is a rural hospital that has no state support and is located in a very remote area of Mapourdit, South Sudan.
Founded in 2002, the hospital has capacity of 134 beds to serve a catchment area of three counties (Yirol West, Mvolo and Rumbek East), with an estimated population of approximately 200,000 people. Many other people outside of the official catchment area also seek help from the hospital, which is extremely difficult to reach. Road transport is hugely undeveloped, meaning that people have towalk to the hospital or rent a motorbike to travel there, which is largely unaffordable for most.
Situated in a very isolated rural area, the hospital relies on solar-powered electricity, and borehole water which is piped to the various areas it is needed.
The hospital runs an ambulance service, which helps pregnant women who are bleeding heavily or are in labour, or very sick children. These are the only patients the ambulance has the capacity to serve, as the hospital can only afford to hire one ambulance driver.
There are currently 133 paid staff at the hospital. Last year, a total of 56,124 people presented at the outpatients department, while 8,274 patients were admitted for care. The team here also run a vaccination outreach programme which facilitates healthcare members visiting rural communities to provide essential immunisation to children in the region. The maternity department is an integral part of the hospital’s service, providing vital care to women in the region. Effective maternity care is nothing short of life-saving in a country with one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world.
Akol is pictured here with her grandmother, who cares for her. Her mother fell pregnant with Akol at the age of 16, before she was married. Akol’s father did not have the required number of cows needed to wed her mother, and a year later, a suitable match was found. Akol’s mother was married and left Akol in her grandmother’s care. One year later, Akol’s mother died in a subsequent pregnancy, from severe anaemia.
In January of this year, Akol’s jaw started swelling, and she arrived in Mapourdit Hospital at the end of the month, too weak to begin treatment. She was diagnosed with Burkitt Syndrome, an aggressive form of lymphoma which affects children in the area. She had to spend a month on the ward to build up her strength, including transfusions, in order to be able to begin chemotherapy. Her first chemotherapy session was in late February, and she has received four sessions since. Her fifth and final dose was postponed and she was waiting for this at the time of publication. Following this, she will spend a further two weeks at the hospital before being discharged, and she will be given a date to return for review at this point.
Pictured here is Br. Rosario, founder of the Mary Immaculate Hospital, teaching a young boy diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes how to inject himself with insulin. There is a serious issue with this type of diabetes in the region, and a severe shortage of insulin. The hospitals themselves cannot get insulin, and often, it is sold for a high price.
Br. Rosario provides insulin free of charge to those who need it. This young boy lives in an extremely rural, remote region without electricity and the necessary refrigeration facilities for the insulin. He therefore has to bury his insulin supply to keep it safe and as cool as possible.
The mission statement of the hospital is to provide “integral, affordable, accessible and sustainable health care for the people living in the hospital catchment area.”
“The hospital is therefore committed to a holistic, integrated and sustainable action in health. This includes disease prevention, curative treatment, health promotion, and facilitation of training of health workers. The most vulnerable members of the community remain the priority of the hospital, and the poor, blind and any other disable (including epileptic and psychiatric patients) known to the hospital are exempted from payment of user fees in order to ensure that they receive treatment whenever they fall sick.”
Please help us to help Br. Rosario, Sr. Dolorosa (Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart), and the hospital team to continue in their life-saving work.
Jun 19, 2026
“Much to do and dream of…”
The MSC CEPAGCO (Centre for the Poor Agriculture Cooperative) Multipurpose Cooperative is an award-winning cooperative in the Philippines, which is growing and thriving with a current total of 457 members. The cooperative describe themselves as “a grassroots, non-profit organization dedicated to taking care of the environment and the well-being of the people, and providing services to the community in terms of spiritual, pastoral and socio-economic needs”.
Each and every decision made by the cooperative aims to align with their mission to “Care for the Earth, Care for the People, Share the Surplus”.
“The climate crisis is most deeply felt by rural communities and smallholder farmers who depend directly on the land for survival,” explain the MSC CEPAGCO. Dependence on conventional electricity comes with a series of serious challenges, including high energy costs, an unreliable power supply, and due to this instability, frequent interruptions during important operations such as milling, drying, and storage.
