On Tuesday 9th October we gathered as a school community to celebrate the opening of school year mass in St. Vincent De Paul Church, Marino. Fr. Tom celebrated the mass with us.
During the mass we reflected on the principles of Kintsugi-the ancient Japanese art of repair. We welcomed our new first years, acknowledged the commitment of our sixth year prefects and the work of the five students that participated in the Dublin Diocesan pilgrimage to Lourdes.
Thank you to all our wonderful readers, singers and instrumentalists who enhanced the Liturgy.
LOURDES (Dublin Diocesan Pilgrimage to Lourdes 2024)
THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 5th: (Emily)
I’ll never forget the day I volunteered to assist a group of sick pilgrims on their journey from Dublin to Lourdes. As a lifelong Catholic, I had always been drawn to the spiritual significance of the pilgrimage site, but nothing could have prepared me for the profound impact this experience would have on my life.
Our journey began at around 2 pm and we hit the ground running. Emily, Isabelle, Millie, Rocha and Cliona. The excitement was palpable as we gathered around Ms. Seery, who was all set to guide us through this special pilgrimage to Lourdes. There were people of all ages and backgrounds, each with their own unique story of illness and suffering. Some were confined to wheelchairs, while others required constant assistance. Despite their physical challenges, their spirits were filled with a remarkable resilience and faith. This was so inspiring.
As we helped the pilgrims board the plane, I was struck by their courage and determination. Many faced long hours of travel, often enduring discomfort and pain. Yet, their faces were filled with a sense of hope and anticipation, as they looked forward to the healing waters of Lourdes. Many had travelled before and were just dying to get back over there.
Before getting on the plane, I had the privilege of spending time with several of the pilgrims. I listened to their stories, learned about their lives, and shared my own experiences. Some spoke of their struggles with chronic illnesses, while others recounted their personal journeys of faith. I was in awe of their openness and the strength they found in their beliefs. They all told me I was in for an amazing next few days and they were dead right.
One memory stands out. I was wheeling an old lady onto the plane and her name was Bernie. She used to be the principal of a secondary school but is now in a nursing home. She had such a fire in her heart, and she was consumed by my words when I spoke. She gave such attention and comfort to me when I spoke. I met her multiple times over in Lourdes and each time filled me with joy. We really connected and I feel so privileged to have met her along with many other special pilgrims.
Throughout the journey, I was constantly reminded of the power of compassion and the importance of human connection. The pilgrims’ resilience and faith were a source of inspiration, and their stories touched my heart in ways I never expected.
As we arrived in Lourdes, I felt a sense of peace and tranquillity. The special atmosphere is indescribable. My favourite moment was the torchlight procession as it’s somewhat magical. As everyone walks around with their candle it creates a blanket of light and support amongst us all.
My experience helping these pilgrims to Lourdes was a transformative one. It taught me the values of compassion, empathy, and human connection. It reminded me of the power of faith and the importance of supporting those in need. I am grateful for the opportunity to have been a part of their journey, and I will carry the memories of their courage and resilience with me forever. I look forward to returning to Lourdes someday.
FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 6th: (Cliona)
Our arrival at Lourdes airport on Thursday night had brought a little stumble to the perfect unfolding of things so far. We were waiting at the carousel for our luggage, but unfortunately Isabelle’s case did not arrive. After a brief panic, we all rallied into the bus and helped Isabelle to remain calm and gave her what she needed. Ms. Seery managed to get practically everything that Isabelle needed. It was moments like this that truly highlight the bond of friendship and how well this team was able to support one another. It was late when we arrived at our hotel, which was very welcoming and had prepared food for us. We checked into our rooms, and we were happy to be there, and we looked forward to the next day.
Friday morning began with a gentle wakeup call at 6.30am, followed by breakfast at 7am, where there was lots of laughter as we fuelled up for the busy day ahead. Fr. Paul, the school’s chaplain led us in morning prayer, reminding us of our mission as “BLUESHIRTS” to serve with kindness. We then moved to the Acceuil (The Hospital- where the Sick pilgrims stay), and we began our training on reception duty. This duty involved helping our VIPS (Sick pilgrims) move from their wheelchairs to the very distinctive Blue Voitures that are familiar part of Lourdes. It was heart-warming to assist them, and we then accompanied them to the Grotto to join the entire Dublin Diocesan Pilgrimage for Mass at the Grotto, where the atmosphere was serene and filled with hope. After Mass there was a group photo for all the pilgrims taken at the front of the Basilica.
Before lunchtime we helped return all the sick pilgrims to the Acceuil and we went for lunch in our hotel. Mealtimes were a welcome opportunity for us as a group to check in with each other and see how we were doing, we also shared our experiences and reflections.
In the afternoon we went to the Holy Baths and participated in the “Water Gesture” where pilgrims wash their face, their hands and drink the holy Lourdes water, just as Our Lady had asked Bernadette to do. This was a beautiful experience.
That afternoon we carried out the second of our “Duties” which was Hotel Support. This involves going to several of the hotels and picking up any pilgrims who need assistance to get to the ceremonies in the Domain at Lourdes. As we navigated our way around the streets of Lourdes pushing wheelchairs with pilgrims, we had many lovely conversations with them.
At 5pm, we gathered in the underground Basilica for a procession of the Blessed Sacrament.
We returned our pilgrims to their hotels, and we made our way to our hotel for dinner.
Every night finishes with prayer and reflection led by the different schools from among the Blueshirts. Fr. Paul refers to this as “PRAIRIE”. The schools are given a different theme each night and asked to lead their peers in a meaningful prayer experience. Maryfield led the Blueshirts with a theme of “To Help and Serve”. As part of this we all sang a song, “Hands” by Jewel, and Rocha accompanied us on the guitar.
That night we all took part in a fun table quiz making up many teams and mixing all the schools. It was a lot of fun, and Emily was on the winning team, after a tense tie breaker had taken place. This was a great fun way to unwind and mix with all the Blueshirts from the various schools. We headed home to our hotel to get some sleep before the next day of service would begin.
SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 7th: (Rocha)
After breakfast we began our morning with Fr Paul and the other schools at morning prayer. After this we went down to our reception duty at the acai for 9am. Our reception duty was one of our favourite highlights of this trip, we all felt great reward helping down at the acai.
At 10am we all met Ms Seery and went down to St. Bernadette’s church for penitential service which was a beautiful ceremony. After lunch we joined the red shirts in hotel support duty. Hotel support was a wonderful way for us to communicate and talk with the pilgrims staying in the nearby hotels. During hotel support we brought the pilgrims to the anointing of the sick mass which was an amazing experience we shared with everyone in the Dublin diocese. After mass we had teas on the lawn for all the pilgrims where we could get together and to just sit and talk with everyone there.
After dinner the Diocese had organised, a wellness talk for all the school groups in Lourdes which was very insightful and interesting. It was one of the many things I know that the girls and I really enjoyed. At 8:30pm we all headed to St. Bernadette’s cathedral to sing as a part of the folk group for the medal’s ceremony. This was a touching experience as we saw volunteers with 3 years’ service all the way to 25 years of service in the diocese actively volunteering in Lourdes. It was honestly an inspirational ceremony to be a part of.
At 10pm Ms Seery, the girls and I made our way to outside St. Bernadette’s cathedral for our daily prairie. Tonight’s theme was the Sacrament of Reconciliation. One of the school’s groups got everyone involved in a singsong of oasis’s ‘Don’t look back in anger’ which I think perfectly described the theme. It was an enjoyable moment where everyone was just together singing. It’s one, I will never forget.
SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 8th: (Isabelle)
Our third day in Lourdes as volunteers was one that truly stood out, blending real enjoyment and a deep sense of fulfilment with moments of pure fun. The day began early, with a 7am wake-up call for breakfast. Despite the early start, the group was in good spirits as we gathered for morning prayer at 8:15am with Father Paul.
By 9am, we were already at reception, performing our duties of welcoming pilgrims and assisting them as needed. Though we had settled into the routine, this day was different – we left reception earlier than usual, around 10am, for something special: singing at the Youth Mass. Taking part in this mass as part of the folk group we had become involved in was a real joy. The experience of singing with and for the pilgrims felt uplifting, and the sense of togetherness during the mass made the whole moment feel even more meaningful.
The Youth Mass was a special time to celebrate us Blue Shirts in Lourdes, and the whole experience was one of joy.
After mass, we helped bring the pilgrims we were assisting back to the hospital before heading back to our hotel for a well-earned lunch at noon. The meal gave us a chance to refuel and share stories from the morning with each other, but we knew the best part of the day was yet to come.
At 2pm, we made our way to the “Solitude Hotel” for what would become one of the day’s highlights: a lively singsong with pilgrims and students from other schools. The room was filled with laughter, music, and a genuine sense of connection. Singing with others who were there to support the same cause was a heartwarming experience, and it was clear that both pilgrims and volunteers were thoroughly enjoying the moment.
Dinner at our hotel was at 7pm, and afterwards, from 8pm to 9pm, we supported the pilgrims once more as we brought them around the beautiful torchlight procession. This was a serene and moving experience, as the soft glow of the candles illuminated the path, and a deep sense of peace settled over us all. Guiding the pilgrims during this procession was a humbling and profound way to end the day.
After bringing the pilgrims back to their hotels, we gathered for a final prairie with Father Paul, closing the day in reflection. The day’s balance of service and fun made the day a truly unforgettable one, filled with moments we will carry with us long after we leave Lourdes.
MONDAY SEPTEMBER 9th: (Millie)
We woke up bright and early at half six to be down for breakfast at 7am. All the Blueshirts had to be at the Sanctuary of Our Lady for 7.45am for a group photo. Once that was taken, we did morning prayer on the steps too. When that was over, we headed to the Accueil for our morning duty at reception. This was our last morning of reception, so we really tried to enjoy it and have a bit of fun in between helping the pilgrims with the other Blueshirts and some of the White Shirts too! The stations of the cross were on for the pilgrims that morning which was presented outside the Accueil. This started at around 11am and was very handy for us as it meant we did not have to wheel them far. After that we headed back to our hotel as lunch was a little earlier than usual because of our busy afternoon. At 2.30pm we all headed back over to St Bernadettes church as this was our time to do Liturgy duties during mass. Some of us were on collection and some were on drapes, (carrying them in a procession to the main altar). Both were very simple, so we picked up what we had to do quickly. The farewell mass started at 3.30pm and finished at about 5pm. As soon as that was over, we promptly were given a pilgrim each to bring to the grotto for the passage through the grotto. After that we brought our pilgrims back to their hotels as hotel support was our afternoon duty. Dinner was at 7pm. After dinner we quickly made our way back to the Accueil as there was a farewell party on the fifth floor. This was for pilgrims, Blueshirts and White Shirts. We all loved this as the mood was so positive! One lady almost had everyone in tears at one point as she told her story of coming to Lourdes and by happy accident got sitting beside her best friend from primary school who she has not seen or heard of since they were little, this was so special. At half nine we had prairie back over by St Bernadettes church. The last night of Prairie was so lovely as we all agreed the schools that night really captured the theme of light in their presentations, and we even got glowsticks!! Our final grotto visit was at ten. On our way over we had a private group chat with Ms Seery which was so lovely. Then we light our own special candles, our big school candle and the four candles for the four girls that volunteered last year. We all found this emotional as this marked coming to the end of our pilgrimage in Lourdes and none of us wanted to leave as it is such a special and magical place. Words genuinely cannot describe it and the feeling you get when you are there! We all headed back to the hotel to pack our bags and fall into bed after our very exciting day!
