The Mercy Sisters in Tralee were invited to an Open Day on March 7th, 2012 to view the new St. Patrick’s Day Centre in the renovated convent which Tralee Town Council had bought in 2002 after the amalgamation of the two secondary schools in Moyderwell and Balloonagh. It is part of the Regeneration Project in the area and what was once the Secondary School is now the Tobar Naofa Complex.
Several Sisters attended, many feeling very nostalgic for the old haunts and wondering what the area would look like now. We were very pleasantly surprised! The sod had been turned by Minister Michael Finneran accompanied by Arthur Spring, TD on July 16th, 2007. Where the secondary school stood there is now a 42 unit apartment complex including a caretaker’s residence. These lead the way in minimising energy waste in housing. The project is supported by the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland and is designed to “House of Tomorrow” standards with high quality insulation, heated by a woodchip boiler.
Stained Glass Window
The accommodation is fully accessible and is purpose designed for independent living by the elderly. Security is provided on-site. There is a landscaped courtyard overlooked by the old convent. Underfloor heating is provided. The complex was opened by John Gormley in 2009 and received two design awards that year.
Dining Room
When the Sisters arrived on invitation from the Town Clerk, Mr Michael Scannell and Town Manager, Mr Michael McMahon, we were given a very warm welcome. First there was a tour of the ground floor which was modified to meet the needs of a Day Care Centre managed by the HSE and it replaces an old Care Centre across the road. We looked in amazement at the beautiful new kitchen, painted white and with every modern convenience. The dining room and community room still retained the old flooring and windows. We were glad of a familiar sight as many Sisters couldn’t find their bearings until they came to the chapel! They have kept half the stalls and kneelers and, of course, the beautiful stained glass windows. The sacristy and parlour will be used for hairdressing and chiropody.
Michael Scannell, Town Clerk, Sr. Bernadette Costello, Sr. Maria Goretti Griffin, Sr. Carmel Downing, Sr. Baiste Leen & Sr. Maureen O’Sullivan
The back and front stairs remain the same, though with new carpets. On the first floor there are eight apartments with one or two bedrooms. There wasn’t a sign of our old “cells”! There was no furniture yet in these apartments but we will be invited to the official opening later on to see all this. With hindsight, many of us said what a lovely home for Sisters it would have made had we thought of it in time.
We were then invited to tea and cake and the Councillors sat with us. Some of them had been past pupils of the primary school and even met their old teachers! They acknowledged the support from the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, with funding of over two million euro. Forty people worked on site which provided a welcome boost to the local economy. Mr McMahon said it was fitting that a building used by the Mercy Sisters for over a century to serve the local community would now continue in a broadly similar role. The convent which had remained vacant for a decade had received a new lease of life.
Maureen O’Sullivan rsm
Southern Province
