A TY group was taken to “Senbazuru”, a Japanese restaurant today. The students enjoyed a bento box.
The 4th years had a great outdoor pursuits trip to Flynn Park yesterday! Lots of fun for all involved!
Fourth year students have had a very busy week which included four performances of their musical! The week began with all fourth years taking part in the Young Social Innovators (YSI) speak out in the Mansion House, Dawson Street.
Each of the four YSI teams had to present their YSI action project on stage in front of hundreds of other students. The students represented their school with enthusiasm, energy and an awareness of social justice.
Maryfield’s YSI guides were incredibly proud of all the students and their commitment to effecting positive change in the world. Well done everybody. Shout out to our dance representatives who preformed a snippet of the musical ‘Legally Blonde’ to win the dance battle!
video 1 video 2 video 3 video 4
The TY Japanese class learned the etiquette for eating with chopsticks today. They then had bean eating competitions prior to the Japanese restaurant visit before midterm.
Here is a photo montage of the TY Barista workshop with Dublin Barista School.
Congratulations to our TY Class of 2023 and Ms Ryan, Ms Clancy, Ms Cooney, Ms O’Toole, Ms O’Mahoney and Ms McLoughlin for a wonderful end of year celebration. Thank you to all parents who attended the presentation this afternoon.
In this book Pedro the parrot gets lost and tries to find his way home. He gets help along the way from all kinds of animals and families- a family with two lioness mums, a little hedgehog who’s is minding a baby bear, a rabbit family with mum and dad, and so on. The gorgeous illustrations by Ema T , add vibrant colour and light up the rhyming story aimed at younger children. well done to 4 K and Ms. McLoughlin!
![Image[68]](https://i0.wp.com/maryfieldcollege.ie/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Image68.jpeg?w=387&h=498&ssl=1 "Image[68]")
![Image[58]](https://i0.wp.com/maryfieldcollege.ie/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Image58.jpeg?w=405&h=498&ssl=1 "Image[58]")
![Image[51]](https://i0.wp.com/maryfieldcollege.ie/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Image51-scaled.jpeg?w=247&h=185&ssl=1 "Image[51]")
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![Image[46]](https://i0.wp.com/maryfieldcollege.ie/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Image46.jpeg?w=151&h=185&ssl=1 "Image[46]")
4K are National finalists in the @YSInow competition, and their published book has just arrived in time! #inclusion #diversity Well done, girls and Ms McLoughlin! pic.twitter.com/Ap1hp3YNSt
— MaryfieldCollegeDublin (@MaryfieldDublin) April 28, 2023
Two of the transition year students reached the final of the relove fashion competition on Thursday in Ballymum.
Here are some pictures of the two students Sarah Elders and Isabelle Graham with their outfit that they made from recycled jeans.
The final had 22 finalist out of 200 entries from all schools all over Ireland.
The TY Japanese class went to a local Japanese restaurant today to try a bento box to finish off the module. They all enjoyed it very much. Well done to Ms Mika McLoughlin.
Transition year students completed the CPR 4 Schools programme from the Irish Heart Foundation.
Here’s some photos of the 4th yrs. with the gnomes they made in a craft workshop run by Ms Mahoney and Ms McLoughlin. Well done everyone!
This afternoon we celebrated the end of the current Transition Year by bringing the TY students together with their Year Head Ms McAuley, TY Co-ordinator Ms Ryan and their Form Tutors Ms Cooney, Ms Mahoney and Ms O’Toole and the Principal and Deputy Principal also to look back on all of the wonderful achievements of the year group and to celebrate their collective and individual successes. We were also very pleased to have with us a representative from Young Social Innovators YSI to present the students with their pins for participation and the winning class 4L with their award for their #whowearsthetrousers campaign.
This afternoon students shared their experience of their participation in European Youth Parliament, An Gaisce, & Relove Fashion Project, and Ms McAuley and Ms Ryan praised the students for their participation in all TY activities and opportunities with a particular focus on how this years group of TY’s reached out to their local community and those in need of help the most through the Christmas Care Package Initiative and charity fundraisers for Breast Cancer Ireland. During the afternoon we enjoyed watching montages of both video and photo that reminded the students of all of their achievements and time spent together this year forging new friendships, learning new skills and participating in new experiences. Students all received their individual Transition Year completion certificates and a range of other subject and workshop certs also.