The MSC CEPAGCO Multipurpose Cooperative manages a 7.66-hectare farm and agricultural hub which is home to a rice and corn mill, flatbed and solar dryers, barns, and an Earth Kitchen. This site serves as a vital centre for food security and sustainability, but is also poised to be a future Training Centre for Agriculture, which will model sustainable farming practices that can survive the various climate challenges that come with the location.
The cooperative now includes 457 members, and many of those involved are smallholder farmers. During harvest season, members have access to the cooperative’s facilities to help with milling, drying, and storage, to ensure that the post-harvest services are accessible and affordable for all.
Thanks to the support of the cooperative, many local farmers have been able to transition from synthetic to organic farming practices, with the cooperative itself a guaranteed purchaser of their produce. This strengthens both community livelihoods and local food security.
As the cooperative remains heavily dependent on electricity to operate, disruptions to the power supply compromise both member productivity and the quality of the products themselves. Rising energy costs also reduce profitability, and consume resources that could otherwise be used for expansion. As such, the cooperative is working to transition to a renewable energy source, through solar power, as a sustainable solution aligned with the ethos and vision of the MSC Centre for the Poor and the MSC CEPAGCO. This will not only reduce costs, but will also empower the MSC CEPAGCO community to actively model the use of sustainable energy in agriculture.
This summer, the MSC CEPAGCO are raising funding to install a new solar power system, with a battery back-up for critical operations in case of power interruptions. As well as reducing dependency on fossil fuels, this will also lower monthly energy costs, showcase the efficiency of renewable energy for the community, and strengthen the ethos of the co-operative’s climate action plan. With the rising cost of living and escalating operational costs, this will be an effective way to reduce energy costs and re-direct the savings made into the growth of the co-operative and development of its various sustainability programmes.
“By investing in this solar initiative, we are not only reducing costs and ensuring operational stability, but also building a model farm and training centre that demonstrates the power of renewable energy in advancing food security and climate action,” say the MSC CEPAGCO. “Beyond cooperative operations, this project will also directly benefit the 457 cooperative members, who can continue to access the cooperative’s post-harvest facilities during harvest season. As more farmers in San Luis are converting from synthetic to organic practices – with the cooperative serving as a guaranteed buyer of their yield – this solar project ensures that our facilities remain accessible, affordable, and sustainable for all members.”
Organic farming to protect the earth
The MSC CEPAGCO are also raising funds to launch a one-year programme focused on the conversion of 3.75 hectares of farmland in Talacogon, Agusan del Sur, changing current conventional farming methods over to organic practices. The programme aims to reverse damage to the soil, while improving food stability, empowering small farmers, and promoting climate justice.
“Decades of chemical-based agriculture have degraded soil fertility, reduced biodiversity, and deepened farmers’ dependency on expensive synthetic inputs,” explain the MSC CEPAGCO.
In Talacogon, Agusan del Sur, these challenges are particularly severe. Many small farmers in the region are suffering with rising costs, diminishing harvests, and unstable incomes, making long-term sustainability a great uncertainty in the region. In response to these issues, the MSC CEPAGCO are proposing this initiative, which will offer “a practical, community-driven solution that seeks to heal degraded soils, strengthen local economies, restore ecological balance, and empower farmers as leaders in sustainable food production”.
The year-long programme will cover two cropping cycles, and will cover costs including dedicated soil care and nourishment, and on-site training and mentoring for up to 50 local farmers. It will also develop demonstration farms, which will serve as training hubs to educate other famers in the region.
Developing solar-powered water pumps
In addition, the MSC CEPAGCO are currently working on the development of solar-powered water pumps to help farmers in conditions of severe drought. In April, Super El Niño brought about temperatures of 47°C, and many farms simply cannot survive the effects of this extreme heat.
The ongoing conflict in the Middle East, and the ensuing effects on fuel availability and cost, are also taking their told, as many of the farm’s systems currently depend on fuel pumps for operation.
“When food cannot be put on the table, all other problems become secondary,” writes Fr Richie Gomez MSC. “Our solutions, while technical in nature, also need social transformation and political will. If we know the problem well, then so the solution follows.”
Expert engineers are already developing prototypes of solar-powered water pumps specifically designed to suit the needs of the region, which would make an enormous difference to the farmers struggling with the challenges of extreme heat. For one community working approximately 500 acres of farmland, having five portable solar water pumps would make a tremendous difference.
