Sr Colette speaking in St Mary’s Convent Chapel, Watermill Rd, Raheny to her former pupils who she thought through the 50s, 60s and 70s. Photo: John McElroy. A tribute event for a former teacher and religious sister of the Order of the Poor Servants of the Mother of God was held in Dublin to give former pupils an opportunity to offer thanks for her work.
Sr Colette taught in Manor House Junior School in Raheny. More than 70 men and women gathered in St Mary’s Convent on Watermill Road to honour their much-loved Junior Infant teacher.
Sr Colette (or Sr Pauline as she is now known) taught them during the 1950s, 60s and 70s. Now, some 70 years later, there were many happy memories and anecdotes shared throughout the evening.
One former pupil recalled the religious processions that were held on the tennis courts throughout the month of May and the gathering burst into a rendition of the well-known Marian hymn ‘May is the Month of Mary’.
Many also remembered the time that Sr Colette spent teaching the phonetic alphabet, with this too resulting in a spontaneous recitation of it by those present. The hours that Sr Colette had spent coaching her pupils and encouraging them to express themselves through elocution lessons and the recitation of poetry took many of them as adults into boardrooms, business, medicine, nursing, the arts, industry, other classrooms and in raising and encouraging children of their own.
In a statement after the gathering, the organisers said: “She was an extraordinary teacher, a lover of life, a proud and devout Sister of the Poor Servants of the Mother of God, who spent her professional life teaching and empowering children and was remembered with great fondness by all present – many of whom had travelled considerable distances to be there on the day.
“By way of acknowledging the influence that Sr Colette had had on their lives, her former pupils made a substantial donation to be used to enhance the experience of 4-year-old pupils who are just starting their educational journey in East Africa where the Order of the Poor Servants of the Mother of God work in schools, hospital, and communities in the region.”
Sr Colette expressed her gratitude for their generosity and assured them that their donation would be used to improve the lives of many 4-year-olds in Kenya and Tanzania.