“Once you belong to a Mercy community, you will always have a home.”- Kiara Peter
In 2015, St. Teresa’s School in Rosebank, Johannesburg and Assumption High School in Louisville, Kentucky, initiated the Mercy Exchange Programme. All those involved in this exercise found it to be most worthwhile and an excellent avenue for the students of both schools to grow in their understanding and experience of Mercy on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. It was agreed that the programme would continue this year.
In April, Kiara Peter, Sabrina Benvenuti, Claire Vieira and Hannah McLoughlin from St. Teresa’s travelled to Louisville to spend a month in Louisville and in June, Sydney Haydon, Emma Sternberg, Sophia Cappeletti and Bella Beilman from Assumption High paid a return visit to their “sisters”.
The eight exchange students
The students gave glowing reports at the end of the programme. Hannah McLoughlin: “My trip to Louisville, Kentucky and this experience as a whole, has been so eye-opening. I have learnt so much, from something as simple as how to survive being away from home to something as remarkable as how the Mercy values that I know are the same as those in a different part of the world. It was extraordinary to realise and see how there can be a school, just like ours, with the same beliefs and attitudes – and even more noticeable – such similar students. I think the explanation for this is the fact that both St. Teresa’s School and Assumption High School follow the same core values: those of Mercy values. Seeing these values at Assumption only made me realise how prominent these values are in my own school too. I have realised that we are not so different after all.”
Claire Vieira was impressed by the kindness of everyone: “Assumption High school, like St. Teresa’s was founded by the Sisters of Mercy and that is what links our two schools. Going to school every day with Emma, I could see very clearly that our schools were similar despite being on different continents and that is thanks to the Mercy values that connect us. Walking down the halls of Assumption with my three South African “sisters” by my side, in our blue striped blazers, school uniform and black school shoes, you might think that we would have felt slightly isolated, but it was the complete opposite. We were welcomed by students and staff alike and before long it was as though our blue stripes were transforming into maroon ones.
All the girls at Assumption High were hospitable and made us feel right at home. We were included in lessons and extracurricular activities as far as possible. The general acceptance of all who walked the halls is what struck me the most. The girls at Assumption truly cared about one another. They were a family just like St. Teresa’s and the Mercy values were at the centre of everything that they did.
I could not be more grateful to the incredible Grade 11 class at St. Teresa’s. They welcomed our American sisters in a way that I had never expected. They were kind, helpful and hospitable, always including the girls at any available opportunity.
Making friends with the children in St. Teresa’s Primary School
The South African girls have good memories of some of the Assumption High’s traditions. Sabrina Benvenuti: “One of the many experiences that really affected me and is a cherished memory of my time in Louisville was being a part of the annual Pink and White Game which is the result of an amazing Assumption tradition – the Senior Dream. This is a programme where every senior student (the equivalent of our matric class) has a dream or a wish which she proposes to the school and they help her to achieve that dream. One senior dream started a tradition that has been going for the past 9 years. This dream was for Assumption seniors to play a football match against their rival catholic girls’ school, while the boys from their two brother schools are the cheerleaders for the game. All of the proceeds would go to the research of breast cancer, and therefore it was named the Pink and White game.
“Another amazing tradition that Assumption has is their annual Ring Ceremony, where the seniors of the current year present the juniors with their senior ring as a sign of handing over the leadership role for the next year. It is a beautiful ceremony where all of the girls get dressed up and gather together while the class president of the two grades deliver a short handover speech. I think it a lovely tradition as each of the girls gets their own personal ring, often with engravings, which they can keep forever to remember their time in high school. In some ways it is similar to our Rosebud programme in which our matric girls welcome our grade 7s and 8s into high school by being their mentor and guide.
In turn, we were able to show the visiting Assumption students our Youth Day celebrations and how each year we use the day to support a charity or cause. They also visited the Mercy House shelter for women who are victims of human trafficking and domestic violence, which was really an eye-opening experience for all of us.”
Getting close to the wild life of South Africa
Kiara Peter summed up her experience with these words: “Apart from learning about how to interact with people who have been raised differently to me, new subjects, independence and thinking skills, I think that the most significant thing I learnt from this experience is that, at a basic level, all people are going through the same things. There is poverty in America and there is poverty here, there is pressure to perform well there and the same is true here. I think that if more people were able to open their eyes and realise that none of us, regardless of religion, heritage, sexuality, gender or ethnicity are really that different at all, there would be significantly less conflict in the world.
The global Mercy World has provided a foundation for new relationships, friendships and bonds to be built, all while helping other people. Thank you for showing me that regardless of how different a place may seem, the Mercy spirit is global and people will always be helped because of it.
Colleen Wilkinson rsm
South African Province