“We are working to harness the power of the sun to drive sustainable agriculture,” writes Fr Richie. With the technology available to us today, we can combine this high-tech efficiency with clean, safe, sustainable power that will help to protect the ecological environment while benefitting the farming communities who are caring for the earth.
“With determination and collaboration, we can find sustainable solutions to support our farmers and strengthen our communities. There is so much to do and much to dream of,” says Fr Richie. From sharing resources, knowledge, and technology, to encouraging youth involvement in agriculture, to expanding renewable energy solutions and building sustainable food systems, the MSC CEPAGCO have a multitude of plans in the works for the coming months and years.
“Together, through innovation, collaboration, and determination, we can transform these challenges into opportunities and ensure a stronger future for our farmers and communities,” Fr Richie tells us.
Jun 18, 2026
The Pró-Criança (Pro-Child) Centre has been dedicated to taking care of vulnerable children in the region of Niterói, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, for almost 40 years.
The team here care for 60 youths, ranging in age from 6 to 14, promoting spiritual, physical, emotional, and intellectual wellbeing through a range of programmes and activities.
The centre provides the children with different services according to their age and needs, including help with homework, special assistance for children with learning difficulties, storytelling, educational films, arts and crafts workshops, and indoor and outdoor games that stimulate learning and development in various ways. These activities take place on weekdays, while meetings with parents are held monthly in order to maintain and strengthen communication between the centre’s team and the children’s families.
It costs just €60 to provide this care for one child for one month, a total which covers nutritious food, teaching materials, and funding for staff and building maintenance.
In 2024, our Summer Appeal raised funds for the Pró-Criança Centre, and thanks to the generosity of our mission friends and benefactors here in the Irish Province, enough money was raised to fund renovations for the classrooms, administrative offices, dining area, kitchen, and staff area, as well as funding essential monthly expenses such as food and supplies. All of the main renovations are due to be completed at the beginning of this summer, and now, the centre needs out help to equip their new space.
This summer, the Pró-Criança team need our help to raise funds to buy essential items for their newly refurbished centre, including computers, television units, furniture, kitchen utensils, materials for different activities and workshops, and an internal camera system for security. Our help is also needed to fund up-to-date training for the staff, to ensure the best possible care for the children at the centre.
The project team also need reliable transport to operate, as they carry food and supplies, carry out various visits, and provide assistance to families in vulnerable situations. Their current vehicle is no longer dependable and costs more and more just to maintain, so a new vehicle is essential to meet the ongoing needs of the programme.
This summer, the centre needs to raise €38,500 to be able to continue in their vital support for disadvantaged children. Can you help? We will keep you updated on how this programme is progressing.
May 28, 2026
This year, we’re celebrating the 60th anniversary of the MSC Missions Office on the Western Road, Cork, and as part of our anniversary commemorations, we’re looking back on old issues of our newsletter, the MSC Message, on a walk together down Memory Lane.
Nomafa’s Story
In the Summer 2011 edition of the MSC Message, we shared a letter from Nomafa Mabule, who was being cared for at Tshwaranang Hospice, located close to Ivory Park in South Africa. Nomafa’s words are particularly poignant, as she died just two weeks after writing this letter.
“They are like Florence Nightingale”
Hi people out there, I would like you to know something you don’t know. My name is Nomafa Eugenia Mabule, 57 years old. The doctor says I’m diagnosed with HIV & Kaposi’s Sarcoma Skin Cancer but to God everything is possible. When I came here to this Tshwaranang Hospice when people told me about it, I wanted myself here. I didn’t want me in my house. And every time I failed to get to the hospice here because of transport.
I was crying for a place I did not know, suddenly I came here stressed, did not eat well at home and not taking the medication well in time. When I came here after three days I was stress free and my family like it too.
This place is so cool and the Nurses sisters, Matron and all the staff are good, they all take good care of us. They are far better than the Nurses at the Hospitals; here they take good care of us.
They are really like the first Nurse I read about when I was schooling. Florence Nightingale; they are really volunteers of God, they serve God. To serve God is not only at church; even in places like this and people like them with their hearts.
At home our families are impatient with us especially because we mess ourselves up. We are here because people have dumped us. But when they come to visit us, they are glad that we are out of their hands, they really thank the staff of Tshwaranang, father Herman, the Matron, Sister, Caregivers, cleaners, and all who cook for us.