Our time in Lourdes came to an end, we experienced so much including floods and lost luggage (30 cases overall had gone missing!). We worked hard to serve the pilgrims and to represent Maryfield College. Our school motto “In Fide Stabilis” was evident constantly throughout the pilgrimage. We prayed for all who connected with our school, and we take this opportunity to thank all those who supported our fundraising efforts during the moths before we travelled. It is our hope that we will return and serve again in Lourdes. Until then, we will carry Our Lady, St. Bernadette and all the pilgrims in our heart.
Thank You.
On April 22nd, 4K and 4R accompanied by Ms.Seery and Ms.McAuley took part in a Walking Tour of Dublin Churches . The group departed from Maryfield early that morning and visited the following churches:
St.Francis Xavier’s , Gardiner Street.
St. Mary’s Pro Cathedral
St. Teresa’s ,Clarendon Street.
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Whitefriars, Aungier St.
St. Audeon’s ,High Street.
St. Michan’s, Church Street.
St.Michan’s Halton Street.
St.Saviour’s Dominick Street.
The history of Dublin is in the bricks of its churches. Churches are very much part of the fabric of the city and testify to it’s rich spiritual and architectural heritage. These famous Churches are landmarks for the city and hold a special place in the hearts of many Dubliners and tourists. The stories through the centuries connected with these churches tell us about invasion, repression, persecution and above all how the faith has both survived and thrived.
These churches tell the story of how Dublin is a place of welcome for immigrant communities e.g. St.Saviour’s / Spanish Community and St.Audeon’s/ Polish Community.
These churches continue to celebrate key moments in the lives of their parishioners- baptism, communion, marriage, funerals etc.
These churches offer a place of prayer ,refuge and comfort for those in need. They provide many outreach programmes and activities serving the local,national, and international community.
These churches are places of interest, places of worship, places of music , art and architecture.
During our walking tour, we stopped at Christ Church Cathedral to pause at the famous sculpture of the “Homeless Jesus”, and we enjoyed a tasty lunch from Burdock’s, the oldest chipper in Dublin.
We also visited the relics of St.Valentine, and paused many times to light candles at shrines, and remember our intentions through prayer.
The day was a lovely experience for our well-being, as we walked, talked, and spent time together as we journeyed. We had a little time out from the normal routine of our day.
Second Year Pilgrimage to Glendalough. Students experienced a time of peace, prayer and reflection while walking in St. Kevin’s footsteps. They learned about Monastic Life and appreciated the beauty of the tranquil surroundings.
Class 2L’s pilgrimage to Glendalough .
The class had a lovely day travelling to Glendalough and learning all about this ancient sacred place of pilgrimage. We were blessed with good company, good food and good weather. A great experience was had by all.
Ten students went to the Le Chéile student symposium during the week. They left Dublin early in the morning and enjoyed the long bus journey to Knock, Co. Mayo. On arrival students were welcomed by the Le Chéile team and then got to participate in various faith based workshops.
After lunch students gathered in the Basillica for Mass and another workshop with Jim Deeds. His presentation “finding God in the mess” encouraged students to seek out faith in their own lives.
All students are to be commended for their respectful participation throughout the day, you are a credit to your school community. “The trip to Knock was a great experience. It was lovely to meet new people and to hear about the stories and history of Knock.”
“We went to Knock and had a memorable experience. We got to visit the Basilica, the museum and wander the beautiful grounds.”
Fifth year retreats Last week fifth year students took part in class retreats in the beautiful Ruah Retreat Centre. It was a day of prayer, reflection and discussion. It is important to take time out of every day busy lives to rest and reflect.
Celebrating Le Chéile Day and the Gift of Gratitude in Maryfield. Le Chéile Crew welcoming everyone to school this morning with a sweet treat and a gratitude card.
Our Le Chéile Day celebration continued with face painting, treats for staff at break time, appreciation certifications given to students who show commitment to Le Chéile values and gratitude activities and prizes given to classes throughout the afternoon.Thank you to our whole school community for taking part in our celebration of Le Chéile Day in Maryfield. A special mention of thanks to the “Le Chéile Crew” and Sheila.
Fourth Years are representing Maryfield by participating in the Emmanuel Concert in the Helix on Wednesday 13th March. Tickets are available here here.
Click here
As we approach the month of the Holy Souls the ‘In November We Remember’ resources have been published at the link below:
https://catholiceducation.ie/catholic-schools-week-2024-communities-of-service/
Another September, and once again Maryfield College took part in the Dublin Diocesan Pilgrimage to Lourdes. Four sixth year students – Holly Clarke, Ciara Gill, Grainne Murray, Rebecca Maguire along with Ms. Seery volunteered looking after the sick and elderly pilgrims.
Due to all their hard work and efforts, many pilgrims had a very memorable and meaningful experience at Lourdes. The Maryfield girls along with their peers “The Blueshirts” and all the other helpers involved in the pilgrimage worked above and beyond their duties, taking on extra duties due to flight delays etc.
The Maryfield girls were mainly involved in the duties of ward support and refectory. They were full of enthusiasm for every task they were involved in. They showed great kindness and compassion to those in their care, and work well as the Lourdes Maryfield Team, within the great big team that is the Dublin Diocesan Pilgrimage to Lourdes. On one evening the girls were stewarding at the Torch Light Procession which is a very beautiful act of prayer. They also sang in the Folk Group at Lourdes during the many liturgies and ceremonies that take place during the pilgrimage.
They also attended the medal ceremony, where Ms. Seery was awarded the silver medal for completing five years of service to the pilgrimage. Many volunteers are awarded each year by the Archbishop of Dublin for their various lengths of service to the pilgrimage.
On their last night in Lourdes, the Maryfield Team headed to the Grotto to light their special large pilgrim candle for all the intentions of the Maryfield Community and for anyone who asked for us to remember them in our prayers. The girls also lit four candles for last year’s volunteers and wished them every success in their new endeavours.
Lourdes is an amazing sacred place. We ask for the guidance of Our Lady and the courage of St. Bernadette to bless us all in this coming academic year ahead. May we take this opportunity to thank all those who supported us and help us to fundraise. We remembered you all in our prayers at the Grotto. This was a life-changing opportunity for our girls, one that they will remember forever.
Click here to learn about this special day.
5K on retreat this week in the Ruah Retreat Centre in Drumcondra. All fifth years are participating in class retreats this week. It is a day of discussion, reflection and prayer. Fifth years will be encouraged to think about the theme “I’m ok, You’re ok and that’s ok”.
“LIVING OUR CATHOLIC FAITH”
On Monday 13th March, ten students along with Ms.Seery took part in the very first Le Cheile Faith Symposium. This was a wonderful gathering of Le Cheile schools from all over the country.
The symposium was held at Knock Shrine in Co. Mayo. the students took part in various workshops including the following:
The students had the opportunity to reflect on prayer and faith in their own lives, and on how they live out the Le Cheile values within their own school communities.
The afternoon began with a special celebration of Mass in the Parish church, where various representatives from the schools took part in the liturgy, and everyone joined in the wonderful music.
There were some presentations from schools about the work of their “Ember” teams. This is a peer lead faith leadership group within the schools which aims to help school communities to live out our Catholic Faith.
The students really enjoyed the opportunity to link with students from so many different schools throughout the country, who are all part of the Le Cheile family. It was particularly lovely to meet up with the teachers and students from our sister/school – Cross and Passion, Kilcullen, Co. Kildare.
At the closing session, there was an invitation from the Knock Youth Ministry for students to participate in some summer volunteering at Knock Shrine (16–18-year-olds). Please see the noticeboard outside Room 27 for further information or speak to Ms. Seery
Maryfield can be very proud of the students who went to Knock this year. They were terrific ambassadors for their school. They completed a very long day from early morning to late in the evening, and entered very enthusiastically into the whole event. Well done girls!
We look for to this event being the first of many gatherings that will take place in the years to come.
#EmbraceEquity- the theme of international Women’s Day 2023./ Strike a pose.
Dear Le Chéile Community,
Our first Lenten Space for Grace takes place today at 13:20 online, the entire Le Chéile community are invited to join us for 20 minutes of prayer and reflection. Please circulate with more members of the community as you feel fit.
We will have in total three Space for Grace online reflections, today, March 15th & March 29th all at 13:20. This is in collaboration with other Trusts and Organisations – CEIST, Spiritan Trust, Loreto Trust, Dublin Diocese & Marino Institute.
We acknowledge that schools & workplaces are busy places therefore we will be recording the reflection and will place it on our website later today so that it can be viewed at another time for those that want it.
Please see attached the advertising poster and below the zoom link for all three Space for Graces
We hope you can make time for your own faith journey this Lent and join us.
Warm wishes,
Claire Kilroy
Ethos Leadership Officer,
Le Chéile Schools Trust CLG,
@REmaryfield
All first years took part in class retreats this week in the parish centre in St. Vincent De Paul Church, Marino.
The RE department would like to thank the first year students who participated so well together each day.
Scout’s experience of retreat
“The Theme of the retreat was Self- esteem. Self-esteem is believing in yourself and loving yourself the way God loves you. I enjoyed all of the games that we played because now I know the people in my class a bit better. I found it difficult to meditate at first but when I got into the flow of it I found it relaxing. I had a really fun day.”
It is a longstanding tradition that sixth year students sing carols for the first year students here in Maryfield. This afternoon the sixth years encouraged the first years to reflect on the true meaning of Christmas and the need for peace in our world. We sang carols together and listened to readings.
There was a special visitor and we also sang some Christmas favourites. Thank you to all the sixth years who planned and participated in our carol service. A special mention to the stars of the show and to Mary-Kate for her impeccable compere skills.
Thanks to Ms Seery, Ms McCarron and Ms Cooney for their help in preparation of our carol service.
