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April 30th 2024
…three nuns came to Farnborough, on 30th April, a cold, wet day that seemed to afford them no welcome to their new home. After a night spent at the Lodge of St Michael’s Priory, Mesdames Murray, Roantree and Deroullers proceeded to possession, on 1st May, 1889 of their new convent, accompanied by the first pupil, Josephine Murray…This time the sun shone upon the newcomers and Farnborough seemed to smile upon their advent. Old Cook, the gardener, with his hat in one hand and the keys in the other, stood at the foot of the steps to receive the nuns – and thus was enacted the opening of Hillside
Taken from The Story of A House by Dorothy A Mostyn
The story of the first days of the school we now know as Farnborough Hill is well known within our community, but this week, as we reflect on 135 years of the RCE in Farnborough, it is perhaps more poignant to recall the very human details of setting up a new life and building a new community so far from home. The courage of the founding Farnborough Sisters – Mother Murray, Mother Roantree and Mother Deroullers – and of those that followed shortly after, cannot be ignored, although it could perhaps be argued as being characteristic of an RCE Sister, following as they did in the footsteps of those who battled anti-clerical laws in France, pioneering the education of girls and young women in very challenging situations.
Through its various iterations – from Hillside Convent and St Mary’s Day School through Wymering Lodge and Sycamores to Farnborough Hill itself – our story has not been in our buildings (beautiful as they have all been) but in our community and in the people who made it. The RCE’s years in Farnborough have seen a huge number of staff and girls pass through the School but the constant for all of those people has been the love, support and prayers of our Sisters. Every generation of pupils and staff have ‘their’ Sisters who they remember most fondly as being an essential part of their journey, and there has not been a day since 1 May 1889 that the Sisters have not prayed for the School and everyone within its community. Whether it is for girls sitting examinations, good weather for events or personal intentions shared with the Sisters, they have been faithful throughout the years to pray for everything to do with, and being done within, the School.
Here, in Farnborough in 2024, life looks very different than it did in 1889, including a distinct lack of the sunshine that our founding Sisters enjoyed on their first day, but the mission and the values of the community are still the same as they ever were – to serve the Lord joyfully and wholeheartedly in everything we do. We carry the charism of the Sisters forward for future generations, ensuring that the young people in our care may flourish just as Abbé Louis Lafosse intended.
