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The
Missionary Sisters of Our Lady of Africa arrived to
Uganda in 1902. Since then they have had a continual
presence in the country.
They
started teaching women catechists, opened schools, Teachers
Training Centers, Hospitals, Women Clubs, and they helped
with the formation of two Ugandan religious congregations:
the Banyabikira and the Banyatereza.
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Sr.
Angela Kapitingana, MSOLA from Tanzania , at the hospital
during her training as a nursein Uganda.
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The
work of the sisters : past and present
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| Carolina
Garcia (Center) from Spain worked in Kisubi counselling
HIV-AIDs patients. On Mission Sunday she organized some
special activities with the girls of Kisubi Primary. |
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Kisubi
community
Kisubi
is a small center between Entebbe and Kampala. It
is situated on a hill bathed by the Lake Victoria.
The first school that the MSOLA started after there
arrival in 1905, has become today an educational complex:
primary and secondary School andTechnical School,
Art Center, Boarding... The small clinic, became soon
a hospital, that has been directed by our sisters
till they handed it over to the Gogonya sisters (from
the diocese).
Today
the MSOLA have no institution in Uganda. They handed
them over to the Ugandan, able to manage them.
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The
MSOLA community at Kisubi.
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| The
MSOLA community of Kisubi. |
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The
MSOLA actually take care of other services
more needed today: Homecare and Counselling
of HIV/AIDs patients; management at the
Medical Store, Pastoral of the Family.
The
community of Kisubi is the welcoming community
of Uganda for young women who want to
know the Missionary life of the MSOLA,
and for the postulants.
Some
of the sisters of the community take care
of the Missionary and Vocation Animation.
They communicate to the young people the
enthusiasm for the missionary vocation
and helps them to discern where God is
calling them.
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| Sr.
Marlis with two postulants. |
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At
the Medical Store
Sr.
Marlis works at the Joint Medical Store (JMS), an Ecumenical
venture where the main Christian Churches of the country
are involved.
The
JMS provides medicines to all the mission hospitals
and health centres in the country. Thanks to their work
and organization medicines arrive regularly to the remotests
parts of the country.
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| Sr.
Marlis Gaul (from Germany) is a nurse. Here she is taking
care of Madelena, a girl who has no brain and whom she
is following since her birth.
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2001
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| Sr.
Anne-Marie Specht at the Nursing School of Villa
Maria. |
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VILLA
MARIA HOSPITAL: 100 YEARS LATER
In
Uganda, on August 9th 1902, Villa Maria was
giving a rousing welcome to its first 4 sisters.
They immediately opened a school and took in
hand the already existing hospital consisting
of some nice round huts built with sun-dried
bricks.. Then vocations to the consecrated life
began to appear everywhere and in 1908 when
Mother Mechtilde returned from the Chapter in
Algiers, she opened the first novitiate of the
Bannabikira at Villa Maria
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70 years
later, in 1972 the health services of Villa Maria included
a general hospital, a maternity centre, a nutrition unit,
the out patient clinics and 3 out-stations with child welfare
and antenatal clinics. The MSOLA were thinking that time
had come to hand all this over gradually to a Ugandan Sisterhood.
.Because their congregation had long focussed its efforts
in the catechetical and educational fields, there were not
many Bannabikira trained for health work, but those few
were well qualified. The Hospital was handed over to them
on September 5th 1979 and the White Sisters left Villa Maria.
In 1984
a Nurses' Training School (NTS) was added to the existing
facilities. Unfortunately this school was without a resident
tutor since the middle of 1995 and the Nursing Council threatened
to close it if the situation did not change. During 1996,
when I was still at the NTS of Virika (Fort Portal), different
people and the Uganda Nursing Council contacted me and requested
my services as tutor of Villa Maria.
I had been leading the Rubaga Nurses' Training School in
Kampala for almost 20 years (1975-1993), and the NTC of
Virika (Fort Portal) since then. I was ready to put my experience
to work as tutor or counsellor.