Happy Christmas Everyone
On 1st December the sixth years gathered in the assembly hall for a day of reflection led by our special guest Gerry Keegan. Gerry shared aspects of his own faith journey and encouraged the sixth years to take time to reflect on their own lives and experience. Gerry sang songs and shared his story through examining the lyrics. There were plenty of games and interactive music general knowledge quizzes, correct answers were rewarded with enthusiastic cheers.
It was a powerful experience to be witnessed. Thank you everybody for your respectful participation and sense of fun throughout the day.
A special word of thanks to our personal Adele act! 
Hope you enjoyed the pizza lunch.
The RE Department
On Thursday 29th September we gathered as a community to celebrate the Opening of School Year Mass in St. Vincent De Paul Church, Marino. Fr. Tom Noone celebrated our Mass with us and blessed our school community for the coming year. We reflected on the values of our school and the symbolism of the Sunflower. We were encouraged to be like the sunflower. “Be like the sunflower that follows every movement of the sun and keep your eyes always towards our God”. We formally welcomed all the first year students and new members of our Maryfield Community. There were presentations to our newly appointed sixth year prefects and the four students who represented Maryfield on the Dublin Diocesan pilgrimage to Lourdes. Thank you to all who participated so wonderfully in the Liturgy.
Fourth Year Faith
Fourth years reflected on what the word ‘Faith’ meant in the context of their own lives and experiences. They created pieces of art, poetry and music that connected with their understanding of faith.
Congratulations on all your hard work everybody, it was a pleasure to see you working on your pieces and then sharing them with your classmates. A special shout out to our two rappers and their performance of ‘appreciation of life’.
Trip to Knock – 12th May
Fifth years had an early call on Thursday 12th May. They headed west to Knock, Co. Mayo to take part in the #Livelife reflection day in memory of Donal Walsh.
Donal Walsh is the Kerry teenager who touched so many lives when he came to prominence through his writings and subsequent appearance on Brendan O’Connor’s ‘The Saturday Night Show’. Donal fundraised tirelessly while battling cancer. His family set up the foundation to promote his #Livelife message.
During the reflection day students listened to guest speakers Lisa Fallon, Annette Kelly and Paul Galvin. The speakers talked about the value of practice, positive thinking and pushing towards fulfilling their dreams.
Later, we gathered for mass in Basilica to celebrate and reflect on what Donal’s #Livelife message meant in the context of our own lives. Donal’s parents spoke during the mass keeping Donal’s message alive. We all found it a very thought-provoking experience.
Thank you to all the fifth years who represented our school so respectfully during our day in Knock.
RE Department
Glendalough Pilgrimage
The RE Department organised some pilgrimage days in Glendalough for our second and third year students. Students took time out of their secular lives to enter into the sacred and connect with their spirituality in the beautiful surrounds of Glendalough, Co. Wicklow. They learned about the legends and stories of St. Kevin and the life of a monk.
TEEN SYNOD 2022
On Wednesday 6th April 2022, five students from Maryfield College (Emily Burke 5thYear, Aoife Quinlan and Aisling Fallon 2nd year, also Michelle Matthew and Amelia Solinska 1st year) took part in a TEEN SYNOD GATHERING in the Margaret Aylward Centre, Glasnevin. This event was organised and hosted by St. Mary’s Holy Faith Secondary School and the arish of Our Lady of Dolours, Glasnevin.
Pope Francis wants the Church to be a “Church that listens,” and therefore it is vital that the views and responses of our young people are included in this listening process. The aim of the Worldwide Synod is a process to gather the experiences of Church and Faith from those who are actively involved as well as those who may have become detached from the Church.
The students discussed various things with other students such as – “What is the Church?,” and what has been their experiences of Church or Faith, especially with regard to their own school, community or parish. All students present at the Teen Synod represented the voices of young people who attend a Faith Based Secondary school.
The event was extremely engaging and informative, and all the submissions gathered will now be added to the submissions of the Dublin Diocese, and then will be sent as part of the National Submission to Rome ahead of the Pope’s World Synod in 2023!
In relation to Local Synods- Pope Francis has encouraged openness and freedom to speak using the term “Parrhesia,” which means speaking from the heart in charity. There was a great opportunity for all the students to participate and specially to listen to their peers.
Well done to all our girls involved on the day – they did a fantastic job! May God bless all involved in this process of shaping the Irish Church, within the Universal Church of the future.
(Patricia Seery- Maryfield College)
The project “ONE MILLION STARS” began in Australia in 2012, when Samoan artist Maryann Talia Pau began weaving the eight-pointed stars as a response to the murder of Gillian Meagher, an Irish woman living in Australia.
Click on the link below to learn about the One Million Stars project.
As part of celebrating international women’s day, we would like to say that we are organizing a collection to help the AOIBHNESS Women’s Shelter. When women flee their homes from domestic violence, they often have very little with them. On arrival to the shelter, they are given a welcome pack.
Click on the link below to learn about the For My Sister campaign.
4th Years on Retreat
Our fourth years went on retreat to Tipperary in November, 2021.
SHOWCASE AND SHARE –
STUDENT ACTION FOR CHANGE
Patricia Seery / Maryfield College
On Tuesday February 1st, Maryfield College attended an online gathering to connect with the wider Le Cheile community. This day was to celebrate St. Brigid’s day by showcasing and sharing all the amazing work that all the Le Cheile schools are involved in. the day was a celebration of many forms of student action that our schools are involved in.
Five Maryfield students were involved- Karoline Biju (6th Year), Amy Sheehy and Emma Kearney (5th Year) and Sophia Malik and Sarah Elders (3rd Year). There were over four hundred participants from seventy-five schools. everyone gathered in prayer, in shared activities and shared ideas.
This meeting also provided an opportunity for the teachers involved to connect with other teaching colleagues in the Le Cheile community regarding Student Leadership and ethos in action. As part of the gathering, everyone was divided up into Breakout Rooms, where the students got to talk to each other, and were able to share and highlight the many great things that happen in their school community involving student leadership and action.
The students enjoyed the gathering and perhaps have brought some new ideas back to Maryfield.
Some student reflections:
REFLECTION ON LE CHÉILE’S ST BRIGID’S DAY CELEBRATION
Since St Brigid’s day is officially a national holiday starting from next year, this year was the last year where schools would be open for St Brigid’s Day. To celebrate this joyous occasion, On the 1st of February this year, Le Chéile organised a zoom meeting where all Le Chéile schools could gather to show their appreciation for St Brigid, and her core values evident in each Le Chéile school. I had the honour of participating in the celebration and I really enjoyed it. The day started with introductions given by the CEO of Le Chéile and then it moved onto the showcase and share where presentations were made by different schools to showcase the values of St Brigid evident in their schools. I thought all the presentations made by each school were well done. I especially enjoyed the song that was sung by one of the schools. The song was an original written by a student in the school and it showed the talent and creativity found in the Le Chéile schools. It made me reflect on how being a part of Le Chéile has allowed schools to harness their students’ abilities and give them an opportunity to reach their full potential. After the showcase and share, we were put into breakout rooms. This was my favourite part of the day because it allowed me to connect with students from other schools across the country and abroad! We had a chance to talk and present our schools to each other. There were about six other schools in my breakout room, and I really liked how small the breakout rooms were because we all had a chance to talk and converse. When it was my turn to talk, I had so many things I wanted to talk about, but I settled on talking about the One Million Stars project we started doing in school that aims to end violence against women. I wanted to talk about something that was important and something I was proud of doing in school. I also hoped that other schools would hear the idea and would be inspired to also start the project in their own schools. Not only was I able to represent Maryfield and present what we had to offer, I was also lucky enough to take from the experience, new ideas that can be brought into Maryfield such as the initiative to cycle to school or including learning about all the languages found in Maryfield into our intercultural club. I am so thankful to have been asked to be a part of this celebration and I enjoyed and learned a lot from this occasion.
Showcase and Share 2022
My experience in the showcase and share with Le Cheile was very special and moving. I thought it was incredible the way so many schools were connected and were able to spread the things and events that make their school special. I really enjoyed watching the videos that were presented during the meeting as I think they were very impactful as they showed you a visual of all the amazing things they do, whilst watching the videos it just put you in a great mood and made you want to do all those things too. During the zoom meeting I learned that our school and all the other schools celebrate similar events and have similar procedures, but we all do them in different ways. By attending the zoom meeting, it really opened my eyes to some of the ideas that other schools shared and made me want to bring and spread those ideas in our own school. I think by attending the showcase and share, it really made me want to make a difference in our school and make our school have an even better atmosphere, including environment and do things that don’t just benefit us in Maryfield, but the wider local, national, and international community. Overall, I think the Le Cheile St. Brigid’s day Showcase and share made everyone feel touched and motivated to do amazing things in their schools and made everyone feel included in an experience that will change the way all the schools approach all these events, holidays, social issues, and problems in their schools. I am very grateful to have had the opportunity to participate in such a wonderful and impactful event.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v+GueKPNL05Jl
Here are some photos of the winners from the art competition held as part of Catholic Schools Week. The students were asked to draw or create their image of God.
Our Transition Year students brought some Christmas cheer to Nazareth House Nursing Home where they sang carols and Christmas songs for the residents.
Our mass to mark the beginning of the academic year is a very important occasion in our school calendar. The entire school community gathers together in Marino Parish Church where we welcome new students and staff, wish former staff and students well, pray together and share in the Eucharist.
The theme of this year’s mass echoed the words of St. Teresa of Avila, “Christ has no body now but yours”, focusing particularly on the power of our hands to do good in the world. This theme was beautifully woven into the liturgy and reiterated in the words of Fr. Tom’s homily, encouraging us to use our hands to build rather than to break.
Many students throughout the school contributed to the school mass through art, music and reading. Our new First Years were welcomed and our newly appointed Prefects were presented with their badges.
Less than two weeks after the World Meeting of Families and the visit of Pope Francis to Ireland, it was now time for the Maryfield girls accompanied by Ms. Seery to join the over 2,000 Dublin parishioners and pilgrims as part of the annual Diocesan Pilgrimage to Lourdes.
Friday September 7th saw seven aircraft depart from Dublin for Lourdes carrying sick pilgrims, helpers, medical staff, clergy and students.
Our four 6th Years, Aoife Hayes, Aoife Traynor, Hannah Byrne Kennedy and Dearbhaile Mulrooney, were among the wonderful young people from twenty-five secondary schools taking part.
Numeracy Moment!
177 sick pilgrims
45 nurses
8 doctors
300 young volunteers/helpers
35 priests
4 deacons
1 archbishop
133 ‘Blue Shirts’
20 parish groups
The Maryfield girls were part of the ‘Blue Shirts’ team. They began work on their arrival at the airport on Friday the 7th, helping to load all the sick pilgrims onto the planes. They continued to work tirelessly until our arrival back at Dublin Airport on September 12th where they assisted with the disembarkation of pilgrims.
