Mercy Partners acknowledge and pay respect to the traditional owners, the Yuggera, Turrbal, Jagera and Ugarapul People, recognising Elders past and present, on whose land we walk, work and live.
"Nano Nagle" © Jen Norton www.jennortonartstudio.com
The Sisters of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary were founded in 1775 in Cork, Ireland by Honora “Nano” Nagle. Nano Nagle was a courageous Irish woman who responded to the needs of the poor at a time when Catholic education was severely restricted under the Penal Laws. She secretly educated children and cared for the sick and elderly, often walking the streets at night by lantern light, earning her the title “Lady of the Lantern.”
The Sisters of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary devoted themselves to the education and care of the poor, especially women and children who were denied access to learning and basic services.
The Presentation Sisters arrived in Australia in 1866, establishing their first convent and school in Tasmania. On 13 February 1900, the Queensland Presentation Congregation was founded in Longreach, a pastoral town in Central Outback Queensland.
To learn more about Nano Nagle, Mercy Partners has published a book exploring the Presentation charism, Keeping the Lantern Burning – Preserving, Nurturing, Reimagining the Presentation Charism.
The Presentation ministries entrusted to Mercy Partners are:
St Ursula's College, c1938
St Ursula’s College
In 1915, Rockhampton Bishop Joseph Shiel proposed the establishment of a branch house in Yeppoon for the Sisters of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary (PBVM). Mother Ursula Kennedy and Mother Patrick Madden visited Yeppoon and selected a one-acre site in Queen Street. At Bishop Shiel’s suggestion, the new convent was named St Ursula’s.
The two-storey St Ursula’s Convent, which also housed St Joseph’s Primary School on the ground floor, was officially opened and blessed on 21 January 1917. Twenty-five boarders and about thirty primary students commenced classes later that month. St Ursula’s College was subsequently established as a secondary school and formally opened on 12 March 1918 with an enrolment of 32 students.
St Ursula’s College was entrusted to the care of Mercy Partners by the Queensland Presentation Sisters on 12 June 2014.
Opening Day of St Rita's College, September 1926
St Rita’s College
In 1926, the Presentation Sisters purchased Stanley Hall and its surrounding grounds at Clayfield to establish a new Catholic school. The acquisition was negotiated by Mother Ursula Kennedy and Mother Patrick Madden, whose vision was to expand educational opportunities for young women in Brisbane. Securing the property required considerable financial commitment, and the Sisters relied on the generosity of benefactors, including the Martin family of Springsure/Emerald, and support from the local Catholic community, including the parish priest, Fr O’Connell.
St Rita’s College was officially blessed and opened on 26 September 1926. From these modest beginnings, the College grew steadily, continuing the Presentation Sisters’ tradition of faith-based education, service, and academic excellence.
Mother Ursula Kennedy PBVM
Mother Patrick Madden PBVM
1
Acknowledgement of Country