Please take a look through some photos and videos from this afternoons presentation.
We wish all our TY students a lovely Summer and look forward to welcoming them back to school at the end of August as 5th Years.
Ms Carroll
Class 4R Japanese Culture and Language Trip to Senbazuru Fairview to have a traditional Japanese Bento Box Lunch. Thanks to our PPLI Japanese Teacher Ms O Loughlin
Check out our TY pupils and Ms McLoughlin representing Maryfield in the media, while discussing their campaign about school uniforms.
https://www.virginmediatelevision.ie/player/show/809/194835/0/School-Uniform-Choice-Campaign
8/3/’22
MsMcLoughlin with students Meabh and Anita from 4L on Ireland AM this morning promoting their YSI project #whowearsthetrousers
7/3/’22
Our TY YSI pupils have made the news today! They’ve launched a campaign for more choice in the school uniform.
They also discussed it on Newstalk’s Lunchtime Live.
‘Cold… discriminatory’: Students campaign to end skirt-only uniform policies (irishtimes.com)
Organised by Ms Townshend and Mr McQuillan on the 17th December, 2021.
This year the Transition year students took part in the Care Pack initiative during November and December. The aim is to spread joy and goodwill towards senior citizens who are residents in a care facility in Ireland. Many of these residents, have had limited visits from family and friends during this time, so when we heard of the opportunity to get involved and make a difference, we couldn’t wait!
55 students from our year volunteered to participate in the project. On completion of our application, we received a list of residents currently residing in local nursing homes within the Drumcondra and Glasnevin area. We wanted to support the residents by wrapping them in a blanket of kindness andwhile they may have to isolate away safely during the pandemic, they most certainly are in our thoughts. We sent letters, cards, gifts, handcrafted items, and treats. All parcels were individually wrapped, packed, and posted. Each package is a unique representation of how we are keeping our senior citizens in our thoughts and prayers over the festive season.
Many thanks to Ms. McAuley for supporting us on this project and well done to all Ty students on thewhat has been a great success– great team work!
Ava Cleary, Megan Savage, Sarah Preston & Louise Hennessey
Our Transition Years spent two action-packed days at Carlingford Adventure Centre, making new friends and enjoying a wide variety of sports and activities. Despite the early morning starts the students enthusiastically participated in zip lining, laser tag, hiking and many water sports. A wonderful time was had by all.
View our Legally Blonde Musical gallery here
This week Abby, Holly and I undertook work experience at the Concern offices. It was a totally different experience to anything we had done before.
We were first introduced to the other participating students from all over Ireland. We had the opportunity to hear about the work that Concern do and listened to talks given by people working in a variety of areas such as fundraising, emergencies, social media, journalism, gender equality and malnutrition. We also learned about Concern’s work overseas in the global south and we got the opportunity to Skype with one of the workers in Malawi and ask her questions about her work and life there.
It was amazing for me to see how much thought and effort Concern put in to how they spend their money and how they can improve the lives of people living in the global south. I was very pleased to learn that our money is spent so well and would like to learn more about the work of Concern. In the future I would love to work for an organisation such as Concern because I could really see the difference it makes. I am delighted that we had the opportunity to study Development Education in Transition Year and learn more about global issues.
Thank you to all the staff at Concern!
Sabrina
On Thursday the 8th of December, the Transition Year students along with the RE Department held a Christmas event in aid of Traidcraft. The assembly hall in Maryfield was transformed into a wonderful Christmas market for the entire school community to enjoy. Students and teachers could buy some beautiful Fair Trade craft gifts for their loved ones, or have a coffee or hot chocolate in the café area. They purchased cakes, had their faces painted, bought raffle tickets and sang along with the Transition Years who entertained them with Christmas songs.