The whole Lourdes experience was amazing, the weather glorious and the encounters with the people truly special. The girls’ duties involved working the acceuil (reception duties) and flag/stewarding duties at the ceremonies throughout the pilgrimage. This year, the Maryfield girls also lent their voices to the Lourdes Folk Group at the liturgies held for the pilgrims.
Every evening (after 10pm most nights) when all duties and ceremonies had ended, the ‘Blue Shirts’ then attended ‘Prairie’ with the youth chaplain, Fr. Paul Thornton, the youth Lourdes Pilgrimage leaders Michelle and Eoin, and all the teachers and students from the various schools. ‘Prairie’ allows the young people to reflect on their experiences each day in Lourdes.
There are so many highlights of the pilgrimage, so many moving moments (the ‘Baths’), so many times when you are touched by being with the sick pilgrims, simply serving. At the same time you are made aware of your own good health and good fortune.
One evening we attended the Medal Ceremony, where individual helpers are awarded medals for their years of service. One man was presented with a special award for sixty years’ service to the Dublin Pilgrimage.
The girls made many friends and joined in all the activities including a table-quiz, and a ‘sing-song’, where again there was no stopping their musical talent with a version of Amy Winehouse’s ‘Valerie’.
A special tradition that we have established is to go privately to the Grotto on the last night and light a very large candle for all connected with Maryfield College, and for those who supported us through our fund-raising efforts. We prayed at the Grotto for everyone’s intentions. This year we lit a very special candle in memory of our beloved Ciara Hawe, and we prayed especially for Ciara’s family and friends. Our four girls this year also lit four candles to pray for last year’s four volunteers from Maryfield – to bless them as they begin the new directions in their lives having finished school.
It is hard to put into words the experience of Lourdes. There is definitely something special, spiritual and sacred about this place. The legacy of Our Blessed Lady and St. Bernadette is truly present.
Our four students were amazing ambassadors for our school and we can be extremely proud of them. Lourdes will always be a unique experience for them, and hopefully at a later stage they will return there.
fourth year book folding ange
The project “ONE MILLION STARS” began in Australia in 2012, when Samoan artist Maryann Talia Pau began weaving the eight-pointed stars as a response to the murder of Gillian Meagher, an Irish woman living in Australia.
Click on the link below to learn about the One Million Stars project.
As part of celebrating international women’s day, we would like to say that we are organizing a collection to help the AOIBHNESS Women’s Shelter. When women flee their homes from domestic violence, they often have very little with them. On arrival to the shelter, they are given a welcome pack.
Click on the link below to learn about the For My Sister campaign.
4th Years on Retreat
Our fourth years went on retreat to Tipperary in November, 2021.
SHOWCASE AND SHARE –
STUDENT ACTION FOR CHANGE
Patricia Seery / Maryfield College
On Tuesday February 1st, Maryfield College attended an online gathering to connect with the wider Le Cheile community. This day was to celebrate St. Brigid’s day by showcasing and sharing all the amazing work that all the Le Cheile schools are involved in. the day was a celebration of many forms of student action that our schools are involved in.
Five Maryfield students were involved- Karoline Biju (6th Year), Amy Sheehy and Emma Kearney (5th Year) and Sophia Malik and Sarah Elders (3rd Year). There were over four hundred participants from seventy-five schools. everyone gathered in prayer, in shared activities and shared ideas.
This meeting also provided an opportunity for the teachers involved to connect with other teaching colleagues in the Le Cheile community regarding Student Leadership and ethos in action. As part of the gathering, everyone was divided up into Breakout Rooms, where the students got to talk to each other, and were able to share and highlight the many great things that happen in their school community involving student leadership and action.
The students enjoyed the gathering and perhaps have brought some new ideas back to Maryfield.
Some student reflections:
REFLECTION ON LE CHÉILE’S ST BRIGID’S DAY CELEBRATION
Since St Brigid’s day is officially a national holiday starting from next year, this year was the last year where schools would be open for St Brigid’s Day. To celebrate this joyous occasion, On the 1st of February this year, Le Chéile organised a zoom meeting where all Le Chéile schools could gather to show their appreciation for St Brigid, and her core values evident in each Le Chéile school. I had the honour of participating in the celebration and I really enjoyed it. The day started with introductions given by the CEO of Le Chéile and then it moved onto the showcase and share where presentations were made by different schools to showcase the values of St Brigid evident in their schools. I thought all the presentations made by each school were well done. I especially enjoyed the song that was sung by one of the schools. The song was an original written by a student in the school and it showed the talent and creativity found in the Le Chéile schools. It made me reflect on how being a part of Le Chéile has allowed schools to harness their students’ abilities and give them an opportunity to reach their full potential. After the showcase and share, we were put into breakout rooms. This was my favourite part of the day because it allowed me to connect with students from other schools across the country and abroad! We had a chance to talk and present our schools to each other. There were about six other schools in my breakout room, and I really liked how small the breakout rooms were because we all had a chance to talk and converse. When it was my turn to talk, I had so many things I wanted to talk about, but I settled on talking about the One Million Stars project we started doing in school that aims to end violence against women. I wanted to talk about something that was important and something I was proud of doing in school. I also hoped that other schools would hear the idea and would be inspired to also start the project in their own schools. Not only was I able to represent Maryfield and present what we had to offer, I was also lucky enough to take from the experience, new ideas that can be brought into Maryfield such as the initiative to cycle to school or including learning about all the languages found in Maryfield into our intercultural club. I am so thankful to have been asked to be a part of this celebration and I enjoyed and learned a lot from this occasion.
Showcase and Share 2022
My experience in the showcase and share with Le Cheile was very special and moving. I thought it was incredible the way so many schools were connected and were able to spread the things and events that make their school special. I really enjoyed watching the videos that were presented during the meeting as I think they were very impactful as they showed you a visual of all the amazing things they do, whilst watching the videos it just put you in a great mood and made you want to do all those things too. During the zoom meeting I learned that our school and all the other schools celebrate similar events and have similar procedures, but we all do them in different ways. By attending the zoom meeting, it really opened my eyes to some of the ideas that other schools shared and made me want to bring and spread those ideas in our own school. I think by attending the showcase and share, it really made me want to make a difference in our school and make our school have an even better atmosphere, including environment and do things that don’t just benefit us in Maryfield, but the wider local, national, and international community. Overall, I think the Le Cheile St. Brigid’s day Showcase and share made everyone feel touched and motivated to do amazing things in their schools and made everyone feel included in an experience that will change the way all the schools approach all these events, holidays, social issues, and problems in their schools. I am very grateful to have had the opportunity to participate in such a wonderful and impactful event.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v+GueKPNL05Jl
Here are some photos of the winners from the art competition held as part of Catholic Schools Week. The students were asked to draw or create their image of God.
Our Transition Year students brought some Christmas cheer to Nazareth House Nursing Home where they sang carols and Christmas songs for the residents.
Our mass to mark the beginning of the academic year is a very important occasion in our school calendar. The entire school community gathers together in Marino Parish Church where we welcome new students and staff, wish former staff and students well, pray together and share in the Eucharist.
The theme of this year’s mass echoed the words of St. Teresa of Avila, “Christ has no body now but yours”, focusing particularly on the power of our hands to do good in the world. This theme was beautifully woven into the liturgy and reiterated in the words of Fr. Tom’s homily, encouraging us to use our hands to build rather than to break.
Many students throughout the school contributed to the school mass through art, music and reading. Our new First Years were welcomed and our newly appointed Prefects were presented with their badges.
Less than two weeks after the World Meeting of Families and the visit of Pope Francis to Ireland, it was now time for the Maryfield girls accompanied by Ms. Seery to join the over 2,000 Dublin parishioners and pilgrims as part of the annual Diocesan Pilgrimage to Lourdes.
Friday September 7th saw seven aircraft depart from Dublin for Lourdes carrying sick pilgrims, helpers, medical staff, clergy and students.
Our four 6th Years, Aoife Hayes, Aoife Traynor, Hannah Byrne Kennedy and Dearbhaile Mulrooney, were among the wonderful young people from twenty-five secondary schools taking part.
Numeracy Moment!
177 sick pilgrims
45 nurses
8 doctors
300 young volunteers/helpers
35 priests
4 deacons
1 archbishop
133 ‘Blue Shirts’
20 parish groups
The Maryfield girls were part of the ‘Blue Shirts’ team. They began work on their arrival at the airport on Friday the 7th, helping to load all the sick pilgrims onto the planes. They continued to work tirelessly until our arrival back at Dublin Airport on September 12th where they assisted with the disembarkation of pilgrims.
The whole Lourdes experience was amazing, the weather glorious and the encounters with the people truly special. The girls’ duties involved working the acceuil (reception duties) and flag/stewarding duties at the ceremonies throughout the pilgrimage. This year, the Maryfield girls also lent their voices to the Lourdes Folk Group at the liturgies held for the pilgrims.
Every evening (after 10pm most nights) when all duties and ceremonies had ended, the ‘Blue Shirts’ then attended ‘Prairie’ with the youth chaplain, Fr. Paul Thornton, the youth Lourdes Pilgrimage leaders Michelle and Eoin, and all the teachers and students from the various schools. ‘Prairie’ allows the young people to reflect on their experiences each day in Lourdes.
There are so many highlights of the pilgrimage, so many moving moments (the ‘Baths’), so many times when you are touched by being with the sick pilgrims, simply serving. At the same time you are made aware of your own good health and good fortune.
One evening we attended the Medal Ceremony, where individual helpers are awarded medals for their years of service. One man was presented with a special award for sixty years’ service to the Dublin Pilgrimage.
The girls made many friends and joined in all the activities including a table-quiz, and a ‘sing-song’, where again there was no stopping their musical talent with a version of Amy Winehouse’s ‘Valerie’.
A special tradition that we have established is to go privately to the Grotto on the last night and light a very large candle for all connected with Maryfield College, and for those who supported us through our fund-raising efforts. We prayed at the Grotto for everyone’s intentions. This year we lit a very special candle in memory of our beloved Ciara Hawe, and we prayed especially for Ciara’s family and friends. Our four girls this year also lit four candles to pray for last year’s four volunteers from Maryfield – to bless them as they begin the new directions in their lives having finished school.
It is hard to put into words the experience of Lourdes. There is definitely something special, spiritual and sacred about this place. The legacy of Our Blessed Lady and St. Bernadette is truly present.
Our four students were amazing ambassadors for our school and we can be extremely proud of them. Lourdes will always be a unique experience for them, and hopefully at a later stage they will return there.
