Sr Veronica makes home visit from Kenya

Nenagh Missionary Sr Veronica Quigley is currently home from Kenya and hopeful that people will contribute something towards the work she has been doing there for the last 30 years.

Hailing from Knockinglass, Nenagh, Sr Veronica first travelled to Kenya in 1987. She is presently running a technical school for girls in Chepareria, a town situated roughly nine hours northwest of Nairobi in a remote part of Kenya that was not colonised by Britain. It lags behind the rest of country in terms of economic development and education, though Sr Veronica says the people there are wonderful.

They have been assisted by Irish Missionaries since the 1980s. Girls attending the school run by Sr Veronica are taught reading, writing and technical skills.
Many of them have had traumatic experiences in life, including forced marriage and genital mutilation. Alcohol has a very negative impact on family life in Kenya. Some of Sr Veronica's students come from polygamous families and are not taken care of by their fathers. Women bear the brunt of rearing the children, which is why training of women is vital.

Many of the students are over 20 when they begin school. Some pay a little fee towards their education but others simply cannot afford it.

At the school, educational material and classroom equipment is provided to the student boarders, who must also be provided with food. The school now has good infrastructure thanks to the Kenyan Mercy Province, Irish Government through Misean Cara, and Sr Veronica's family and friends.

The students are are taught technical skills such as dressmaking/tailoring, machine knitting, hairdressing, computer studies, and food & beverage education, all of which they are examined in at the end of the course by Government bodies. Sr Veronica and her staff work to improve the self-esteem and self-reliance of their students.

The Nenagh nun warns that crisis is afoot in Kenya. The onset of drought is omnipresent and the likelihood is that this year's harvest will fail. The scarcity of food means food prices are escalating all the time.

Sr Veronica regards Kenya as a beautiful country. As a nation, it has great potential but its people have so many problems to overcome. Over the years she has borne pained witness to the hardship endured by the Kenyans as they strive to break away from poverty.

But the generosity of the people of Nenagh has been a great help. Sr Veronica wanted to thank everyone in the community for everything they have contributed over the years, assisted by World Aid and the Apostolic Society, Killaloe Diocese.

A teacher at St Mary's Secondary School in Nenagh for 16 years, Sr Veronica went to work in Kilrush in 1980 and remained there until 1987, when began her long commitment to the Mission overseas. She has been in Chepareria since 2000, having previously worked as a Missionary in two other parts of the country. Her first cousin Sr Breda (Bernard) Quigley, who passed away earlier this year, also worked on the Missions in South Africa.

Sr Veronica comes home to Nenagh just once every two years. Every time she returns to the First World she is taken aback by the gulf in plenty that separates it from where she has come.

Home until the end of this month, Sr Veronica is asking anyone who wants to make a donation to please contact her or her sister Maura McKenna of Ballintoher, or Sr Sally Mounsey at the Convent. Anything that can be given will be greatly appreciated.