On 1st September 2009 the Sisters of Charity in the English/Scottish Province celebrated an important event in the life of the Province as they gathered to lay the Foundation Stone for their new Convent in Hackney, London. The Sisters have been in Hackney and served the people in the East-End of London since 1900.
They went there on the invitation of the Cardinal Archbishop of Westminster, Herbert Vaughan and also Fr. James Gallwey sj. Since then they have been a constant presence in Hackney, apart from the years they were forced to evacuate to Bath during the war. In January 1905 St. Joseph’s Hospice welcomed its first patients. Over the years the site has grown like a mustard seed and as the Foundation Stone was laid, those present remembered all the Sisters who had laboured in very difficult times to bring hope and safety to all who came to them. Sr. Jacinta Boland, the Provincial Leader, spoke to the gathered assembly and told them “We are deeply grateful for all the support we have been given by the people of the East End and beyond. The generous people who have given their all in terms of time and finance has enabled us to continue the work begun in 1900. We feel our presence in the East-End is important and want to ensure we can remain as close to our Foundation as possible.”
Below – Sisters gather in Hackney as the Foundation Stone for the new convent is laid by Sr. Jacinta Boland RSC, Provincial Leader.