Thank you.
Yours faithfully
Nomafa Mabule
“Sadly Nomafa Mabule passed away on 11 December 2010, exactly two weeks after writing this note. Being HIV positive, she developed AIDS and Kaposi’s Sarcoma, a skin cancer typically associated with AIDS and always final. She spent two months at our hospice.”
Fr Herman van Dijk MSC
Project Manager Tshwaranang Hospice
Turning Sadness into Joy
Summer 2011 also gave us a lovely update from the Holy Family Care Centre in South Africa. Our mission friends will recognise the Holy Family community, and we still have a close friendship and support system with the Sisters in Ofcolaco 15 years later.
“Nestling under the majestic Drakensberg mountains lies Holy Family Care Centre; a little oasis for suffering and neglected children, run by the Sisters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart.
In 2001 the OLSH Sisters took charge of the property and opened a Care Centre for people with HIV/AIDS and for orphans. Today there are over 70 children in residence. Many come here, little bundles of suffering and broken humanity, but with proper nourishment and care and lots of love a new life emerges.
One co-worker named the place ‘Paradise’ and so it is. In a loving and friendly environment the children blossom and the sound of weeping finally gives way to one of joy and gladness. People come from every continent and are bedazzled by the warm spirit and sense of family that prevails. The small children attend crèche on the property while the older children attend primary and secondary school in the local villages. The children keep in touch with their own language and culture through the teachers and the many workers who are employed at the Centre. In this way we try to offer them as near an ordinary life as possible.
Holy Family has become widely known and people come to help always leave with great praise for the children, the staff and the great family spirit here. More recently the Centre was honoured with the Mopane District ‘Platinum Award’ for excellence, shortly followed by the Limpopo Province ‘Platinum Award and Gold Cup’ also for excellence. This is an acknowledgement of the work and family spirit that characterises this great undertaking.
The most recent development is the construction of an all purpose hall that will shelter the children on very hot or very wet days. Many of the children need special protection from the elements for health reasons. The new building is named Chevalier Hall in honour and memory of the founder of the MSC Priests and Sisters who established and run the centre today.”
A Searcher’s Prayer
Finally, Winter 2011 gave us a beautiful prayer for those looking for guidance and courage in confusing or troubled times.
Jesus, light of the world,
Shine your truth into my
confused heart.
So many choices lie before me:
things I’d like to do and ways
I’d like to go.
Give me courage to follow
my dreams,
and the wisdom to be realistic.
As the years unfold,
I look to you
to guide my searching,
bless my working,
deepen my loving and keep me safe.
Amen.
May 21, 2026
Earlier in the year, our MSC brothers in the Pemba district of Mozambique joined with the Shepherd Sisters for prayer, reflection, and celebration in the Oratory.
The Facebook page for MSC Mozambique shared photos from the day in late February, explaining: “The Oratory was born from something very simple and very revolutionary at the same time: a priest who decided to love young people before trying to correct them. St. Philip Neri did not create a complicated method, he created an environment. He gathered children and young people to pray, sing, talk, laugh and teach. He spoke of God as one who introduces a dear friend, not as one who imposes an obligation. Faith there was not a burden, it was breathing.”
“Basically, the Oratory is this: a place where the heart learns before the head,” they continued. “It doesn’t start with rules, it starts with presence.”
Our MSC mission in Mozambique was established in early 2018 in the Diocese of Pemba, where families and communities struggle greatly with poverty and the effects of civil war. The need for help in the region is very real, and the mission is continuously working to adapt and respond to serve the many and changing needs of the vulnerable and displaced, from emergency response to natural disasters, to the brutal impact of violence and political unrest.
The Irish Province of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart has a long friendship with our Mozambique mission, and through the years, the friendship and support of our mission friends and benefactors here at home has helped thousands of people across the district of Pemba. Thanks to your compassion, we have been able to bring about positive change to disadvantaged communities and vulnerable families across the diocese. In recent years, we have been working alongside Fr José and Fr Eduardo to raise funds to support those in real and urgent need, helping to provide essential aid and more hopeful prospects for those struggling in their circumstances.
