The Brothers of St. John of God

[Marianne MacDonald]

Those who know me, know that I am a Special Education teacher. What many people don't know is that I started my career at a school founded by an order of Irish brothers known as the Brothers of St. John of God. Their Irish home is in Stillorgan outside of Dublin and they have schools and hospitals throughout Ireland, Korea and Africa. Their only western outpost is St. John of God Community Services in Westville Grove, NJ on the site of a former pig farm. I started there as a student in what was then Glassboro State College (now Rowan University). When I went to work at the school it was still in its youth. The classrooms still had Brothers teaching and the school was run completely by the Brothers. I have very fond memories of the Brothers in their long robes and sandals and the interaction between them and the staff and students. The school was founded by a contingent of Brothers led by Fr. Damien O'Shea who came to the states in 1965 by ship. It was their mission to raise the funds needed to open a school for handicapped children. By 1968 after a few years housed in Haddonfield, they broke ground on the present day location and the services were truly born. Throughout the years many Brothers came from Ireland to serve the school for a few years or more. One of my favorite brothers was Br. Cornelius. A native of Co. Kerry he was a big man, with a huge hug and a matching smile. Fr. Damien was the dynamo who instilled great pride in the staff and parents in building the programs which continue to this day. A great thing about working for the Brothers is their motto of hospitality. When I travelled to Ireland back in 1996 I was greeted at the airport by a Brother, taken to Stillorgan, given a lovely lunch, followed by a tour of the services and a visit to the burial ground of the Brothers. I was then driven to Cellbridge Abbey in Kildare where I spent a night in the Abbey where Jonathan Swift wrote some of his works. The next day another Brother drove me to Laoise to meet up with John Sinnott for the Half-Door Club Set Dance Weekend. After the weekend ended I made my way to Galway where Br. Declan Donegan housed me for two days and toured me all over Galway and then to Shannon to return home. I returned this past June to Cellbridge with a tour group and was again shown the hospitality the Brothers are known for, as they prepared a lovely lunch for the entire group. One of Fr. Damien's favorite expressions was "Love in your heart wasn't put there to stay. Love isn't love until you give it away." A very appropriate saying for the Brothers of St. John of God and their tradition of service and hospitality.

[Lisa Carbrey]

I had an interesting thing happen last week during my art show. A man who works here at the hospital is from Ennis, and supports a lot of the local (South Jersey) Irish Cultural events. He was flipping through my different prints and seemed to have a story to each one, oh I worked here or my cousin lived near there etc. Then he got to a print of Torc Waterfall outside Killarney. He said how he and his wife had honeymooned there and climbed the path along side the waterfall. It's always nice to hear oh that's a pretty picture but meant so much to know that my prints brough back such good memories to him.