The project “ONE MILLION STARS” began in Australia in 2012, when Samoan artist Maryann Talia Pau began weaving the eight-pointed stars as a response to the murder of Gillian Meagher, an Irish woman living in Australia.
Click on the link below to learn about the One Million Stars project.
As part of celebrating international women’s day, we would like to say that we are organizing a collection to help the AOIBHNESS Women’s Shelter. When women flee their homes from domestic violence, they often have very little with them. On arrival to the shelter, they are given a welcome pack.
Click on the link below to learn about the For My Sister campaign.
4th Years on Retreat
Our fourth years went on retreat to Tipperary in November, 2021.
SHOWCASE AND SHARE –
STUDENT ACTION FOR CHANGE
Patricia Seery / Maryfield College
On Tuesday February 1st, Maryfield College attended an online gathering to connect with the wider Le Cheile community. This day was to celebrate St. Brigid’s day by showcasing and sharing all the amazing work that all the Le Cheile schools are involved in. the day was a celebration of many forms of student action that our schools are involved in.
Five Maryfield students were involved- Karoline Biju (6th Year), Amy Sheehy and Emma Kearney (5th Year) and Sophia Malik and Sarah Elders (3rd Year). There were over four hundred participants from seventy-five schools. everyone gathered in prayer, in shared activities and shared ideas.
This meeting also provided an opportunity for the teachers involved to connect with other teaching colleagues in the Le Cheile community regarding Student Leadership and ethos in action. As part of the gathering, everyone was divided up into Breakout Rooms, where the students got to talk to each other, and were able to share and highlight the many great things that happen in their school community involving student leadership and action.
The students enjoyed the gathering and perhaps have brought some new ideas back to Maryfield.
Some student reflections:
REFLECTION ON LE CHÉILE’S ST BRIGID’S DAY CELEBRATION
Since St Brigid’s day is officially a national holiday starting from next year, this year was the last year where schools would be open for St Brigid’s Day. To celebrate this joyous occasion, On the 1st of February this year, Le Chéile organised a zoom meeting where all Le Chéile schools could gather to show their appreciation for St Brigid, and her core values evident in each Le Chéile school. I had the honour of participating in the celebration and I really enjoyed it. The day started with introductions given by the CEO of Le Chéile and then it moved onto the showcase and share where presentations were made by different schools to showcase the values of St Brigid evident in their schools. I thought all the presentations made by each school were well done. I especially enjoyed the song that was sung by one of the schools. The song was an original written by a student in the school and it showed the talent and creativity found in the Le Chéile schools. It made me reflect on how being a part of Le Chéile has allowed schools to harness their students’ abilities and give them an opportunity to reach their full potential. After the showcase and share, we were put into breakout rooms. This was my favourite part of the day because it allowed me to connect with students from other schools across the country and abroad! We had a chance to talk and present our schools to each other. There were about six other schools in my breakout room, and I really liked how small the breakout rooms were because we all had a chance to talk and converse. When it was my turn to talk, I had so many things I wanted to talk about, but I settled on talking about the One Million Stars project we started doing in school that aims to end violence against women. I wanted to talk about something that was important and something I was proud of doing in school. I also hoped that other schools would hear the idea and would be inspired to also start the project in their own schools. Not only was I able to represent Maryfield and present what we had to offer, I was also lucky enough to take from the experience, new ideas that can be brought into Maryfield such as the initiative to cycle to school or including learning about all the languages found in Maryfield into our intercultural club. I am so thankful to have been asked to be a part of this celebration and I enjoyed and learned a lot from this occasion.
Showcase and Share 2022
My experience in the showcase and share with Le Cheile was very special and moving. I thought it was incredible the way so many schools were connected and were able to spread the things and events that make their school special. I really enjoyed watching the videos that were presented during the meeting as I think they were very impactful as they showed you a visual of all the amazing things they do, whilst watching the videos it just put you in a great mood and made you want to do all those things too. During the zoom meeting I learned that our school and all the other schools celebrate similar events and have similar procedures, but we all do them in different ways. By attending the zoom meeting, it really opened my eyes to some of the ideas that other schools shared and made me want to bring and spread those ideas in our own school. I think by attending the showcase and share, it really made me want to make a difference in our school and make our school have an even better atmosphere, including environment and do things that don’t just benefit us in Maryfield, but the wider local, national, and international community. Overall, I think the Le Cheile St. Brigid’s day Showcase and share made everyone feel touched and motivated to do amazing things in their schools and made everyone feel included in an experience that will change the way all the schools approach all these events, holidays, social issues, and problems in their schools. I am very grateful to have had the opportunity to participate in such a wonderful and impactful event.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v+GueKPNL05Jl
Here are some photos of the winners from the art competition held as part of Catholic Schools Week. The students were asked to draw or create their image of God.
Our Transition Year students brought some Christmas cheer to Nazareth House Nursing Home where they sang carols and Christmas songs for the residents.
Our mass to mark the beginning of the academic year is a very important occasion in our school calendar. The entire school community gathers together in Marino Parish Church where we welcome new students and staff, wish former staff and students well, pray together and share in the Eucharist.
The theme of this year’s mass echoed the words of St. Teresa of Avila, “Christ has no body now but yours”, focusing particularly on the power of our hands to do good in the world. This theme was beautifully woven into the liturgy and reiterated in the words of Fr. Tom’s homily, encouraging us to use our hands to build rather than to break.
Many students throughout the school contributed to the school mass through art, music and reading. Our new First Years were welcomed and our newly appointed Prefects were presented with their badges.
Less than two weeks after the World Meeting of Families and the visit of Pope Francis to Ireland, it was now time for the Maryfield girls accompanied by Ms. Seery to join the over 2,000 Dublin parishioners and pilgrims as part of the annual Diocesan Pilgrimage to Lourdes.
Friday September 7th saw seven aircraft depart from Dublin for Lourdes carrying sick pilgrims, helpers, medical staff, clergy and students.
Our four 6th Years, Aoife Hayes, Aoife Traynor, Hannah Byrne Kennedy and Dearbhaile Mulrooney, were among the wonderful young people from twenty-five secondary schools taking part.
Numeracy Moment!
177 sick pilgrims
45 nurses
8 doctors
300 young volunteers/helpers
35 priests
4 deacons
1 archbishop
133 ‘Blue Shirts’
20 parish groups
The Maryfield girls were part of the ‘Blue Shirts’ team. They began work on their arrival at the airport on Friday the 7th, helping to load all the sick pilgrims onto the planes. They continued to work tirelessly until our arrival back at Dublin Airport on September 12th where they assisted with the disembarkation of pilgrims.
The whole Lourdes experience was amazing, the weather glorious and the encounters with the people truly special. The girls’ duties involved working the acceuil (reception duties) and flag/stewarding duties at the ceremonies throughout the pilgrimage. This year, the Maryfield girls also lent their voices to the Lourdes Folk Group at the liturgies held for the pilgrims.
Every evening (after 10pm most nights) when all duties and ceremonies had ended, the ‘Blue Shirts’ then attended ‘Prairie’ with the youth chaplain, Fr. Paul Thornton, the youth Lourdes Pilgrimage leaders Michelle and Eoin, and all the teachers and students from the various schools. ‘Prairie’ allows the young people to reflect on their experiences each day in Lourdes.
There are so many highlights of the pilgrimage, so many moving moments (the ‘Baths’), so many times when you are touched by being with the sick pilgrims, simply serving. At the same time you are made aware of your own good health and good fortune.
One evening we attended the Medal Ceremony, where individual helpers are awarded medals for their years of service. One man was presented with a special award for sixty years’ service to the Dublin Pilgrimage.
The girls made many friends and joined in all the activities including a table-quiz, and a ‘sing-song’, where again there was no stopping their musical talent with a version of Amy Winehouse’s ‘Valerie’.
A special tradition that we have established is to go privately to the Grotto on the last night and light a very large candle for all connected with Maryfield College, and for those who supported us through our fund-raising efforts. We prayed at the Grotto for everyone’s intentions. This year we lit a very special candle in memory of our beloved Ciara Hawe, and we prayed especially for Ciara’s family and friends. Our four girls this year also lit four candles to pray for last year’s four volunteers from Maryfield – to bless them as they begin the new directions in their lives having finished school.
It is hard to put into words the experience of Lourdes. There is definitely something special, spiritual and sacred about this place. The legacy of Our Blessed Lady and St. Bernadette is truly present.
Our four students were amazing ambassadors for our school and we can be extremely proud of them. Lourdes will always be a unique experience for them, and hopefully at a later stage they will return there.
The project “ONE MILLION STARS” began in Australia in 2012, when Samoan artist Maryann Talia Pau began weaving the eight-pointed stars as a response to the murder of Gillian Meagher, an Irish woman living in Australia.
Click on the link below to learn about the One Million Stars project.
As part of celebrating international women’s day, we would like to say that we are organizing a collection to help the AOIBHNESS Women’s Shelter. When women flee their homes from domestic violence, they often have very little with them. On arrival to the shelter, they are given a welcome pack.
Click on the link below to learn about the For My Sister campaign.
4th Years on Retreat
Our fourth years went on retreat to Tipperary in November, 2021.
SHOWCASE AND SHARE –
STUDENT ACTION FOR CHANGE
Patricia Seery / Maryfield College
On Tuesday February 1st, Maryfield College attended an online gathering to connect with the wider Le Cheile community. This day was to celebrate St. Brigid’s day by showcasing and sharing all the amazing work that all the Le Cheile schools are involved in. the day was a celebration of many forms of student action that our schools are involved in.
Five Maryfield students were involved- Karoline Biju (6th Year), Amy Sheehy and Emma Kearney (5th Year) and Sophia Malik and Sarah Elders (3rd Year). There were over four hundred participants from seventy-five schools. everyone gathered in prayer, in shared activities and shared ideas.
This meeting also provided an opportunity for the teachers involved to connect with other teaching colleagues in the Le Cheile community regarding Student Leadership and ethos in action. As part of the gathering, everyone was divided up into Breakout Rooms, where the students got to talk to each other, and were able to share and highlight the many great things that happen in their school community involving student leadership and action.
The students enjoyed the gathering and perhaps have brought some new ideas back to Maryfield.
