News

On January 6st, Sisters Marie-Ann Main and Marie Bernarde Jean-Louis celebrated their diamond jubilees in Pietermaritzburg, together with fellow Sisters.

Marie-Ann and Marie Bernarde live in Pietermaritzburg at “Villa Assumpta” retirement home, which belongs to the Oakford Congregation.

Both Sisters were enthusiastic teachers throughout their lives, even well beyond retirement age.

Sr. Marie-Ann Main was an elementary school teacher. She worked for 21 years in Empangeni and taught for 32 years at the elementary school founded by the Congregation of the Dominican Sisters at the Bluff.

Sr. Marie Bernarde Jean-Louis taught at various schools and high schools. She was also involved for many years in the MSLA program in Kimberley.

When the curriculum for African schools was expanded after the end of apartheid, Sr. Marie Bernarde was tasked by the Department of Education in the Cape Province—together with another teacher—to familiarize teachers and students in the schools of the Northern Cape with the new curriculum on topics such as health, nutrition, hygiene, family planning, etc. In doing so, she authored a handbook for teachers and organized and led biology camps during the school breaks.

To mark the Sisters’ anniversaries, many of their former students came to share—with pride and deep gratitude—stories of their careers in medicine, science, and politics.

During a visit to Pietermaritzburg, a prayer and a moment of silent remembrance at the final resting place of the Sisters—and their former teachers—were also important.

The former students are grateful for the opportunities the Dominican Sisters, who ran the school, and the sisters who taught them provided for their lives.

March 2026