Traidcraft is the leading UK fair trade organisation, dedicated to fighting poverty through trade. All the products sold are ethically and environmentally produced by farmers and artisans in many countries throughout the developing world. Fair trade means that the price we pay for products ensures fair remuneration for producers. They can then afford life’s essentials such as food, education and healthcare.
Traidcraft is founded on Christian principles. It seeks to live out the Christian faith through its mission to fight poverty through trade. It is both a Trading Company and a Development Charity. Traidcraft helps poor producers to work their way out of poverty. By developing their skills and their knowledge, Traidcraft helps them achieve their God-given potential. It is a simple and effective way to respond to Jesus’ command for us to love God and serve the world.
The Transition Year students hosted an amazing event and raised a grand total of €4,010 for their efforts. They would like to thank all staff and students who supported the event. A special thank you also to the following teachers – Ms. McAuley, Ms. Kelegan, Ms. Mellon and Ms. Seery for all their work on this project.
Chuir grúpa scoláire ón idirbhliain tráth na gceist ar siúl sa halla ar an 25 Samhain. Chum na scoláirí seo na ceisteanna go léir, rinne siad taispeántas deas PowerPoint agus ghlaoigh siad amach na ceisteanna go líofa. Bhain gach duine an-taitneamh as an ócaid agus tá moladh mór tuillte ag na scoláirí iontacha a chuir an tráth na gceist seo ar siúl.
Transition Year students attended a creative writing workshop on Monday 21st November in Fighting Words Creative Writing Centre. The group had a chance to compose a story as a group and individually, and worked with a team of volunteer writers to develop their writing style. Thanks to all at Fighting Words for a wonderful afternoon!
Transition Year students paid a visit to the ‘Zeminar’ event which took place recently in the RDS. ‘Zeminar’ is a new social enterprise which brings together the various partners involved in the wellbeing of young people and examines the issues surrounding their academic and personal development. The event consisted of a variety of stands representing organisations and activities that promote positive mental health. The highlight of the day was a presentation given by Bressie. He connected well with his audience by speaking honestly and openly about his own life-experiences and sharing his story about dealing with very real issues such as anxiety and depression.
From the 6th to the 9th of September Transition Year students attended a very enjoyable dance and drama workshop. This workshop is always an excellent start to TY with students making new friendships and connections in an extremely sociable environment. The students learned a number of dance routines and acted out excerpts from a selection of musicals. The students really looked forward to attending the workshop each day and used up plenty of energy while having fun.
The Transition Year trip to Carlingford Adventure Centre was once more a resounding success. The school classroom of Maryfield was replaced by the great outdoors of the shores of Carlingford Lough, Maryfield students making this transition seamlessly. Students participated in activities and challenges that many had never before encountered. Decided favourites were kayaking and zip-lining. The overnight trip consolidated old friendships and built new bonds for the year ahead.
Contributed by clas
Here is a photo montage of the TY Barista workshop with Dublin Barista School.
Congratulations to our TY Class of 2023 and Ms Ryan, Ms Clancy, Ms Cooney, Ms O’Toole, Ms O’Mahoney and Ms McLoughlin for a wonderful end of year celebration. Thank you to all parents who attended the presentation this afternoon.
In this book Pedro the parrot gets lost and tries to find his way home. He gets help along the way from all kinds of animals and families- a family with two lioness mums, a little hedgehog who’s is minding a baby bear, a rabbit family with mum and dad, and so on. The gorgeous illustrations by Ema T , add vibrant colour and light up the rhyming story aimed at younger children. well done to 4 K and Ms. McLoughlin!
4K are National finalists in the @YSInow competition, and their published book has just arrived in time! #inclusion #diversity Well done, girls and Ms McLoughlin! pic.twitter.com/Ap1hp3YNSt
— MaryfieldCollegeDublin (@MaryfieldDublin) April 28, 2023
Two of the transition year students reached the final of the relove fashion competition on Thursday in Ballymum.
Here are some pictures of the two students Sarah Elders and Isabelle Graham with their outfit that they made from recycled jeans.
The final had 22 finalist out of 200 entries from all schools all over Ireland.
