Whangaroa rallies to keep its nuns

Whangaroa's Catholic community is rallying to keep its convent, which has been part of the community for more than 80 years, but which the Marist order has decided to move to Kaikohe.

Marist sisters have been based at Waitaruke, north of Kaeo, since 1928, but the order now plans to move then to Kaikohe so they can serve a wider area, saying it has to make the best use of its falling number of ageing nuns.

Whangaroa parishioner Jeanette Kinneally said the move did not make sense, however. The church owned land and buildings at Waitaruke but would have to buy a house in Kaikohe, and she had collected more than 400 signatures asking the order to let the sisters stay. The petition was to be presented to a representative of the Marist sisters on Saturday.

Mrs Kinneally suspected the decision had been made, but said the petition would show the nuns - sisters Margarita, Isabelle and Catherine - how much support they had.

"The response, even from other denominations, or from people who proclaim to have no faith, has been very supportive of the sisters being here. There's a real groundswell," she said, adding that the sisters gave advice, visited the sick and offered religious education in schools.

"They've always been here in a support role for the community, not just for the Catholics," she said.

Sister Gemma Wilson, a leader of the Marist order in New Zealand, said the decision to move the sisters had been made only after much deliberation. All sisters in the country had been involved, including those at Waitaruke.

Moving the sisters to Kaikohe would allow them to be shared over a wider area with the order's limited resources.

"We have fewer and fewer able-bodied sisters, and we want to use them in the best way possible," Sister Gemma said, adding that she had been overwhelmed by the love Whangaroa people had shown for their sisters. Their desire to have them stay was understandable, but they would continue to visit families and attend tangi at Waitaruke.

At 92 years of age, Sr Margarita will not go to Kaikohe, but is expected to move into the Kaeo rest home Kauri Lodge. Sr Isabelle (82) is involved in religious education at schools around Whangaroa and the Bay of Islands, while Sr Catherine is not yet 70.

The Catholic school adjoining the convent, Hato Hohepa Te Kamura (St Joseph the Carpenter), will not be affected by plans to move the nuns.

The next closest community of Marist nuns is in Auckland.