13.01.2016
Exciting Developments Unveiled for St Mary’s Home
The Trustees of St Mary’s Home in Dublin have announced exciting new developments for the long established home. At meetings with residents and their families as well as with staff members the Trustees launched an exciting new plan for the future of St Mary’s.
The much loved building on Pembroke Park in Ballsbridge in Dublin was constructed in 1891 by
Canon Richard Travers Smith, Vicar of St Bartholomew’s Church. Ever increasing standards set by HIQA and expected by residents and their families are more and more difficult to meet in such an old building originally built as a school.
The Trustees have therefore decided to combine with St Johns Home to build a new state of the art nursing home on the St Johns site on Merrion Road. The new home will accommodate 56 residents drawn from St Mary’s and St John’s Homes. One floor will be dedicated to St Mary’s.
It is hoped that all the current residents and nursing staff will move together to the new home.
The new home will include state of the art bed sitting rooms with en suite bathrooms. The existing building at St John’s will be retained as communal space with sitting rooms, dining rooms and quiet rooms including the chapel.
For over a century St Mary’s was run by Anglican nuns from the order of St John the Evangelist.
First as a school and then as a home for retired ladies from the Church of Ireland or those in communion with the Anglican Church.
More recently the sisters retired and handed over the running of the home to Trustees on their behalf. Two sisters still live in the home and take an active part in the life of the home. Until recently Sister Verity Ann assisted the Vicar of St Bartholomew’s in the celebration of Holy Communion in the chapel each week.
Construction work on the new building will commence in the shortly and it is planned that St Mary’s will move to the new site in two years time.
The Trustees are pleased that the tradition of loving and caring service developed by the sisters will continue in new premises that will meet the needs of future generations
Photo caption: Sr Verity Ann and Archdeacon Gordon Linney in St Mary’s Home.