ST. MARY'S ORPHANAGE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 15707, 8 March 1913, Page 15

ST. MARY'S ORPHANAGE

ANGLICAN CHURCH MISSION WORK. The following arc the chief items in the annual reports in connection with the Anglican Qhurch Mission and tho St. Mary's Orphanage CHDBCH MISSION WOES. As this is Uifl last report for the Church Mission, it niay bo well to review shortly tlie work of too 10 years of its eiistence. The old house in Scotland, street was the scene ol many activities. From there classes wero held in factories, "Busy Beo" clubs met at the Mission House, children's singing classes were held, and tho first mission services and tho mothere' meeting, wnicti has had a long and useful career, began thfire; and indeed some 6f tho first members were ev.li attending .when wo dosed our meetings in Loitli street. Gaol visiting, and subsequent work among the prisoners, was carried on steadily and with, in sonje cases, hopeful results; the Hospital, tho then refuge, were given much time and care. From the first confirmation candidates and catechumens for bapticin were prepared at • tho Mission House, or in tho parish vestries by Sister Ernestine, and the names of these so prepared amount to close on 400. With the removal to Lcith street, and tho added responsibility of a largo household of young children, the outside work could not remain of such paramount importance and it was a const-ant question ot • conflicting duties—eo muoh to be done outside for the sick, the carele&s, and tho ignorant; so much to be done inside in tho teaching and training of the family—to say nothing of a certain amount of " mothering" needed by the " staff" itself, if they were to keep healthy, happy, and fit. T&) farewell service held on December 6 in our chapel was well attended, and many were the regrets expressed that never again would there bo like opportunities for worship and instruction, and on the following. Sunday many members of the mothers' meeting—all but ono of whom had been prepared for confirmation at the Mission preeent at the. 8 o'clock celebration at the Cathedral. Of the young girls housed and mothered in the old Mission House, of the ex-prisoners helped.there, we cannot speak, except in general terms. Some of the girls have passed away, and we rejoice to believe they died in repentant faith and love; most of the others are happily married. That there are scores more needing care and help we grieve to know, and we cannot help saying that until the publio conscience of this young and prosperous country is made'more sensitive to sin it will be almost a forlorn hope for anyone to help the many young girls in our midst who slip so easily from the paths of virtue, and who—as things are now—slip back as easily into .the company and association of respectability without any sort of realisation of their sin or the need for repentance and reparation. That the work done privately and without advertisement in the old Mission House was worth doing we are sure, and it "was a real 6orrow to have to relinquish those efforts when the other claims made them impossible. ST. HABY'S OBFHAN'AGE. As the year 1912 was spent in the Leith 6treet house, our numbers wero reduced as much as possible, and the year was an uneventful one, with the usual coses of measles and the usual amount of disoomfort. However, at the end of December we moved into the premises in Mornington wo 'had so long coveted, and by Christmas Day all the interior of the house was settled. There is, of course, much to be dono yet, both inside and out. Tho quite impossible laundry apparatus, tho absence • of any dairy or cold storage for vegetables, etc.,' ,the need of a ooal shed and a box roomall these are absolute necessities which must engage our attention in the near future; but the main portion of tho house, the 'dormitories and sitting and dining rooms, and last, but not least, the chapel, aro all ideal in convenience and suitability. Wo have several vacant beds and cots, whioh will soon be filled, we hope, with genuine orphans. It is a disgrace to this young country, and a serious menace to the moral welfare of its future, that in our so-called orphanages there is a large proportion of children with both parents living—the said parents being of incompatible temper or too callous or self-indulgent to bring up their own offspring. The dormitories bear tho following names, whioh aro seen above the doors: —Love, Joy, Kindness, Peace. In the " Lovo" dormitory, which is also to be known as the " Nevill" dormitory, to perpetuate the name of the founders of St. Mary's Orphanage, there are numerous cots bearing names over them. First, wo must remember the St. John's (Roslyn) cot. That Sunday School is the only one in the diocese which.does anything definite towards the support of an orphan, and they began their good .work years ago. St. Hilda's College cot, is the result of part proceeds from the annual sale, which helps so many works besides our own. In addition to these two endowed cots, you will see the bed given by the Otago Early Settlers' lady descendants, the Bray family, who £10 to the new orphanage, the M.C.L. cot, ■whr'ch, through our most kind friend, Miss Williams, has donated £5 for a holiday fund for mauy yeare past. We hope, with the new surroundings, more attractive in every way, many new supporters and all the 'old ones will rally round the orphanage. We a.«k for the future the sympathy and prayers of all. the gifts and alms of those who are able thus to help. Day by day in the chapel we pray "for those who are kind to us," and surely the prayers aro heard and answered. Whatever may be tho future of this branch of the Church's work, we are confident of this, that if Otago goes on as she has begun there need bo no fear of " financial difficulty and no lack of funds to carry on efficiently the work so nobly begun f-ome 30 or 35 years ago at Bishopsgrove. The report concludes with special acknowledgments to a large number of friends who have helped in tho work of the orphanage.