facebook Aged-care ministry in Papua New Guinea - Missionaries of the Sacred Heart
11 Aug 2022

Early in 2021, the Irish Province of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart joined forces with the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart in Papua New Guinea to raise funds for a laundry in their aged-care centre in Port Moresby, as part of our annual MSC World Projects Appeal.

The Hartzer Centre is an aged-care facility attached to the main convent in Port Moresby, the country’s capital, where the Sisters care for elderly OLSH Sisters and MSC missionary priests who have devoted their lives to serving the people of Papua New Guinea. Eight rooms are dedicated to the care of elderly residents at the centre, and it was an ongoing worry that the facility did not have a dedicated laundry area of its own, with nurses carrying all dirty laundry through the convent dining room to reach the communal washing area. This has been a pressing hygiene concern, especially in the face of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

In December of last year, Sr Rosaleen O’Brien contacted us with an update on progress on the new laundry facilities being installed in the Hartzer Centre – progress that had been slowed considerably due to the effects of the COVID pandemic. We have been delighted to receive further updates in recent weeks, with thanks to our benefactors for their help in getting the project completed.

“Please convey our gratitude to all of the donors for their great contribution to the laundry project for our aged-care facility,” writes Sr Rosaleen. “We have at long last completed the work which has taken time because of COVID, and also a lack of materials when needed.”

“I do not know what to say, as it is such a help to us here – especially with our infirm patients, who, in this climate, need a lot of care each day,” Sr Rosaleen continues. “Sr Gabriella and her helpers are truly happy with this project.”

“We continue to pray for each person who has donated money for this important project, especially during the COVID pandemic, which is still affecting so many people around the world.”

         

We add our thanks to those of our OLSH Sisters; the ongoing support of our mission friends and benefactors here in the Irish Province provides immeasurable encouragement to our Sacred Heart family around the world, especially in these particularly challenging times. Sincere thanks to all who helped to provide these essential facilities for the elderly residents of the Hartzer Centre, and to all who continue to offer their friendship and their prayers as we continue on our shared missionary journey to make God’s love known everywhere.

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