Parts of the Riverina's religious and healthcare history will be recognised in the first round of the new Blue Plaques initiative designed to celebrate historical sites across NSW.
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Minister for Heritage James Griffin said the NSW Blue Plaques program was similar to the famous one in the United Kingdom, and would provided an opportunity to celebrate the noteworthy people and stories that helped to shape the state.
One site at Wagga and another at Hay will be among the first 17 Blue Plaque recipients from the initial round of public nominations. Hay's Blue Plaque will recognise the Bishop's Lodge in Roset Street and its architect John Sulman. The Wagga plaque will recognise the Sisters of the Little Company of Mary, who founded the Calvary Hospital in 1926.
The Sisters were founded in 1877 by an Englishwoman, 30-year-old Mary Potter, to care for the sick and dying.
In 1884, the Sisters were introduced to Sydney's Archbishop Patrick Moran, who invited them to send a group to Sydney and the young women travelled to Australia to bring healthcare to rich and poor alike.
The Sisters were invited to establish the Calvary Hospital by Bishop Joseph Dwyer, who had received nursing care at their hospital in Lewisham, Sydney. Sister Kathleen Cotterill, regional leader for the Little Company of Mary, said the plaque was "wonderful news".
"It recognises the Little Company of Mary heritage, our early founding sisters in Wagga and the sisters who have worked there since 1926, the staff and particularly all those who have been cared for in Calvary Hospital over all those years," she said.
For 95 years the Sisters of the Little Company of Mary helped provide compassionate health care to the people of the Riverina and beyond.
Wagga's Calvary Riverina Hospital had the last remaining Little Company of Mary sister still working at any Calvary hospital in Australia, Sister Lois Woodcock, who was the pastoral care manager for 22 years until her retirement in December.
The Blue Plaques will be added to sites during the second half of 2022.
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