The Mozambique mission continues, with Fr José Eduardo and Fr Roney responding to the changing needs of the communities in their care, and hope grows for the future with new MSC students beginning their missionary journey this year. As their Facebook page writes, “[We are reminded] that no one approaches God out of fear. He approaches through affection. And where there is true affection, faith flourishes almost without us noticing.”
We continue to journey alongside our MSC brothers in faith and affection, and we wish them every blessing and continues success on their mission.
Images via the Facebook page for MSC Mozambique.
HELP SUPPORT OUR MSC MISSIONS PROJECTS
May 14, 2026
An invitation to join us at our 2026 Novena to the Sacred Heart
Our annual MSC Novena to the Sacred Heart is a blessed time of reflection and thanksgiving, when we bring our prayers and petitions before the generous love of the Sacred Heart. This year’s Novena of Masses will take place from Thursday, June 4th to Friday, June 12th.
All are welcome to join in this year’s Novena Masses, which will take place daily at 10.00am and 8.00pm at the Sacred Heart Church on the Western Road, Cork. Daily Novena Masses will also be available to watch live, as we welcome those who cannot be with us in person.
The Sacred Heart Parish welcomes each and every one of our mission friends and parishioners, from near and far, to pray with us during this year’s Novena to the Sacred Heart.
“Leave everything in the Sacred Heart of Jesus and begin again with joy.”
~ St Teresa of Calcutta (1910-1997)
Be part of this year’s Novena to the Sacred Heart
At this special time of year, you can help us to help others by supporting our ongoing mission projects, and in gratitude for your contribution, we will be glad to remember your intentions at our daily Novena Masses. You can then submit your personal prayers and intentions online, and our MSC priests will remember your petitions specially throughout the course of the Novena.
This year’s Novena to the Sacred Heart will be celebrated by Fr John H. Walsh OP. Born in Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford, Fr John entered the Order of Preachers in Cork after leaving school. Educated in Maynooth, Oxford, and Rome, Fr. John has served as a preacher of parish missions and retreats, and was also promoter for the Rosary Apostolate and a superior of Dominican communities in Ireland. Presently, he is the director of the St. Martin Apostolate in Dublin and the editor of the St. Martin magazine, as well as promotor for itinerant preaching for the Irish Dominicans.
Each year, the Novena to the Sacred Heart offers great solace and comfort to all who take part, as we bring our prayers and personal intentions before the Sacred Heart of Jesus. As we continue to navigate the ongoing challenges of these turbulent times, we come together in the spirit of hope, reflection, and thanksgiving in the sacred space granted to us by the Novena. All are very welcome to join us, in person and online, for our Novena Masses as we come together to reflect and give thanks in the grace and love of the Sacred Heart.
Together, we pray that these nine days of prayer will be a grace-filled and blessed time for all involved.
MSC Sacred Heart Novena at the Sacred Heart Church, Western Road, Cork
Daily Novena Masses:
10.00am & 8.00pm
Day 1: Thursday, June 4th
10.00am & 8.00pm
Day 2: Friday, June 5th
10.00am & 8.00pm
Day 3: Saturday, June 6th
10.00am & 8.00pm
Day 4: Sunday, June 7th
10.00am & 8.00pm
Day 5: Monday, June 8th
10.00am & 8.00pm
Reconciliation services
Day 6: Tuesday, June 9th
10.00am & 8.00pm
Day 7: Wednesday, June 10th
10.00am & 8.00pm
*Please note there will be an additional Mass of Healing at 3.00pm in the Sacred Heart Hall*
Day 8: Thursday, June 11th
10.00am & 8.00pm
Day 9: Friday, June 12th – Feast of the Sacred Heart
10.00am & 8.00pm
For those who cannot be with us in person, you are very welcome to join us for our daily online Novena Masses on our live stream, united in spirit as we pray together as a great family of faith.
Novena Prayer to the Sacred Heart
O Divine Jesus, who said,
“Ask and you shall receive”,
I kneel at your feet.
From whom shall I ask if not from you,
whose heart is the source of all blessings.
With a lively faith in you,
I come to ask…
Share your petitions silently with the Sacred Heart.
I admit I am most unworthy of your favours, Jesus,
but this is not a reason for me to be discouraged.
You are the God of mercies and you will not refuse a contrite heart.
Look with pity on me,
I beg you, and your compassionate Heart
will find in my weakness a motive for granting my request.
Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, have mercy on me.
Amen.