Some student reflections:
REFLECTION ON LE CHÉILE’S ST BRIGID’S DAY CELEBRATION
Since St Brigid’s day is officially a national holiday starting from next year, this year was the last year where schools would be open for St Brigid’s Day. To celebrate this joyous occasion, On the 1st of February this year, Le Chéile organised a zoom meeting where all Le Chéile schools could gather to show their appreciation for St Brigid, and her core values evident in each Le Chéile school. I had the honour of participating in the celebration and I really enjoyed it. The day started with introductions given by the CEO of Le Chéile and then it moved onto the showcase and share where presentations were made by different schools to showcase the values of St Brigid evident in their schools. I thought all the presentations made by each school were well done. I especially enjoyed the song that was sung by one of the schools. The song was an original written by a student in the school and it showed the talent and creativity found in the Le Chéile schools. It made me reflect on how being a part of Le Chéile has allowed schools to harness their students’ abilities and give them an opportunity to reach their full potential. After the showcase and share, we were put into breakout rooms. This was my favourite part of the day because it allowed me to connect with students from other schools across the country and abroad! We had a chance to talk and present our schools to each other. There were about six other schools in my breakout room, and I really liked how small the breakout rooms were because we all had a chance to talk and converse. When it was my turn to talk, I had so many things I wanted to talk about, but I settled on talking about the One Million Stars project we started doing in school that aims to end violence against women. I wanted to talk about something that was important and something I was proud of doing in school. I also hoped that other schools would hear the idea and would be inspired to also start the project in their own schools. Not only was I able to represent Maryfield and present what we had to offer, I was also lucky enough to take from the experience, new ideas that can be brought into Maryfield such as the initiative to cycle to school or including learning about all the languages found in Maryfield into our intercultural club. I am so thankful to have been asked to be a part of this celebration and I enjoyed and learned a lot from this occasion.
Showcase and Share 2022
My experience in the showcase and share with Le Cheile was very special and moving. I thought it was incredible the way so many schools were connected and were able to spread the things and events that make their school special. I really enjoyed watching the videos that were presented during the meeting as I think they were very impactful as they showed you a visual of all the amazing things they do, whilst watching the videos it just put you in a great mood and made you want to do all those things too. During the zoom meeting I learned that our school and all the other schools celebrate similar events and have similar procedures, but we all do them in different ways. By attending the zoom meeting, it really opened my eyes to some of the ideas that other schools shared and made me want to bring and spread those ideas in our own school. I think by attending the showcase and share, it really made me want to make a difference in our school and make our school have an even better atmosphere, including environment and do things that don’t just benefit us in Maryfield, but the wider local, national, and international community. Overall, I think the Le Cheile St. Brigid’s day Showcase and share made everyone feel touched and motivated to do amazing things in their schools and made everyone feel included in an experience that will change the way all the schools approach all these events, holidays, social issues, and problems in their schools. I am very grateful to have had the opportunity to participate in such a wonderful and impactful event.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v+GueKPNL05Jl
Here are some photos of the winners from the art competition held as part of Catholic Schools Week. The students were asked to draw or create their image of God.
Our Transition Year students brought some Christmas cheer to Nazareth House Nursing Home where they sang carols and Christmas songs for the residents.
Our mass to mark the beginning of the academic year is a very important occasion in our school calendar. The entire school community gathers together in Marino Parish Church where we welcome new students and staff, wish former staff and students well, pray together and share in the Eucharist.
The theme of this year’s mass echoed the words of St. Teresa of Avila, “Christ has no body now but yours”, focusing particularly on the power of our hands to do good in the world. This theme was beautifully woven into the liturgy and reiterated in the words of Fr. Tom’s homily, encouraging us to use our hands to build rather than to break.
Many students throughout the school contributed to the school mass through art, music and reading. Our new First Years were welcomed and our newly appointed Prefects were presented with their badges.
Less than two weeks after the World Meeting of Families and the visit of Pope Francis to Ireland, it was now time for the Maryfield girls accompanied by Ms. Seery to join the over 2,000 Dublin parishioners and pilgrims as part of the annual Diocesan Pilgrimage to Lourdes.
Friday September 7th saw seven aircraft depart from Dublin for Lourdes carrying sick pilgrims, helpers, medical staff, clergy and students.
Our four 6th Years, Aoife Hayes, Aoife Traynor, Hannah Byrne Kennedy and Dearbhaile Mulrooney, were among the wonderful young people from twenty-five secondary schools taking part.
Numeracy Moment!
177 sick pilgrims
45 nurses
8 doctors
300 young volunteers/helpers
35 priests
4 deacons
1 archbishop
133 ‘Blue Shirts’
20 parish groups
The Maryfield girls were part of the ‘Blue Shirts’ team. They began work on their arrival at the airport on Friday the 7th, helping to load all the sick pilgrims onto the planes. They continued to work tirelessly until our arrival back at Dublin Airport on September 12th where they assisted with the disembarkation of pilgrims.
The whole Lourdes experience was amazing, the weather glorious and the encounters with the people truly special. The girls’ duties involved working the acceuil (reception duties) and flag/stewarding duties at the ceremonies throughout the pilgrimage. This year, the Maryfield girls also lent their voices to the Lourdes Folk Group at the liturgies held for the pilgrims.
Every evening (after 10pm most nights) when all duties and ceremonies had ended, the ‘Blue Shirts’ then attended ‘Prairie’ with the youth chaplain, Fr. Paul Thornton, the youth Lourdes Pilgrimage leaders Michelle and Eoin, and all the teachers and students from the various schools. ‘Prairie’ allows the young people to reflect on their experiences each day in Lourdes.
There are so many highlights of the pilgrimage, so many moving moments (the ‘Baths’), so many times when you are touched by being with the sick pilgrims, simply serving. At the same time you are made aware of your own good health and good fortune.
One evening we attended the Medal Ceremony, where individual helpers are awarded medals for their years of service. One man was presented with a special award for sixty years’ service to the Dublin Pilgrimage.
The girls made many friends and joined in all the activities including a table-quiz, and a ‘sing-song’, where again there was no stopping their musical talent with a version of Amy Winehouse’s ‘Valerie’.
A special tradition that we have established is to go privately to the Grotto on the last night and light a very large candle for all connected with Maryfield College, and for those who supported us through our fund-raising efforts. We prayed at the Grotto for everyone’s intentions. This year we lit a very special candle in memory of our beloved Ciara Hawe, and we prayed especially for Ciara’s family and friends. Our four girls this year also lit four candles to pray for last year’s four volunteers from Maryfield – to bless them as they begin the new directions in their lives having finished school.
It is hard to put into words the experience of Lourdes. There is definitely something special, spiritual and sacred about this place. The legacy of Our Blessed Lady and St. Bernadette is truly present.
Our four students were amazing ambassadors for our school and we can be extremely proud of them. Lourdes will always be a unique experience for them, and hopefully at a later stage they will return there.
The project “ONE MILLION STARS” began in Australia in 2012, when Samoan artist Maryann Talia Pau began weaving the eight-pointed stars as a response to the murder of Gillian Meagher, an Irish woman living in Australia.
Click on the link below to learn about the One Million Stars project.
As part of celebrating international women’s day, we would like to say that we are organizing a collection to help the AOIBHNESS Women’s Shelter. When women flee their homes from domestic violence, they often have very little with them. On arrival to the shelter, they are given a welcome pack.
Click on the link below to learn about the For My Sister campaign.
4th Years on Retreat
Our fourth years went on retreat to Tipperary in November, 2021.
SHOWCASE AND SHARE –
STUDENT ACTION FOR CHANGE
Patricia Seery / Maryfield College
On Tuesday February 1st, Maryfield College attended an online gathering to connect with the wider Le Cheile community. This day was to celebrate St. Brigid’s day by showcasing and sharing all the amazing work that all the Le Cheile schools are involved in. the day was a celebration of many forms of student action that our schools are involved in.
Five Maryfield students were involved- Karoline Biju (6th Year), Amy Sheehy and Emma Kearney (5th Year) and Sophia Malik and Sarah Elders (3rd Year). There were over four hundred participants from seventy-five schools. everyone gathered in prayer, in shared activities and shared ideas.
This meeting also provided an opportunity for the teachers involved to connect with other teaching colleagues in the Le Cheile community regarding Student Leadership and ethos in action. As part of the gathering, everyone was divided up into Breakout Rooms, where the students got to talk to each other, and were able to share and highlight the many great things that happen in their school community involving student leadership and action.
The students enjoyed the gathering and perhaps have brought some new ideas back to Maryfield.
Some student reflections:
REFLECTION ON LE CHÉILE’S ST BRIGID’S DAY CELEBRATION
Since St Brigid’s day is officially a national holiday starting from next year, this year was the last year where schools would be open for St Brigid’s Day. To celebrate this joyous occasion, On the 1st of February this year, Le Chéile organised a zoom meeting where all Le Chéile schools could gather to show their appreciation for St Brigid, and her core values evident in each Le Chéile school. I had the honour of participating in the celebration and I really enjoyed it. The day started with introductions given by the CEO of Le Chéile and then it moved onto the showcase and share where presentations were made by different schools to showcase the values of St Brigid evident in their schools. I thought all the presentations made by each school were well done. I especially enjoyed the song that was sung by one of the schools. The song was an original written by a student in the school and it showed the talent and creativity found in the Le Chéile schools. It made me reflect on how being a part of Le Chéile has allowed schools to harness their students’ abilities and give them an opportunity to reach their full potential. After the showcase and share, we were put into breakout rooms. This was my favourite part of the day because it allowed me to connect with students from other schools across the country and abroad! We had a chance to talk and present our schools to each other. There were about six other schools in my breakout room, and I really liked how small the breakout rooms were because we all had a chance to talk and converse. When it was my turn to talk, I had so many things I wanted to talk about, but I settled on talking about the One Million Stars project we started doing in school that aims to end violence against women. I wanted to talk about something that was important and something I was proud of doing in school. I also hoped that other schools would hear the idea and would be inspired to also start the project in their own schools. Not only was I able to represent Maryfield and present what we had to offer, I was also lucky enough to take from the experience, new ideas that can be brought into Maryfield such as the initiative to cycle to school or including learning about all the languages found in Maryfield into our intercultural club. I am so thankful to have been asked to be a part of this celebration and I enjoyed and learned a lot from this occasion.
Showcase and Share 2022
My experience in the showcase and share with Le Cheile was very special and moving. I thought it was incredible the way so many schools were connected and were able to spread the things and events that make their school special. I really enjoyed watching the videos that were presented during the meeting as I think they were very impactful as they showed you a visual of all the amazing things they do, whilst watching the videos it just put you in a great mood and made you want to do all those things too. During the zoom meeting I learned that our school and all the other schools celebrate similar events and have similar procedures, but we all do them in different ways. By attending the zoom meeting, it really opened my eyes to some of the ideas that other schools shared and made me want to bring and spread those ideas in our own school. I think by attending the showcase and share, it really made me want to make a difference in our school and make our school have an even better atmosphere, including environment and do things that don’t just benefit us in Maryfield, but the wider local, national, and international community. Overall, I think the Le Cheile St. Brigid’s day Showcase and share made everyone feel touched and motivated to do amazing things in their schools and made everyone feel included in an experience that will change the way all the schools approach all these events, holidays, social issues, and problems in their schools. I am very grateful to have had the opportunity to participate in such a wonderful and impactful event.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v+GueKPNL05Jl
Here are some photos of the winners from the art competition held as part of Catholic Schools Week. The students were asked to draw or create their image of God.