Nevertheless
I was not very keen on leading another NTS. But if I did
not answer the request the Nurses' Training School were
to be closed. This would be a loss for the diocese and Villa
Maria Hospital would be badly hit; After a discernment with
the Provincial Superior, it was decided that I could take
on the Villa Maria NTS as Principal Tutor. So in January
2nd 1997, I received my new appointment, to help for some
years in Villa Maria Nurses' Training School.
In 1999
Denise Augsburger joined Anna Maria. She did pastoral work
and vocational animation in the diocese and in the neighboring
region.
The
welcome was overwhelming, warm and sincere. All over Villa
Maria it was announced that the White Sisters were back.
Accommodation was prepared for me in one of the oldest buildings
of the compound that our sisters had built and lived in.
I felt like being the continuation of our ancestors, following
their footsteps, carried away by our common charism…
It was really like "coming back home"; I was proud
and grateful to be a MSOLA and to have been called to Villa
Maria. My mission there, which I consider as a special gift
will last for five years and a half.
And there came the Centenary! On 8-10 August 2002, Villa
Maria Hospital was celebrating its hundred years of existence.
During the three days of festivities, the "White Sisters",
as the Ancestors, were praised and thanked. Those celebrations
were also the farewell of the two last White Sisters from
Villa Maria. A Munabikira Sister had qualified as a tutor
and was taking over the responsibility of the Nurses' Training
School.
and I we could look forward to another mission!
Looking
back at. what has been done, I see it as a positive development
for all the people of Villa Maria and of Masaka Diocese,
thanks to the close collaboration between the Bannabikira
Sisters and the Missionary Sisters of Our Lady of Africa
and with all those who had been called together for this
apostolate at. the service of the sick.
Sr.
Anna Maria Specht, Trier, Germany
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| From
left to right: Sr. Victoria Niyonzima (Burundi),
Sr. Elisabeth Villemure (Canada), Sr. Angela Kapitingana
(Tanzania). |
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Seminars
at Kisubi for
young women
Holding
seminars remains one of our best means of animation.
We
"Evangelize the young by the young".
This is now possible because there are Ugandan
MSOLA novices and postulants.
Correspondence
with the young people who are interested in
missionary life can be quite interesting.
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From
left to right: Lucy, Sr. Marie Cloutier and Marie
Veronique. The two young girls attended the Seminarorganized
by the MSOLA.
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"My
friend was very interested in the pamphlet you sent me.
She is a Moslem but she is ready to convert"! Joyce.
"I
was a child when Sr. Lise Alarie, MSOLA, was with us at
Ndeeba. I liked so much the work she was doing with the
people that I chose your congregation immediately. Now,
I am big enough to apply". Laetitia.
"I
have found my man… I prayed a lot to know what to do…
I shall always love MSOLA and I shall keep in touch".
Allen, Law student, got married in Dec. 2002.
Last
year, Joan Apadet and Agnes Nakiguli gave a vocation seminar
at Ibanda/Kasese where Joan had lived her first community
experience. It went very well! Two of the 17 participants
have now applied to join us.
Harriet,
Justine and Berna who have spent one year in community with
us, as postulants will have a month holiday before going
to Arusha. During this time all three will go to Justine's
and Berna's parishes for a seminar. The Parish Priests are
very cooperative while Justine's mother is zealously keeping
an eye on the preparations in her parish.
"Can
I join MSOLA if one parent is a protestant? If my parents
are not properly married? Can a girl become a sister if
she has tried sex? If she has been raped? Why don't you
wear a veil like the other Sisters? If my parents die, shall
I be allowed to come home?"
These
are some of the typical questions coming from the young
women. We profit by them to go deeper into some topics.
All
in all, we are living an encouraging period now, in Uganda!
Marie
Cloutier, Kisubi, Uganda
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Sr.
Elisabeth Villemure and
Sr. Maria Pouliot, visiting the
family of one of our
Ugandan sisters: Revocata Kabahuma.
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