By Marco Ceccarelli
As one of the older and more established parishes within the Archdiocese of Perth, St Mary’s in Guildford has hosted countless Masses and special celebrations within its walls.
On Sunday, 14 August, however, a different atmosphere could be felt within the parish as three special events were celebrated simultaneously: the 80th anniversary of the parish, the school reunion for past students of what was known as St Mary’s Primary School and the Feast of the Assumption, which took place the following day.
The Mass was celebrated by Vicar General Father Peter Whitely and concelebrated by Parish Priest Fr Anand Reddy; Vice-Rector at St Charles’ Seminary, Fr Jean-Noël Marie; former Parish Priests of St Mary’s Fr Lionel Henry and Fr Tom Smith and St Brigid’s Northbridge Resident Priest Fr Andre Nahhas.
Also present for the occasion were the Sisters of Mercy, whose association with the Guildford Parish goes back 160 years when they established St Teresa’s Convent and School in colonial Guildford in 1855 using rented cottages.
During this period of time, St Teresa’s Convent was regularly visited by Benedictine priests who would travel from Subiaco to say Mass in the Convent Chapel.
St Teresa’s school was one of the very first Catholic schools in Western Australia. It was later renamed St Mary’s and continued to be run by the Sisters for more than 100 years, until it closed in 1967.
In his homily, Fr Whitely spoke of the importance of a Church which has many years of history. He emphasised that a Church is much more than just a building, because it tells the story of the lives of its parishioners and of all those who have in some way been in contact with the Parish, whether it be through Mass, a wedding, baptism or any other event which may have stayed with them.
Intent on acknowledging the contributions of some of its more longstanding parishioners, the Parish organised for two Papal Awards to be bestowed on parishioners Cheryl Harris and James McCarthy. Both Ms Harris and Mr McCarthy have been involved in the Parish since the days that St Mary’s Primary School was still operating.
The event ended with a social gathering in which many ex-students of St Mary’s were able to reminisce about the past and exchange old anecdotes of a time long gone but certainly not forgotten.