Our Transition Year students brought some Christmas cheer to Nazareth House Nursing Home where they sang carols and Christmas songs for the residents.
Our mass to mark the beginning of the academic year is a very important occasion in our school calendar. The entire school community gathers together in Marino Parish Church where we welcome new students and staff, wish former staff and students well, pray together and share in the Eucharist.
The theme of this year’s mass echoed the words of St. Teresa of Avila, “Christ has no body now but yours”, focusing particularly on the power of our hands to do good in the world. This theme was beautifully woven into the liturgy and reiterated in the words of Fr. Tom’s homily, encouraging us to use our hands to build rather than to break.
Many students throughout the school contributed to the school mass through art, music and reading. Our new First Years were welcomed and our newly appointed Prefects were presented with their badges.
Less than two weeks after the World Meeting of Families and the visit of Pope Francis to Ireland, it was now time for the Maryfield girls accompanied by Ms. Seery to join the over 2,000 Dublin parishioners and pilgrims as part of the annual Diocesan Pilgrimage to Lourdes.
Friday September 7th saw seven aircraft depart from Dublin for Lourdes carrying sick pilgrims, helpers, medical staff, clergy and students.
Our four 6th Years, Aoife Hayes, Aoife Traynor, Hannah Byrne Kennedy and Dearbhaile Mulrooney, were among the wonderful young people from twenty-five secondary schools taking part.
Numeracy Moment!
177 sick pilgrims
45 nurses
8 doctors
300 young volunteers/helpers
35 priests
4 deacons
1 archbishop
133 ‘Blue Shirts’
20 parish groups
The Maryfield girls were part of the ‘Blue Shirts’ team. They began work on their arrival at the airport on Friday the 7th, helping to load all the sick pilgrims onto the planes. They continued to work tirelessly until our arrival back at Dublin Airport on September 12th where they assisted with the disembarkation of pilgrims.
The whole Lourdes experience was amazing, the weather glorious and the encounters with the people truly special. The girls’ duties involved working the acceuil (reception duties) and flag/stewarding duties at the ceremonies throughout the pilgrimage. This year, the Maryfield girls also lent their voices to the Lourdes Folk Group at the liturgies held for the pilgrims.
Every evening (after 10pm most nights) when all duties and ceremonies had ended, the ‘Blue Shirts’ then attended ‘Prairie’ with the youth chaplain, Fr. Paul Thornton, the youth Lourdes Pilgrimage leaders Michelle and Eoin, and all the teachers and students from the various schools. ‘Prairie’ allows the young people to reflect on their experiences each day in Lourdes.
There are so many highlights of the pilgrimage, so many moving moments (the ‘Baths’), so many times when you are touched by being with the sick pilgrims, simply serving. At the same time you are made aware of your own good health and good fortune.
One evening we attended the Medal Ceremony, where individual helpers are awarded medals for their years of service. One man was presented with a special award for sixty years’ service to the Dublin Pilgrimage.
The girls made many friends and joined in all the activities including a table-quiz, and a ‘sing-song’, where again there was no stopping their musical talent with a version of Amy Winehouse’s ‘Valerie’.
A special tradition that we have established is to go privately to the Grotto on the last night and light a very large candle for all connected with Maryfield College, and for those who supported us through our fund-raising efforts. We prayed at the Grotto for everyone’s intentions. This year we lit a very special candle in memory of our beloved Ciara Hawe, and we prayed especially for Ciara’s family and friends. Our four girls this year also lit four candles to pray for last year’s four volunteers from Maryfield – to bless them as they begin the new directions in their lives having finished school.
It is hard to put into words the experience of Lourdes. There is definitely something special, spiritual and sacred about this place. The legacy of Our Blessed Lady and St. Bernadette is truly present.
Our four students were amazing ambassadors for our school and we can be extremely proud of them. Lourdes will always be a unique experience for them, and hopefully at a later stage they will return there.
The project “ONE MILLION STARS” began in Australia in 2012, when Samoan artist Maryann Talia Pau began weaving the eight-pointed stars as a response to the murder of Gillian Meagher, an Irish woman living in Australia.
Click on the link below to learn about the One Million Stars project.
As part of celebrating international women’s day, we would like to say that we are organizing a collection to help the AOIBHNESS Women’s Shelter. When women flee their homes from domestic violence, they often have very little with them. On arrival to the shelter, they are given a welcome pack.
Click on the link below to learn about the For My Sister campaign.
4th Years on Retreat
Our fourth years went on retreat to Tipperary in November, 2021.
SHOWCASE AND SHARE –
STUDENT ACTION FOR CHANGE
Patricia Seery / Maryfield College
On Tuesday February 1st, Maryfield College attended an online gathering to connect with the wider Le Cheile community. This day was to celebrate St. Brigid’s day by showcasing and sharing all the amazing work that all the Le Cheile schools are involved in. the day was a celebration of many forms of student action that our schools are involved in.
Five Maryfield students were involved- Karoline Biju (6th Year), Amy Sheehy and Emma Kearney (5th Year) and Sophia Malik and Sarah Elders (3rd Year). There were over four hundred participants from seventy-five schools. everyone gathered in prayer, in shared activities and shared ideas.
This meeting also provided an opportunity for the teachers involved to connect with other teaching colleagues in the Le Cheile community regarding Student Leadership and ethos in action. As part of the gathering, everyone was divided up into Breakout Rooms, where the students got to talk to each other, and were able to share and highlight the many great things that happen in their school community involving student leadership and action.
The students enjoyed the gathering and perhaps have brought some new ideas back to Maryfield.
Some student reflections:
REFLECTION ON LE CHÉILE’S ST BRIGID’S DAY CELEBRATION
Since St Brigid’s day is officially a national holiday starting from next year, this year was the last year where schools would be open for St Brigid’s Day. To celebrate this joyous occasion, On the 1st of February this year, Le Chéile organised a zoom meeting where all Le Chéile schools could gather to show their appreciation for St Brigid, and her core values evident in each Le Chéile school. I had the honour of participating in the celebration and I really enjoyed it. The day started with introductions given by the CEO of Le Chéile and then it moved onto the showcase and share where presentations were made by different schools to showcase the values of St Brigid evident in their schools. I thought all the presentations made by each school were well done. I especially enjoyed the song that was sung by one of the schools. The song was an original written by a student in the school and it showed the talent and creativity found in the Le Chéile schools. It made me reflect on how being a part of Le Chéile has allowed schools to harness their students’ abilities and give them an opportunity to reach their full potential. After the showcase and share, we were put into breakout rooms. This was my favourite part of the day because it allowed me to connect with students from other schools across the country and abroad! We had a chance to talk and present our schools to each other. There were about six other schools in my breakout room, and I really liked how small the breakout rooms were because we all had a chance to talk and converse. When it was my turn to talk, I had so many things I wanted to talk about, but I settled on talking about the One Million Stars project we started doing in school that aims to end violence against women. I wanted to talk about something that was important and something I was proud of doing in school. I also hoped that other schools would hear the idea and would be inspired to also start the project in their own schools. Not only was I able to represent Maryfield and present what we had to offer, I was also lucky enough to take from the experience, new ideas that can be brought into Maryfield such as the initiative to cycle to school or including learning about all the languages found in Maryfield into our intercultural club. I am so thankful to have been asked to be a part of this celebration and I enjoyed and learned a lot from this occasion.
Showcase and Share 2022
My experience in the showcase and share with Le Cheile was very special and moving. I thought it was incredible the way so many schools were connected and were able to spread the things and events that make their school special. I really enjoyed watching the videos that were presented during the meeting as I think they were very impactful as they showed you a visual of all the amazing things they do, whilst watching the videos it just put you in a great mood and made you want to do all those things too. During the zoom meeting I learned that our school and all the other schools celebrate similar events and have similar procedures, but we all do them in different ways. By attending the zoom meeting, it really opened my eyes to some of the ideas that other schools shared and made me want to bring and spread those ideas in our own school. I think by attending the showcase and share, it really made me want to make a difference in our school and make our school have an even better atmosphere, including environment and do things that don’t just benefit us in Maryfield, but the wider local, national, and international community. Overall, I think the Le Cheile St. Brigid’s day Showcase and share made everyone feel touched and motivated to do amazing things in their schools and made everyone feel included in an experience that will change the way all the schools approach all these events, holidays, social issues, and problems in their schools. I am very grateful to have had the opportunity to participate in such a wonderful and impactful event.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v+GueKPNL05Jl
Here are some photos of the winners from the art competition held as part of Catholic Schools Week. The students were asked to draw or create their image of God.
Our Transition Year students brought some Christmas cheer to Nazareth House Nursing Home where they sang carols and Christmas songs for the residents.
Our mass to mark the beginning of the academic year is a very important occasion in our school calendar. The entire school community gathers together in Marino Parish Church where we welcome new students and staff, wish former staff and students well, pray together and share in the Eucharist.
The theme of this year’s mass echoed the words of St. Teresa of Avila, “Christ has no body now but yours”, focusing particularly on the power of our hands to do good in the world. This theme was beautifully woven into the liturgy and reiterated in the words of Fr. Tom’s homily, encouraging us to use our hands to build rather than to break.
Many students throughout the school contributed to the school mass through art, music and reading. Our new First Years were welcomed and our newly appointed Prefects were presented with their badges.
Less than two weeks after the World Meeting of Families and the visit of Pope Francis to Ireland, it was now time for the Maryfield girls accompanied by Ms. Seery to join the over 2,000 Dublin parishioners and pilgrims as part of the annual Diocesan Pilgrimage to Lourdes.
Friday September 7th saw seven aircraft depart from Dublin for Lourdes carrying sick pilgrims, helpers, medical staff, clergy and students.
Our four 6th Years, Aoife Hayes, Aoife Traynor, Hannah Byrne Kennedy and Dearbhaile Mulrooney, were among the wonderful young people from twenty-five secondary schools taking part.
Numeracy Moment!
177 sick pilgrims
45 nurses
8 doctors
300 young volunteers/helpers
35 priests
4 deacons
1 archbishop
133 ‘Blue Shirts’
20 parish groups
The Maryfield girls were part of the ‘Blue Shirts’ team. They began work on their arrival at the airport on Friday the 7th, helping to load all the sick pilgrims onto the planes. They continued to work tirelessly until our arrival back at Dublin Airport on September 12th where they assisted with the disembarkation of pilgrims.
