Wise Ones Australia

International Womens Day

I’d like to honour two women who had a significant effect on my life and therefore on WiseOnes.  Australia’s first saint, Mary McKillop, founded a teaching group of women with the vision of educating the poor.  I once visited a remote aboriginal community,  in a stony desert area in West Australia, as far from anywhere else as you could get, and there were two of her group, living in an ancient caravan and running a  school so the influence of Mary McKillop three quarters of  a century later was still felt. For me another amazing women was Sr Edmund, probably born after Mary’s death, but who was filled with Mary McKillop’s vision and with a great sense of humour.  Sr Edmund taught me in Grade 5, recognized my potential, organized free psychological assessent, coached me for free after school towards gaining a scholarship.  I passed the scholarship that year so missed grade 6 and also Grade 7. After a very hard year doing grade 8 , I gained a government scholarship and completed years 9 to 12.  For several years only one  other girl from my primary school at Frankston completed year 12. I found out later that my parents had gone without food to pay my train fare to secondary school.  Yes, I do appreciate that parents make sacrifices to provide the WiseOnes program for their fast learners.

So now you know why all WiseOnes Education Managers agree to provide a scholarship, from their own resources, to poor families with fast learner children. In the 12+ years so far that would be one scholarship per term per school for all WiseOnes schools, or 49 times the number of schools, well over 1500 scholarships and still going.  Thank these two amazing women teachers, Mary McKillop and Sr Edmund, whose passion for justice and equity in education and in opportunity for the future, combined with disciplined hard work and self sacrifice still lives on.  Mary has been dead for over 100 years and I’m sure Sr Edmund must be dead too, but their influence is still here.  There must be many others, inspired by their ideals, who are doing great things in our communities.

I’d like to express my appreciation of all the wonderful teachers who have worked and are workng with WiseOnes. Their contribution to the welfare of those who are difficult to provide for in schools,  ought to be recognized.  There is  a  great deal of unusual preparation in the work of a WiseOnes teacher but also great satisfaction and pleasure.  Please thank your WiseOnes teacher this week.  Pat Slattery