Aug 5, 2021
We were delighted to received recent communication from our OLSH Sisters in South Sudan, where a project funded by generous donations from our mission friends here in the Irish Province will see a new vegetable garden, with its own solar-powered irrigation system, established in Aluakluak, Mapuordit.
The Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart recently marked 25 years of service in South Sudan, where they have been involved in everything from education and nursing to general pastoral work. The region of Mapuordit is currently home to a small community of OLSH Sisters who minister to the needs of families in the area, facilitating the care and education of over 700 children at nursery and primary level.
Since 2020, the Irish Province of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart have been helping our OLSH family in South Sudan, by raising funds to build gardens around the OLSH schools in Mapuordit, which will help to provide a stable and sustainable source of food and water to families in the region who have very little. Further fundraising took place in 2021 as part of our annual MSC World Projects Appeal, with a wonderfully generous response from our mission friends here in the Irish Province.
The Sisters grow vegetables such as sweet potatoes and green vegetables for consumption by local families, using the natural resources available to provide a much-needed food source. The land in the region is extremely fertile, but with six months of regular rain and a six-month dry season, the gardens need a simple irrigation system, made up of bores which are drilled and fitted with a pump, a tank, and a watering system, to allow them to be used on a year-round basis.
These gardens are used to grow a variety of vegetables, and, when cultivated to their full potential, will be hugely beneficial in the long-term provision of nutritious food supplies to local families, who are up against a daily struggle to afford to feed their children. The gardens are an investment which will provide years upon years of profit to local communities, from being a source of nutritious food to providing local students who tend to the crops with the physical and mental benefits of gardening.
A place to grow in Aluakluak
The current project aims to provide a fully solar-powered irrigation system for a garden that will assist in supplementing a food supply for at least 30 families in the region of Mapuordit, especially during the six-month dry season in the area.
The initial plans placed the project in the Jur area of South Sudan, with preliminary meetings taking place at state level, at regional level, and at a local level, with the local Jur chiefs involved in the decision-making process as a location was chosen. However, project supervisor Sr Rita Grunke FDNSC reports that an “intense disunity” and “instability” among the Jur chiefs meant that it was “impossible to proceed” in the proposed location at this time.
The decision was then made for the project to go ahead in Aluakluak, an extremely active area of the parish where “a strong, dedicated women’s group” had been applying for funding for a development such as this one for several years. Here, the garden will be located between the primary school, which currently has approximately 560 students enrolled, and the nursery, which last year catered to 160 registered students. Both the primary school and nursery are run by the parish at a very high standard, with older Primary 8 students having won places at the Loreto Girls’ Secondary School and the De La Salle Boys’ School, both located in Rumbek.
Families of the primary and nursery students in Aluakluak will all benefit greatly from the project; the students themselves will have vegetables to supplement their school meals, and parents will be able to take away vegetables for evening meals for their families.
“A community willing to help itself.”
In February of this year, a well was installed to provide a source of water for the garden in Aluakluak. “Things move slowly in the region,” explains Sr Jenny Christie FDNSC, International Development Office for the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart. “All of the materials have to be brought in from elsewhere, and then the workmen have to be available” – and naturally, COVID restrictions and lockdowns have made progress even more challenging in recent times.
Despite the challenges, the local community has been working together to ensure progress moves as efficiently as possible, where 25 ladies from the area each dug four holes for the metal fence posts.
Project supervisor Sr Rita Grunke FDNSC expresses her “deep gratitude and blessings abundant” for the €25,000 funding sent by our MSC Missions Office here in the Irish Province, as without irrigation, crops cannot be grown, and local people will be unable to become more self-sufficient and develop their own food security.
“Deep gratitude for your generous involvement in this project,” writes Sr Rita. “Be assured it will serve very needy families, as well as a community that is willing to help itself.”
“Thank you for keeping Mapuordit alive.”
LEARN MORE ABOUT OLSH GLOBAL OUTREACH
Jul 15, 2021
The wonderful pictures were taken by the OLSH community in Marigondon, Lapu-Lapu City, in the Philippines, where the blessing of a new water system took place in the spring.
