Sisters to mark their centenary with a joyous floral celebration

Flower Festival at St Mary's Convent Nursing Home Friday 9 and Saturday 10 April 2010.

The Sisters of the Society of St Margaret are marking the centenary of their arrival at St Mary's Convent Nursing Home with a joyous celebration in flowers.

Sister Jennifer Anne SSM says “We hope to welcome as many visitors as possible to share our celebrations. Just after Easter is a wonderful time to enjoy the spring flowers, both in the displays and in the Convent garden, and to give thanks to God for his goodness. It also gives us a moment to remember all those who have lived and worked here for a hundred years and those who still today provide a caring home for many.”

On Friday 9 and Saturday 10 April 2010 St Mary’s Convent will open its doors for people to visit the Convent and see behind the familiar railings and red brick walls.

All the local churches associated with the Convent, as well as other friends of the Convent and local Brownies, are putting floral displays in the Chapel and corridors of the Convent on the theme of ‘I am the Resurrection and the Life’ (St John Chapter 6 v 35).

Visitors will have the opportunity to see the beautiful gardens which form an oasis of calm, just yards away from the bustle and noise of the Hogarth Roundabout and main roads out of London. They will also be able to meet some of the Sisters, carers and residents. In the gardens there will be a Treasure Hunt for children based on a flower fairy theme.

For a hundred years the Convent has been a place of caring for the elderly and infirm, run by the Sisters of the Society of St Margaret. Nowadays the Convent is home to over 60 residents, cared for by 95 staff, as well as 5 Sisters, two Labradors and a large ginger cat.

In 2001 a major fundraising campaign for £1.6 million was set up to fund the refurbishments required to bring the Nursing Home up to standard to comply with the new Care Home Regulations. By 2004 all the new building works were completed and paid for – a huge tribute to the importance to the Chiswick community of the work of the Sisters and staff. Since then new lifts and seating areas have been added.

The Convent provides care to many local residents and is very much part of the Chiswick community.

In 1996 Pamela Myers wrote about the history of what is now called St. Mary’s Convent and Nursing Home from the time Mary Jones, an associate of Florence Nightingale and a pioneer in nursing reform, founded the Community of St. Mary and St. John in 1867. She ended with the building of St. Joseph’s Wing, completed in 1992. As part of the centenary celebrations, Sheila White has continued Mrs Myers history up to the present day. ‘A Legacy of Care’ will be published in April 2010.

March 30, 2010