News & Photos

Josephite Education Exhibition Opening

Woods MacKillop Schoolhouse, Penola, 25 October 2009

The new Woods MacKillop Schoolhouse exhibition on Josephite Education was officially opened at Penola by Father Paul Gardiner SJ on Sunday 25 October 2009.

Visitors travelled from various parts of Australia for this memorable and heart-warming occasion.

The day commenced with Mass celebrated by Father Paul in St Joseph’s Church, which was decorated with flowers and with banners made by children from the Mary MacKillop Memorial School.

After morning tea in the Interpretive Centre the large crowd moved back into the church for the opening ceremony.

Claire Larkin, Chairperson of the Mary MacKillop Penola Centre Committee and MC for the occasion, warmly welcomed everyone. Margaret Muller, a committee member who wrote the text, and exhibition designer Peter Templeton of Adelaide, each talked about the exhibition. Father Paul then delivered the official opening address.

He explained the concept of an ‘icon’ in relation to the historic Schoolhouse, where Mary MacKillop taught for a time in 1867, before she left Penola for Adelaide to help Father Julian Tenison Woods establish the first system of Catholic Education in Australia.

Father Paul was followed by Sister Marie Foale RSJ of Adelaide and Sister Noelene Quinane RSJ of Goulburn, both of whom spoke on behalf of the Sisters of St Joseph in Australia, New Zealand and other parts of the world.

A long procession then wound its way over to the schoolhouse led by Father Paul, the children with their colourful banners and the Sisters of St Joseph. Father Paul cut the ribbon and blessed the new exhibition.

The schoolhouse soon filled with people, eager to see the new exhibition in the refurbished schoolroom, which now has desks in it so that children can have a nineteenth century Mary MacKillop-style schooling experience, and adults can reminisce about their own schooldays.