The TY Japanese class went to a local Japanese restaurant today to try a bento box to finish off the module. They all enjoyed it very much. Well done to Ms Mika McLoughlin.
Transition year students completed the CPR 4 Schools programme from the Irish Heart Foundation.
Here’s some photos of the 4th yrs. with the gnomes they made in a craft workshop run by Ms Mahoney and Ms McLoughlin. Well done everyone!
This afternoon we celebrated the end of the current Transition Year by bringing the TY students together with their Year Head Ms McAuley, TY Co-ordinator Ms Ryan and their Form Tutors Ms Cooney, Ms Mahoney and Ms O’Toole and the Principal and Deputy Principal also to look back on all of the wonderful achievements of the year group and to celebrate their collective and individual successes. We were also very pleased to have with us a representative from Young Social Innovators YSI to present the students with their pins for participation and the winning class 4L with their award for their #whowearsthetrousers campaign.
This afternoon students shared their experience of their participation in European Youth Parliament, An Gaisce, & Relove Fashion Project, and Ms McAuley and Ms Ryan praised the students for their participation in all TY activities and opportunities with a particular focus on how this years group of TY’s reached out to their local community and those in need of help the most through the Christmas Care Package Initiative and charity fundraisers for Breast Cancer Ireland. During the afternoon we enjoyed watching montages of both video and photo that reminded the students of all of their achievements and time spent together this year forging new friendships, learning new skills and participating in new experiences. Students all received their individual Transition Year completion certificates and a range of other subject and workshop certs also.
Please take a look through some photos and videos from this afternoons presentation.
We wish all our TY students a lovely Summer and look forward to welcoming them back to school at the end of August as 5th Years.
Ms Carroll
Class 4R Japanese Culture and Language Trip to Senbazuru Fairview to have a traditional Japanese Bento Box Lunch. Thanks to our PPLI Japanese Teacher Ms O Loughlin
Check out our TY pupils and Ms McLoughlin representing Maryfield in the media, while discussing their campaign about school uniforms.
https://www.virginmediatelevision.ie/player/show/809/194835/0/School-Uniform-Choice-Campaign
8/3/’22
MsMcLoughlin with students Meabh and Anita from 4L on Ireland AM this morning promoting their YSI project #whowearsthetrousers
7/3/’22
Our TY YSI pupils have made the news today! They’ve launched a campaign for more choice in the school uniform.
They also discussed it on Newstalk’s Lunchtime Live.
‘Cold… discriminatory’: Students campaign to end skirt-only uniform policies (irishtimes.com)
Organised by Ms Townshend and Mr McQuillan on the 17th December, 2021.
This year the Transition year students took part in the Care Pack initiative during November and December. The aim is to spread joy and goodwill towards senior citizens who are residents in a care facility in Ireland. Many of these residents, have had limited visits from family and friends during this time, so when we heard of the opportunity to get involved and make a difference, we couldn’t wait!
55 students from our year volunteered to participate in the project. On completion of our application, we received a list of residents currently residing in local nursing homes within the Drumcondra and Glasnevin area. We wanted to support the residents by wrapping them in a blanket of kindness andwhile they may have to isolate away safely during the pandemic, they most certainly are in our thoughts. We sent letters, cards, gifts, handcrafted items, and treats. All parcels were individually wrapped, packed, and posted. Each package is a unique representation of how we are keeping our senior citizens in our thoughts and prayers over the festive season.
Many thanks to Ms. McAuley for supporting us on this project and well done to all Ty students on thewhat has been a great success– great team work!
Ava Cleary, Megan Savage, Sarah Preston & Louise Hennessey
Our Transition Years spent two action-packed days at Carlingford Adventure Centre, making new friends and enjoying a wide variety of sports and activities. Despite the early morning starts the students enthusiastically participated in zip lining, laser tag, hiking and many water sports. A wonderful time was had by all.
View our Legally Blonde Musical gallery here
This week Abby, Holly and I undertook work experience at the Concern offices. It was a totally different experience to anything we had done before.
