Darerca Carter

Deceased Sisters

Darerca Carter - Ireland
28/06/1927 - 10/01/2018

Sr Darerca Carter started life where she now lies, in her beloved Co Leitrim. Pauline Mary Carter, one of nine children, was born in Shanraw, Keshcarrigan and attended secondary school in Carrick-on-Shannon. She joined the Marist Order there on 26 August 1946 at the age of 19. Her first Profession was on 1 September 1947 and her final Profession on 1January 1951. During this time, she studied for her BA and H. Dip in UCD before embarking on a teaching career which lasted over 40 years and took her from the west of Ireland, through England, on to Nigeria and finally back to Ireland and Raheny in Dublin.

During her early years teaching in Charlestown and Carrick-on-Shannon Sr Darerca involved herself in the cultural, sporting and spiritual lives of her students. From there she went to England where she taught in Byfleet, Barnstaple and Nympsfield. While in England she also studied for a Diploma in Social Studies in Oxford. In 1971 Sr Darerca went as a missionary to Kaduna in Nigeria. While there the Bishop asked her to take on the Principalship of a Government school for girls. This was a very challenging task in a Moslem area but, as with everything she undertook, Sr Darerca gave all of herself to ensuring the girls had the very best of education. She was much loved in the school and the community. She loved the work and was happy living by herself in a remote area and she had her car for coming in to the mission house where there were other sisters.

On her return to Dublin in 1982 Sr Darerca was assigned to the Marist Convent in Grange Park Grove in Raheny where she stayed for the rest of her life. She was appointed as a teacher of Irish, Mathematics and Religion to Ard Scoil La Salle in Raheny where, following her retirement from teaching, she was appointed as Home School Liaison Officer. This gave her the opportunity to get to know families who needed assistance and to provide it in her own quiet way through her work with the local St Vincent de Paul. Never one to let time sit heavily on her, Sr Darerca became known as the “nun with the runners” as she went around Raheny involving herself in the life and work of the community.

During the last three years of her life Sr Darerca lived in St Gabriel’s Nursing Home in Raheny where she was looked after with great care, love and dedication by all the staff. Her smile was always infectious and she greeted everyone in the Home with a smile and a handshake.

Her teaching career was only part of Sr Darerca's life story. She was a spirited, fun-loving person who was greatly loved by her community, her family and her wide circle of friends. Sr Darerca was faithful to friends, never boastful or proud. A compliment was met with the response – it is no thanks to me, it is a gift from the Lord. Her nieces and nephews loved her visits, especially her willingness to play whatever game was going on - cricket on the beach, tennis in the back garden or watching a match and cheering on Leitrim or Ireland! Two special occasions stand out for the family. The first was her Golden Jubilee Mass and reception in the Royal Hospital in Kilmainham. This was the first time all the Carter family had ever been together and the day still lives in the collective family memory. The second was a barbeque which she hosted in the back garden of Grange Park Grove on a sunny Saturday where food and fun were the order of the day!

Sr Darerca loved singing and was part of the choir in St Gabriel’s where her favourite songs were those in Irish and the Christmas carols. She also loved reading and her library included books reflecting her love of the Irish language and culture. She herself was a fluent Irish speaker and in 1997 her book “The Irish Language, An Overview and Guide” was published. The aim of the book was to serve as an inspiration and guide to those who love Irish, both Irish speakers and newcomers to the language.

Above and beyond all of the teaching, the fun and the family, Sr Darerca's love of the Mass and the Eucharist were the mainstay of her daily life. During her years in Raheny she regularly attended first Mass in the Capuchin Friary in all weathers. “Tús maith leath na hoibre” - a good start halves the work – must have been her motto. In her final years in St Gabriel’s she attended daily Mass and, while other things may have left her memory, she never forgot her responses to the Mass and her joy at receiving the Eucharist.

In May 2017 Sr Darerca's 90^th birthday and 70 years as a Marist Sister were remembered in St Gabriel’s with a Mass, which was said by Fr Paul Dunne from Raheny, and a party afterwards. It was a wonderful occasion attended by her Marist sisters and her family and Sr Darerca enjoyed every moment of it!

Sr Darerca's death came quickly, quietly and peacefully in St Gabriel’s on Wednesday 10^th January 2018. Her funeral Mass was celebrated in St Gabriel’s by Fr. Paul Dunne who spoke of her commitment as a Marist sister, her devotion to the poor and to a life of prayer in praise of God. He said that Sr Darerca ministered and witnessed Christ's love and compassion amongst so many peoples wherever her gracious God called her.

St John wrote “Those who love others have nothing to fear from the day of judgement. Indeed, they can look forward to it”. (1 Jn 3:14)

“May Sr Darerca be alive now to the wonder of God in heaven”.

Deceased Sisters

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