The cache is located near Mary MacKillop Centre Mission Bay
Mary MacKillop was born in Melbourne, Australia in 1842. When she was in Penola she met Julian Tenison Woods and together they opened the first St Joseph's School in 1866.
Mary MacKillop and Julian Tenison Woods founded the Sisters of St Joseph to continue this work. Over the many following years, the number of Sisters grew as did their schools. Schools were opened as the needs arose: in country towns, mining towns, cities across Australia and New Zealand. The Sisters also became involved in other areas of need including setting up a refuge for women in need and orphanages for children, visiting prisons and working with the sick.
Mission Bay
The Sisters of Saint Joseph of the Sacred Heart first came to Aotearoa New Zealand in 1880 to Whanganui and then another foundation in 1883 at Temuka in the South Island.
Three Sisters arrived in his parish of Temuka, South Canterbury on 1 November 1883 and thus began the continuing presence of the Sisters of Saint Joseph in this country.
By 1894, the year of Mary MacKillop’s first visit to New Zealand, there were four communities in the North Island, (Remuera and Grey Lynn in Auckland; Meeanee near Napier; Matata in the Bay of Plenty) and four in the South Island (Temuka, Kerrytown and Waimate in South Canterbury and Rangiora in North Canterbury). By this time New Zealand women had joined the sisterhood.
The number of sisters grew steadily over the years peaking in the 1950’s and 60’s when there were over 200. These sisters were engaged in education in all of the then four dioceses of the country. Since Vatican II, with its call to a return to the spirit which motivated the founders and pioneers of religious orders, there has been much diversification in the ministries undertaken by the sisters in New Zealand. This has led them into areas such as parish ministry, spiritual direction, social service ministries, nursing, while some have continued in education at all levels.
By the close of the twentieth Century 95% of the Sisters were no longer in the classroom. The number of Sisters had dropped to 100, but all were engaged in relieving the wants of the poor, working for justice, and sharing the charism of Mary MacKillop.
Mary MacKillop…
Mary MacKilop's famous saying was "Never see a need without doing something about it"
Well..... there was a need, a geocache in her honour, and something has been done about it!
This is one of over 150 caches placed in significant locations of her story including Australia, New Zealand, Ireland and Scotland.
Mary died on August 8th, 1909.
She was declared Australia’s first Saint in 2010.
Many thanks to local cacher Kristyaky who has hidden the cache for the series and will maintain.