The OLSH clinic in Marigondon was established over 20 years ago, offering healthcare to the poor in the region. The facility is mainly for maternity care, but also caters to the general community in caring for medical issues. People travel from surrounding villages, and even from other islands located close by, to access the health services facilitated by the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart here.
Malnutrition is a significant issue in the area, due to a combination of poverty and a lack of awareness regarding proper diet. This problem is particularly prevalent in children, pregnant women, and the elderly, and the OLSH Sisters at the Marigondon Clinic do their best to offer effective treatment, with an established feeding programme in place, along with essential education on nutrition.
The clinic offers pre-natal examinations for pregnant women, and many of these expectant mothers go on to give birth in the facility. Women who may be experiencing issues or difficulties are referred to local hospitals, with financial assistance from the OLSH community, and these ladies are often transported for hospital care in the official clinic vehicle.
While patients await their medical consultation, they are given instruction and education in terms of nutrition and self-care. Expectant mothers are instructed in taking proper care of themselves and their babies, with strict attention on the personal hygiene of both mother and child.
In addition to the provision of vital healthcare, the clinic also offers employment opportunities to many local people in need of work, from the construction of buildings to the establishment of factories.
The new water system was blessed at the end of March, with great joy and gratitude. With this new system in place, guaranteeing better hygiene facilities, the OLSH Sisters at the clinic are able to continue their dedicated work in caring for expectant mothers, new families, and the general community in Marigondon and beyond, bringing “hope and light” to “poor and sometimes hopeless patients”.
Images via the MSC Mission Office Philippines, Inc. on Facebook, and the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Australia website.
Learn more about OLSH Global Outreach
Jun 2, 2021
It is with great joy that we celebrate with our Sacred Heart Sisters, the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, on the feast day of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, which took place on May 30th.
The official Facebook page for the Kiribati Province of the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart shared photos of the celebrations from across Kiribati, Samoa, and Fiji. Marking the day in style, the OLSH communities in the Pacific Ocean rejoiced with prayer, song, floral tributes – and even a slice of cake or two!
The Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart continue in their mission of faith and love all over the world, bringing hope to those who suffer innumerable hardships including poverty, illness, hunger, isolation, and fear. The OLSH Sisters do invaluable work on a global scale, from education projects in the Philippines, South Africa, Venezuela, Brazil, and South Sudan, to the provision of emergency aid to the survivors of domestic abuse in Kiribati. The OLSH Sisters also founded the Holy Family Care Centre in South Africa, where they currently care for 70 children who have been abandoned, abused, or are suffering the effects of serious illness such as HIV/AIDS and TB.
Over the past year, as the COVID-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc around the world, their ministry has been more valuable than ever before. Acknowledging the effects of the coronavirus across the globe, the Kiribati Sisters wrote, “May this pandemic bring new hope, trust, and love as Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, today and tomorrow.”
The Irish Province of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart adds their prayers to those of the Kiribati Sisters, with every grace and blessing of our extended Sacred Heart family.
Images via the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Kiribati Province on Facebook.
PLEASE SUPPORT OLSH GLOBAL OUTREACH
May 5, 2021
The motto of the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart is the same as ourselves; after all, we are family. It is short and to the point, but also profound, rich, and as relevant today as it ever was. It is, “To be on earth the Heart of God.” You could spend a lifetime considering what this might mean or you could simply look at what it is like when it is put into action.
In my first piece on my mission to South Sudan, I spoke about two of our sisters that I met by coincidence in Juba. They were on the same flight as me, but on arrival in Rumbek they still had a long journey before they got back to their community in Mapourdit, a former refugee town that has grown up around the hospital and school the Church built. The trip would take them along flooded roads, where they would need to wade hundreds of yards across water up to their waist, and through insecure areas, where violence is still depressingly commonplace. It is only journey of 88km, but could easily take them up to half a day, if not more.
Deo gratias
Still, they didn’t complain. They were used to it. In fact, they were used to considerably worse as the Daughters have been here for over twenty-five years. In that time, they have had to contend with the struggle for the independence of South Sudan, the subsequent and tragic civil war, imprisonment, far too many snakes, plenty of rats, you name it really. In the booklet for the celebration of the Silver Jubilee of the mission the Daughters in South Sudan, they used two words to express what they felt after all that time: Deo gratias or thank God.