We were first introduced to the other participating students from all over Ireland. We had the opportunity to hear about the work that Concern do and listened to talks given by people working in a variety of areas such as fundraising, emergencies, social media, journalism, gender equality and malnutrition. We also learned about Concern’s work overseas in the global south and we got the opportunity to Skype with one of the workers in Malawi and ask her questions about her work and life there.
It was amazing for me to see how much thought and effort Concern put in to how they spend their money and how they can improve the lives of people living in the global south. I was very pleased to learn that our money is spent so well and would like to learn more about the work of Concern. In the future I would love to work for an organisation such as Concern because I could really see the difference it makes. I am delighted that we had the opportunity to study Development Education in Transition Year and learn more about global issues.
Thank you to all the staff at Concern!
Sabrina
On Thursday the 8th of December, the Transition Year students along with the RE Department held a Christmas event in aid of Traidcraft. The assembly hall in Maryfield was transformed into a wonderful Christmas market for the entire school community to enjoy. Students and teachers could buy some beautiful Fair Trade craft gifts for their loved ones, or have a coffee or hot chocolate in the café area. They purchased cakes, had their faces painted, bought raffle tickets and sang along with the Transition Years who entertained them with Christmas songs.
Traidcraft is the leading UK fair trade organisation, dedicated to fighting poverty through trade. All the products sold are ethically and environmentally produced by farmers and artisans in many countries throughout the developing world. Fair trade means that the price we pay for products ensures fair remuneration for producers. They can then afford life’s essentials such as food, education and healthcare.
Traidcraft is founded on Christian principles. It seeks to live out the Christian faith through its mission to fight poverty through trade. It is both a Trading Company and a Development Charity. Traidcraft helps poor producers to work their way out of poverty. By developing their skills and their knowledge, Traidcraft helps them achieve their God-given potential. It is a simple and effective way to respond to Jesus’ command for us to love God and serve the world.
The Transition Year students hosted an amazing event and raised a grand total of €4,010 for their efforts. They would like to thank all staff and students who supported the event. A special thank you also to the following teachers – Ms. McAuley, Ms. Kelegan, Ms. Mellon and Ms. Seery for all their work on this project.
Chuir grúpa scoláire ón idirbhliain tráth na gceist ar siúl sa halla ar an 25 Samhain. Chum na scoláirí seo na ceisteanna go léir, rinne siad taispeántas deas PowerPoint agus ghlaoigh siad amach na ceisteanna go líofa. Bhain gach duine an-taitneamh as an ócaid agus tá moladh mór tuillte ag na scoláirí iontacha a chuir an tráth na gceist seo ar siúl.
Transition Year students attended a creative writing workshop on Monday 21st November in Fighting Words Creative Writing Centre. The group had a chance to compose a story as a group and individually, and worked with a team of volunteer writers to develop their writing style. Thanks to all at Fighting Words for a wonderful afternoon!
Transition Year students paid a visit to the ‘Zeminar’ event which took place recently in the RDS. ‘Zeminar’ is a new social enterprise which brings together the various partners involved in the wellbeing of young people and examines the issues surrounding their academic and personal development. The event consisted of a variety of stands representing organisations and activities that promote positive mental health. The highlight of the day was a presentation given by Bressie. He connected well with his audience by speaking honestly and openly about his own life-experiences and sharing his story about dealing with very real issues such as anxiety and depression.
From the 6th to the 9th of September Transition Year students attended a very enjoyable dance and drama workshop. This workshop is always an excellent start to TY with students making new friendships and connections in an extremely sociable environment. The students learned a number of dance routines and acted out excerpts from a selection of musicals. The students really looked forward to attending the workshop each day and used up plenty of energy while having fun.
The Transition Year trip to Carlingford Adventure Centre was once more a resounding success. The school classroom of Maryfield was replaced by the great outdoors of the shores of Carlingford Lough, Maryfield students making this transition seamlessly. Students participated in activities and challenges that many had never before encountered. Decided favourites were kayaking and zip-lining. The overnight trip consolidated old friendships and built new bonds for the year ahead.
Contributed by clas
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.
