Passing of Sister Amy Dunne felt from Rahugh to South Africa

The death occurred on September 14 of Sister Amy Dunne OP, of Rosary Priory, Bushey, London, and formerly of Rahugh.

Sister Amy’s funeral Mass took place in London on Tuesday September 25, when Fr Leo Edgar was the main celebrant along with Canon Colin Davies, Canon Tony Dwyer, Monsignor Harry Turner, Fr John McEvoy, Fr Liam Cummins and Fr Xavier Alverez.

At the requiem Mass, Sister Felicity Cunningham, Prioress, delivered the homily. She prayed for Sister Amy’s family members, the Rosary Priory Dominican Community and Sister Amy’s friends.

She continued that we had come to say goodbye to Sister Amy and to thank God for her fruitful life and for her peaceful death on the evening of the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross.

Sister Amy was born on April 3, 1931 in Blakefield House, Rahugh. She was baptised on April 5 and given the name Magdalen – as requested by Mother Magdalen, Superior of the local Mercy Convent, where her father was working at the time of her birth.

Sister Amy was the fifth child in a family of 10 – five girls and five boys. She was 10 years old when her father died.

Early education

On completion of her secondary school education, Sister Amy expressed the wish to become a religious sister and she joined her sister, Sister Catherina, and her cousin Sister Diana Dunne, at Rosary Priory, in September 1948.

After First Profession, in 1950, Sister Amy, with Sisters Catherina, Diana and six other Sisters, set sail for South Africa. They arrived in the heat of Durban on Christmas Day 1950 – serge habits, starched headdresses, etc!

Mother Ceslaus, with Mr and Mrs Pennell, dear friends of the Sisters, were there to meet them. Mother Ceslaus gave them their assignations and put them on trains to their various destinations in South Africa.

Sister Amy, with Sisters Catherina and Diana, boarded the overnight train to what was known at the time as the Transvaal – Sisters Amy and Diana to Germiston and Catherina to Benoni.

Life was difficult for the young Sisters, money was scarce, and work was plentiful. Each gave of herself untiringly.

Sister Amy’s loyalty to and love of the congregation was evident in her generosity of spirit and willingness to go wherever she was sent. Although small in stature, she was outgoing and she was a people’s person with a big heart. She was kind and considerate. These qualities endeared her to others.

Sister Amy did her teaching diploma in Bulawayo, in what was then Southern Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe. She taught at several schools in South Africa – apart from Germiston, she spent time in Umzumbe, Pietersburg and Boksburg. She was highly respected as a teacher and loved by parents, pupils, and other teachers.

She was well suited to work with little children, kind and gentle with them, she loved them, and they loved her. As a gifted infant teacher, she had endless patience and was very resourceful and hard-working.

Sister Amy could manage any child even the most difficult and was respectful of each child’s needs and learning style. She gave her pupils a love of learning and they left her class confident and resourceful, always positive and generous in her praise.

However, Sister Amy, found the extreme heat in South Africa was taking a toll on her health, so she requested to return to England in 1972.

In England, Sister Amy set her goals for further study to upgrade her teacher qualifications. She taught in Rosary Priory school and later at the Annunciation School in Burnt Oak, where she was principal for 26 years.

After retiring from school, Sister Amy enjoyed a three-month sabbatical in Ireland. She went to Cork Regional Hospital to do a pastoral clinical course to train as a hospital chaplain. She returned to work as chaplain at Edgware Hospital.

Under Fr Neil, she worked more directly in Annunciation Parish, Burnt Oak, as parish sister, while being a member of the Edgware community. She was responsible for organising the First Communion programme and for training and supporting the catechists on that programme.

She co-ordinated all the rotas for the various ministries, she ran and organised the over 55s group. She visited many people in the parish who could not get to church, who were in hospital or who needed support for whatever reason.

Her parish priest at the time she left the parish, Fr Eugene Fitzgerald, had this to say about Sister Amy: “To say that her contribution to the Annunciation parish has been enormous, and that she will be greatly missed, is an understatement.”

Sister Amy left part of her heart in the parish she loved. She was, in every sense of the words, a ‘people person’.

Rome

It was in 2003 that Sister Amy left her parish ministry to take up the responsibility of Prioress of the Dominican community at ‘Villa Rosa’, in Rome.

When she was elected Prioress, she embraced her assignation in a spirit of Dominican obedience. She loved Rome and was always ready to represent the community at Dominican and inter-Congregation gatherings, especially those hosted by the Irish College.

Long after Sister Amy left Rome, the staff at the ‘pensione’ enquired about her and always expressed how much they missed her.

In 2006 she returned to England, to Harpenden, where she continued some pastoral ministry in Burnt Oak Parish.

It was from the Harpenden community that Sister Amy, because of ill-health, went to live at Rosary Priory in May of this year.

She was a woman of prayer and contemplation. She valued the Dominican liturgy, and prayer in community was important to her. In community she was always a gracious hostess and enjoyed the kitchen and preparing a tasty meal for the community and guests alike.

Apart from her spirit of hospitality, she had a sense of humour and fun and was a down to earth person.

She was always a refined woman who took pride in her appearance and in all her responsibilities.

Gifted gardener

Sister Amy was a gifted gardener and wherever she was assigned, she took great pride in the garden and in caring for the house plants.

Birds were cared for; she ensured that water was always in the bird-bath in the garden. She loved beauty and colour and delighted in her creative floral arrangements for the chapel. She valued the care and attention she received from Angela, Sister Damien, the carers at Rosary Priory, and the visits of the Sisters. Often, she expressed her gratitude for all that was being done for her.

Sister Amy loved Ireland; her family was precious to her. She would often say: “I love my family.” She looked forward to her visits to Ireland, to family members. With great joy she welcomed family members who visited her in the convents where she was assigned.

What a joy it was for her when family members visited her during the past few months when she was not in good health.

Sister Amy’s requiem Mass took place on Tuesday morning, September 25m at Rosary Priory, London, and concurrently in St Hugh’s Church, Rahugh, where celebrants Fr Brian Kavanagh and Fr Brendan Corrigan PP welcomed family members and friends.

Also at the same time, Mass was celebrated in Germiston, South Africa, where Sr Amy’s sisters, Sr Catherina Dunne OP and Sr Patricia Dunne OP attended.

May she rest in peace.