The reason I’m writing the article now is that last Saturday we travelled to Mapourdit to celebrate the 80th birthday of one of the community, Sr Rita Grunke. Sr Rita has been here since 2004 and has devoted herself to the community building, especially among the local women. She would spend extended periods of time travelling around the countryside, building up grassroots development, and sleeping out under the stars in a rough, but practical, tent.
Living out the Good News
I was especially privileged to celebrate Mass for her that morning, with the other sisters, the members of the wonderful Comboni community next door who run the hospital, and the local people that have helped to build up the mission over the years. It was simple and beautiful as we broke the bread and shared the word of God together under a corrugated metal roof next to their kitchen. On the wall looking down on us was a painting of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart by a South Sudanese artist. In 1875, St Daniel Comboni, who was one of the pioneers of the Catholic mission in South Sudan, wrote to our founder, Fr Jules Chevalier, and consecrated the entire country to Our Lady of the Sacred Heart.
Almost 150 years later, we continue in that same gentle, but powerful spirituality. In many ways so much has changed and moved on, yet at the same time the needs remain the same. Religious sisters, brothers, and priests have set up schools and hospitals, working with local clergy and lay people to build a better future. Now with the arrival of the new bishop elect, we are looking towards a renewed sense of evangelisation that moves beyond just providing the necessities for survival. It is a living out of the Good News and the building up of the local Church. It is encountering the love of Jesus in the people that we serve and together building up the Kingdom of God. For that opportunity we can only say, Deo gratias.
Fr Alan
Read more from Fr Alan’s missionary journey in South Sudan:
PLEASE HELP US TO TRANSFORM LIVES IN SOUTH SUDAN
Apr 29, 2021
The advent of May, the month dedicated to Mary, brings us longer evenings, warm sunshine, blossom in abundance – and above all, a sense of hope and quiet joy in the certainty of brighter days to come.
This May, we remain restricted in our movements as we take tentative steps towards emerging from national lockdown. In keeping with the time-honoured tradition of honouring Mary throughout the month of May, we invite you to create your own May altar in your home, a daily opportunity for reflection, thanksgiving, and peaceful prayer to Our Lady.
You can prepare your altar on any small, flat space, such as a table, a shelf, a windowsill, a bookshelf, or a mantelpiece. A statue or picture of Our Lady is placed in the centre of the space, on a white or blue piece of cloth, and the altar is then adorned with flowers of all types. Many people choose to use wild flowers, which are in plentiful supply at this time of year, while others prefer to use flowers traditionally dedicated to the Blessed Virgin, such as white lilies (symbolic of her purity) or roses (a symbol of her love of God).
Complete your altar with a candle. Take some time each day to light this and pause in quiet prayer, on your own or with family, in a moment of rest and reflection amid the hustle and bustle of our daily lives.
Many people pray the rosary daily at their May altar, asking for Our Lady’s intercession. Below, you’ll also find Pope Francis’ Prayer to Mary during the coronavirus pandemic.
You can browse a selection of Our Lady statues and candles in our Cards & Gifts section, if you would like to find something special for your May altar at home.
With every grace and blessing of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart for a peaceful, prayerful, and healthy month of May.
Pope Francis’ Prayer to Mary
O Mary,
you always shine on our path
as a sign of salvation and of hope.
We entrust ourselves to you, Health of the Sick,
who at the cross took part in Jesus’ pain, keeping your faith firm.
You, Salvation of the Roman People,
know what we need,
and we are sure you will provide
so that, as in Cana of Galilee,
we may return to joy and to feasting
after this time of trial.
Help us, Mother of Divine Love,
to conform to the will of the Father
and to do as we are told by Jesus,
who has taken upon himself our sufferings
and carried our sorrows
to lead us, through the cross,
to the joy of the resurrection. Amen.
Under your protection, we seek refuge, Holy Mother of God. Do not disdain the entreaties of we who are in trial, but deliver us from every danger, O glorious and blessed Virgin.
