Holy Child Sisters and Alums Gather for Tea in the Gardens on May 23<\/em><\/p>\n Rosemont, Pa.<\/strong> \u2014 On Sunday, May 23 from 2 p.m. \u2013 4 p.m., alums of Holy Child Schools will gather with the Sisters of the Holy Child, some of whom taught them, for tea in the gardens at New Sharon, 1341 Montgomery Avenue, Rosemont, Pa. Though it has been decades since they were students and teachers, the bonds the alums have with the Sisters have remained strong\u2014through marriages, births, and even losses. And the tea will be a chance to visit and reminisce.<\/p>\n \u201cTo me, the Sisters of the Holy Child are home and family,\u201d says Sally Mercier Sullivan, a 1957 graduate of the former Holy Child Academy in Sharon Hill, Pa. In particular, Sullivan, now a retired nurse living in Delaware County, is looking forward to seeing Mother Mary Henry, who was the principal at the school when Sullivan was a student, at the tea. \u201cMother Mary Henry was tall, slender, and bright, and we were petrified of her! She took her responsibility to make women of us seriously and she expected the best of us. Thinking back on it, it was a wonderful expectation.\u201d<\/p>\n Mother Mary Henry, SHCJ, who will be 100 this September, admits that she was rather \u201csevere,\u201d but that it came from a place of love. \u201cI really feel the Lord meant it to be. The girls turned out to be wonderful wives, mothers, and Catholic women and that is what we were aiming for. God put me there to help these girls and He helped me to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n Today, Sullivan, like so many of her classmates, is no longer petrified of Mother Mary Henry, and in fact, refers to her as a dear, lifelong friend. Sullivan remembers the moment her fear changed to admiration. Many years ago, Sullivan\u2019s sister purchased some baby clothes that Mother Mary Henry had made. Mother Mary Henry donated any money that she made from the sale of her handmade items to the missions the Society had overseas. During that time, Sullivan also learned that Mother Mary Henry was collecting the tabs off of soda cans to donate to the Ronald McDonald House, which uses them to raise money. \u201cAll of a sudden she was no longer the principal who petrified me, but rather an interesting woman who had retired and wasn\u2019t teaching anymore, but was still doing wonderful deeds and work. I grew to admire her,\u201d says Sullivan.<\/p>\n To this day, Mother Mary Henry continues to collect the tabs off soda cans. She also continues to be an inspiration to her former students, noting that the best thing she can do for them is to pray for them and their intentions. \u201cI pray for them everyday,\u201d she says. Many of her students continue to come visit with her and quite often ask for her prayers.<\/p>\n Tea in the Gardens<\/strong>
\nA tea seemed an appropriate event for the Sisters and alums, many of whom live throughout Delaware and Montgomery Counties today, to reconnect. \u201cMy mother and I used to say, \u2018Oh those Holy Child Sisters love to have a good time!\u2019 The Sisters have always been very social\u2014teas, card parties, fashion shows,\u201d says Sullivan, who is looking forward to \u2018going home\u2019 again. \u201cEven though the building that housed my school no longer exists, going to the New Sharon campus where the tea is being held puts me back into my reveries as a girl!\u201d<\/p>\n