The whole Lourdes experience was amazing, the weather glorious and the encounters with the people truly special. The girls’ duties involved working the acceuil (reception duties) and flag/stewarding duties at the ceremonies throughout the pilgrimage. This year, the Maryfield girls also lent their voices to the Lourdes Folk Group at the liturgies held for the pilgrims.
Every evening (after 10pm most nights) when all duties and ceremonies had ended, the ‘Blue Shirts’ then attended ‘Prairie’ with the youth chaplain, Fr. Paul Thornton, the youth Lourdes Pilgrimage leaders Michelle and Eoin, and all the teachers and students from the various schools. ‘Prairie’ allows the young people to reflect on their experiences each day in Lourdes.
There are so many highlights of the pilgrimage, so many moving moments (the ‘Baths’), so many times when you are touched by being with the sick pilgrims, simply serving. At the same time you are made aware of your own good health and good fortune.
One evening we attended the Medal Ceremony, where individual helpers are awarded medals for their years of service. One man was presented with a special award for sixty years’ service to the Dublin Pilgrimage.
The girls made many friends and joined in all the activities including a table-quiz, and a ‘sing-song’, where again there was no stopping their musical talent with a version of Amy Winehouse’s ‘Valerie’.
A special tradition that we have established is to go privately to the Grotto on the last night and light a very large candle for all connected with Maryfield College, and for those who supported us through our fund-raising efforts. We prayed at the Grotto for everyone’s intentions. This year we lit a very special candle in memory of our beloved Ciara Hawe, and we prayed especially for Ciara’s family and friends. Our four girls this year also lit four candles to pray for last year’s four volunteers from Maryfield – to bless them as they begin the new directions in their lives having finished school.
It is hard to put into words the experience of Lourdes. There is definitely something special, spiritual and sacred about this place. The legacy of Our Blessed Lady and St. Bernadette is truly present.
Our four students were amazing ambassadors for our school and we can be extremely proud of them. Lourdes will always be a unique experience for them, and hopefully at a later stage they will return there.
The project “ONE MILLION STARS” began in Australia in 2012, when Samoan artist Maryann Talia Pau began weaving the eight-pointed stars as a response to the murder of Gillian Meagher, an Irish woman living in Australia.
Click on the link below to learn about the One Million Stars project.
As part of celebrating international women’s day, we would like to say that we are organizing a collection to help the AOIBHNESS Women’s Shelter. When women flee their homes from domestic violence, they often have very little with them. On arrival to the shelter, they are given a welcome pack.
Click on the link below to learn about the For My Sister campaign.
4th Years on Retreat
Our fourth years went on retreat to Tipperary in November, 2021.
SHOWCASE AND SHARE –
STUDENT ACTION FOR CHANGE
Patricia Seery / Maryfield College
On Tuesday February 1st, Maryfield College attended an online gathering to connect with the wider Le Cheile community. This day was to celebrate St. Brigid’s day by showcasing and sharing all the amazing work that all the Le Cheile schools are involved in. the day was a celebration of many forms of student action that our schools are involved in.
Five Maryfield students were involved- Karoline Biju (6th Year), Amy Sheehy and Emma Kearney (5th Year) and Sophia Malik and Sarah Elders (3rd Year). There were over four hundred participants from seventy-five schools. everyone gathered in prayer, in shared activities and shared ideas.
This meeting also provided an opportunity for the teachers involved to connect with other teaching colleagues in the Le Cheile community regarding Student Leadership and ethos in action. As part of the gathering, everyone was divided up into Breakout Rooms, where the students got to talk to each other, and were able to share and highlight the many great things that happen in their school community involving student leadership and action.
The students enjoyed the gathering and perhaps have brought some new ideas back to Maryfield.
Some student reflections:
REFLECTION ON LE CHÉILE’S ST BRIGID’S DAY CELEBRATION
Since St Brigid’s day is officially a national holiday starting from next year, this year was the last year where schools would be open for St Brigid’s Day. To celebrate this joyous occasion, On the 1st of February this year, Le Chéile organised a zoom meeting where all Le Chéile schools could gather to show their appreciation for St Brigid, and her core values evident in each Le Chéile school. I had the honour of participating in the celebration and I really enjoyed it. The day started with introductions given by the CEO of Le Chéile and then it moved onto the showcase and share where presentations were made by different schools to showcase the values of St Brigid evident in their schools. I thought all the presentations made by each school were well done. I especially enjoyed the song that was sung by one of the schools. The song was an original written by a student in the school and it showed the talent and creativity found in the Le Chéile schools. It made me reflect on how being a part of Le Chéile has allowed schools to harness their students’ abilities and give them an opportunity to reach their full potential. After the showcase and share, we were put into breakout rooms. This was my favourite part of the day because it allowed me to connect with students from other schools across the country and abroad! We had a chance to talk and present our schools to each other. There were about six other schools in my breakout room, and I really liked how small the breakout rooms were because we all had a chance to talk and converse. When it was my turn to talk, I had so many things I wanted to talk about, but I settled on talking about the One Million Stars project we started doing in school that aims to end violence against women. I wanted to talk about something that was important and something I was proud of doing in school. I also hoped that other schools would hear the idea and would be inspired to also start the project in their own schools. Not only was I able to represent Maryfield and present what we had to offer, I was also lucky enough to take from the experience, new ideas that can be brought into Maryfield such as the initiative to cycle to school or including learning about all the languages found in Maryfield into our intercultural club. I am so thankful to have been asked to be a part of this celebration and I enjoyed and learned a lot from this occasion.
Showcase and Share 2022
My experience in the showcase and share with Le Cheile was very special and moving. I thought it was incredible the way so many schools were connected and were able to spread the things and events that make their school special. I really enjoyed watching the videos that were presented during the meeting as I think they were very impactful as they showed you a visual of all the amazing things they do, whilst watching the videos it just put you in a great mood and made you want to do all those things too. During the zoom meeting I learned that our school and all the other schools celebrate similar events and have similar procedures, but we all do them in different ways. By attending the zoom meeting, it really opened my eyes to some of the ideas that other schools shared and made me want to bring and spread those ideas in our own school. I think by attending the showcase and share, it really made me want to make a difference in our school and make our school have an even better atmosphere, including environment and do things that don’t just benefit us in Maryfield, but the wider local, national, and international community. Overall, I think the Le Cheile St. Brigid’s day Showcase and share made everyone feel touched and motivated to do amazing things in their schools and made everyone feel included in an experience that will change the way all the schools approach all these events, holidays, social issues, and problems in their schools. I am very grateful to have had the opportunity to participate in such a wonderful and impactful event.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v+GueKPNL05Jl
Here are some photos of the winners from the art competition held as part of Catholic Schools Week. The students were asked to draw or create their image of God.
Our Transition Year students brought some Christmas cheer to Nazareth House Nursing Home where they sang carols and Christmas songs for the residents.
Our mass to mark the beginning of the academic year is a very important occasion in our school calendar. The entire school community gathers together in Marino Parish Church where we welcome new students and staff, wish former staff and students well, pray together and share in the Eucharist.
The theme of this year’s mass echoed the words of St. Teresa of Avila, “Christ has no body now but yours”, focusing particularly on the power of our hands to do good in the world. This theme was beautifully woven into the liturgy and reiterated in the words of Fr. Tom’s homily, encouraging us to use our hands to build rather than to break.
Many students throughout the school contributed to the school mass through art, music and reading. Our new First Years were welcomed and our newly appointed Prefects were presented with their badges.
Less than two weeks after the World Meeting of Families and the visit of Pope Francis to Ireland, it was now time for the Maryfield girls accompanied by Ms. Seery to join the over 2,000 Dublin parishioners and pilgrims as part of the annual Diocesan Pilgrimage to Lourdes.
Friday September 7th saw seven aircraft depart from Dublin for Lourdes carrying sick pilgrims, helpers, medical staff, clergy and students.
Our four 6th Years, Aoife Hayes, Aoife Traynor, Hannah Byrne Kennedy and Dearbhaile Mulrooney, were among the wonderful young people from twenty-five secondary schools taking part.
Numeracy Moment!
177 sick pilgrims
45 nurses
8 doctors
300 young volunteers/helpers
35 priests
4 deacons
1 archbishop
133 ‘Blue Shirts’
20 parish groups
The Maryfield girls were part of the ‘Blue Shirts’ team. They began work on their arrival at the airport on Friday the 7th, helping to load all the sick pilgrims onto the planes. They continued to work tirelessly until our arrival back at Dublin Airport on September 12th where they assisted with the disembarkation of pilgrims.
The whole Lourdes experience was amazing, the weather glorious and the encounters with the people truly special. The girls’ duties involved working the acceuil (reception duties) and flag/stewarding duties at the ceremonies throughout the pilgrimage. This year, the Maryfield girls also lent their voices to the Lourdes Folk Group at the liturgies held for the pilgrims.
Every evening (after 10pm most nights) when all duties and ceremonies had ended, the ‘Blue Shirts’ then attended ‘Prairie’ with the youth chaplain, Fr. Paul Thornton, the youth Lourdes Pilgrimage leaders Michelle and Eoin, and all the teachers and students from the various schools. ‘Prairie’ allows the young people to reflect on their experiences each day in Lourdes.
There are so many highlights of the pilgrimage, so many moving moments (the ‘Baths’), so many times when you are touched by being with the sick pilgrims, simply serving. At the same time you are made aware of your own good health and good fortune.
One evening we attended the Medal Ceremony, where individual helpers are awarded medals for their years of service. One man was presented with a special award for sixty years’ service to the Dublin Pilgrimage.
The girls made many friends and joined in all the activities including a table-quiz, and a ‘sing-song’, where again there was no stopping their musical talent with a version of Amy Winehouse’s ‘Valerie’.
A special tradition that we have established is to go privately to the Grotto on the last night and light a very large candle for all connected with Maryfield College, and for those who supported us through our fund-raising efforts. We prayed at the Grotto for everyone’s intentions. This year we lit a very special candle in memory of our beloved Ciara Hawe, and we prayed especially for Ciara’s family and friends. Our four girls this year also lit four candles to pray for last year’s four volunteers from Maryfield – to bless them as they begin the new directions in their lives having finished school.
It is hard to put into words the experience of Lourdes. There is definitely something special, spiritual and sacred about this place. The legacy of Our Blessed Lady and St. Bernadette is truly present.
Our four students were amazing ambassadors for our school and we can be extremely proud of them. Lourdes will always be a unique experience for them, and hopefully at a later stage they will return there.
