2nd July 2013

Mary Philomena Fyfe was born here in Bentleigh on 21st July 1947, the fourth child of Daisy and Keith Fyfe.  Sid, our elder brother now deceased was eighteen years old; I was fourteen and Malcolm here was twelve.  In fact it was Malcolm who, after dad returned from serving in the Army during WW2 wanted “the stork” to call again at the Fyfe residence and he kept pestering Mum and Dad… and so a much loved and cherished new born baby girl named Mary Philomena completed our family - which included our grandfather, Mum’s dad who lived with us for twenty years.

Both dad and grandfather were converts to Catholicism.  As a family our ancestry – of much interest to Mary – was English, Irish and Scottish.  We learnt, among other interesting tit bits that we had a great, great uncle an Anglican Bishop who became a Catholic priest!

In some ways Mary grew up as an only child but the family was always in contact with each other  and relatives were all important.  We all remember family picnics, family special occasions, wonderful celebrations at Christmas and Easter time and of course, there was always Saturday football – following faithfully the best team in the AFL – wait for it - The Mighty Demons – last Premiership 1964 – but Melbourne did win last Saturday by three points.  Did you have a hand in that Mary?

At the age of four Mary had two very bad accidents – one involving internal injuries and the other a fall from the back seat of our car as it was travelling up the Hume Highway.  Recovery from both these accidents was seen as quite miraculous.

Mary went to Primary School here at St Pauls – she remembers learning to write the Our Father in Grade One in the early Fifties by the jigsaw method.  The children had to select the words in the right order from a pool of Flash Cards and standing on a chair because they were too small to reach high enough – slide the words one by one into a specially constructed Display Board. One student per day performed this task so by the time you had watched fifty or sixty students do this, Mary said you got the hang of it!!!  

Mary then went on to OLSH College here in Bentleigh where she was heavily involved in school life – sport, student leadership, Junior Legion of Mary, YCS and social welfare.  She matriculated in 1964 and continued to keep in touch with girls from her year right up until the end.   After entering the Daughters of Our lady of the Sacred Heart in 1963,  Mary gained her Teaching Certificate and completed an Arts Degree at Monash, where she distinguished herself in Philosophy and Japanese Language Studies. She also studied at Catholic Theological  College and later completed a Masters Degree in Education at the University of NSW.

As a baby, Mary was consecrated to Our Lady in the convent chapel here at Bentleigh.  Mum was a daily Mass goer and Mary usually accompanied her.  Mary was often seen sitting on the Church steps after Mass -  resting her head on her elbow while she waited patiently for Mum to finish her Legion Prayers!  Mary learnt from Mum and Dad a great kindness and compassion towards others.  Mum’s injunction to us all was “Never speak ill of anybody.”  
Dad’s work for charity – he built and raffled three Dream Homes for the MSC Missions  and the children’s Hospital Melbourne since Doctors there had saved Mary’s life as a child.  Dad also secured and raffled many cars for the OLSH Sisters’ Missions.  Mary always said dad and mum’s work for charity inspired her to consider giving her life in the service of others.  She said she was also inspired by the Sisters who taught her and by Malcolm and me who had followed God’s call into religious life.  However, she was aged fifteen before she first had the idea of entering herself.

Some of the most significant events in Mary’s life included Dad’s death when she was nineteen and the care and visiting of Mum at St. Joseph’s Nursing Home, Kensington NSW.  At the time Mary was Principal at OLSH College Kensington, and so was able to be with Mum every day.  Mary said Mum’s gentle acceptance of suffering had a profound effect on her. This was evident in the way Mary accepted her own illness and the dramatic return of her Cancer in recent months.

Other significant experiences in Mary’s life included her eleven years as Principal of OLSH College Kensington – where a new College Wing is named after her.  She always cherished the friendships built with staff, parents and students during that time. 

Then came the faith-filled challenge of taking up Missionary life in Japan especially with the added dimension of having to return to Australia for eight months in 1997 for chemo-therapy and radio therapy for breast cancer. After treatment in Sydney, Mary returned to Japan where she remained for a total of ten years.  Sister Cecilia who is present here today was, together with Mary, a foundation member of OLSH Community Japan. 

In 2005 Mary was elected by her Sisters across the world to the Office of Superior General of the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart.  In this role, Mary felt herself privileged to have served, visited and shared in the lives of OLSH Sisters of various Nationalities across the world.  She was able to say she knew each sister personally.  Heart Spirituality was her charism.  Her message to all was a deep sense of god’s presence in all aspects of our lives.  

Mary you were a gracious, affectionate and loving sister with a sense of humour and strong dedication to your calling.  Your faith was deep and practical.  You served God and others with joy, compassion and dedication.     Your love of God and his people was evident in the way you lived your life.  God’s blessings were with you.  You have left behind so many wonderful memories for family, friends and sisters which we each cherish. 

We love you Mary.  We are so glad you made it home to 84 Daley Street and you were able to be with us to say our “Goodbyes”.  Thank you Mary for being you.  May God continue to hold you in the palm of his hand.