Ballyshannon to Bugisi and Beyond
The Heart and the Hands of a Mercy Sister reach out to where the feet would never go.
Sr Imelda Burke, CFM, and children from Bugisi, Tanzania sporting knitwear which Sr Imelda carefully crafted in Ballyshannon.
And this is so true of the many silent and unassuming missionaries scattered throughout Ireland who spend hours working quietly in the background for the less well-off and disadvantaged in distant lands throughout the world. They are the “joyful missionary disciples” of whom Pope Francis speaks of in his Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Gaudium (The Joy of the Gospel).
Sr. Imelda Burke, a Sister of Mercy from Ballyshannon, Co. Donegal who celebrated her 90th birthday recently with her nieces, nephews and family friends in her native homeland in Gurteen, Co. Galway is indeed one of these ‘missionary disciples.’ She would indeed make Pope Francis proud as she worked tirelessly and faithfully for the missions in Africa, especially in Tanzania. She is as Pope Francis says “permanently in a state of mission” (Evang. Gaudium).
It would seem that Sister Imelda had originally hoped to become a Missionary Sister, leaving her family and home in Gurteen and setting out into Africa but that was not to be…. Instead God called her to be a Sister of Mercy and she spent her life teaching in primary schools throughout ‘the homes of Donegal’. However that missionary spirit remained embedded deep within her heart.
Sr Imelda, a woman of boundless energy and foresight sought out ways and means of continuing her mission when she retired officially from teaching and it was during this time that an opportunity came her way to fulfil her deepest yearning to be a Missionary Sister. She met Sr Margaret Cummins (A Missionary Sister of Our Lady of Apostles) and mentioned that she too had wanted to be a ‘Missionary Sister’ but that did not happen. Sr Margaret told her that she could be a missionary anywhere at any time, and introduced her to the knitting needles, and wool to provide kitted blankets, cardigans, sweaters, baby caps and socks for the newly born babies and little children in Tanzania. Imelda lost no time, she was off to purchase wool in the nearby stores and off she went on a mission of compassion and works of mercy – providing warm clothing and blankets for babies and children to the great joy of the mothers. Soon boxes of blankets and knitwear were on their way to Tanzania. Charity shops as far south as Schull, west Cork occasionally purchased some of the knitwear and the money provided breakfast for hundreds of pupils attending summer school in Mamapalala and of course sweets which are a luxury for many are on the table also. This is what Sr Anne Cahill; Sister of Our Lady of Apostles who works in Mwamapalala, Tanzania, and originally from Co. Cork, has to say:
"Thanks to the people of Ireland and especially to Sr Imelda from Donegal we have hosted a Christmas party for the children these last few years. Usually we have our annual party on the Sunday following Christmas Day but this year it is planned for New Year’s Day - We normally have between four hundred and five hundred children in attendance at the party but this year we are expecting at least 600 to come for the celebration! In the days leading-up to it, we prepare hundreds of ‘goodie bags’ with some sweets, biscuits, colouring pencils, balloons etc, for the children…." - (Sr Anne’s Christmas letter, Dec 2016).
Children in Mwamapalala, Tanzania await the annual Christmas party at the OLA mission area in the village.
Thank you Sr Imelda for helping to provide the Christmas Day party again this year and our heartiest congratulations to you on your 90th birthday from the OLA Sisters and from all the mums and babies in Mamapalala and Bugisi, Tanzania!
