The first Meeting of the Archivists of the Institute of the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary was held at the Generalate in Rome, January 27 – 29.
The Institute Leadership Team, Sister John Bosco Goria and the Assistant Archivist Romina De Vizio, responsible for the General Archives, welcomed Anabela Costa (Portugal), Byron Brizuela (Western America), Sr. Margot Gaitskell (Northern Europe), Sr. Precious Mbulo (Zambia), Sr. Rosita Eugénio (Mozambique), Miriam Camélia Lopes (Brazil) and Diane Russo-Kerner (Eastern America).
During the days in Rome, the group visited the Archives of the Generalate and the Augustinian Archives, talked about the work of the Areas, good practices and challenges, and began to plan for the future, filled with the sharing of information, knowledge, and support between the Areas. At the end of the meeting, the archivists paid tribute to Sr. John Bosco Goria, the Institute’s first archivist, and shared a special moment – attending the Wednesday morning Audience with Pope Francis.
Sr. Margaret Fielding, Institute Leader, welcomed all to the meeting – “As archivists, you play an important role in our mission as Institute. To you is entrusted the responsibility of looking after, taking care of, preserving the original documents and the historical records, and of making them available to our Sisters or members of the public who are looking for information or carrying out research on some aspect of our history. Yours is a sacred trust and we are grateful to you for your collaboration with us”.
The meeting was also attended by Sister Monica Walsh, General Secretary, and by Sister Luisa Almendra and Camilla Mortean as translators.
Everyone was pleased to learn about the work of the different Areas and to know that they are moving in the same direction, now united.
