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The final step in a 15-year project for Port Chalmers woman Carol Meikle QSM was celebrated at St Mary Star of the Sea Catholic Church last weekend.
The gathering of friends, family, church dignitaries, and long-standing project supporters, were on hand for the unveiling of a cabinet filled with research and artefacts relating to the Port Chalmers connections of Saint Mary MacKillop.
The collection, titled ‘Saint Mary MacKillop at Port Chalmers’, also acknowledges the 20-year service of Father Marks as Parish Priest at Port Chalmers.
Mrs Meikle has spent thousands of hours researching Port Chalmers’ links with Australia’s first saint, Mary MacKillop — known as Saint Mary of the Cross, who was canonised in 2010.
The founder of the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart, Saint Mary MacKillop spent several months in Port Chalmers in 1898 establishing St Joseph’s School.
While pursuing her research, Mrs Meikle broadened her extensive knowledge of the church and the wider history of Port Chalmers and has made connections all over the world.
She also gathered a large collection of relics and historic items associated with St Mary MacKillop in her time at Port Chalmers.
These include a historic silver kettle, a portrait of the saint by artist Margaret-Ann Howard, a doll created by Jan McLean, and the Koputai Pilgrim Church Stone — which had been blessed by the Pope.
The Sisters of St Joseph had also donated items from the canonisation of Saint Mary MacKillop.
Speaking to the gathering on Saturday, Mrs Meikle said it was wonderful that the “beautiful historic cabinet is now the final resting place for these unique historic items and research”.
The cabinet, which had been relocated from the former Kensington Army Hall with the support of Graeme Harvey, and installed in the church with the help of volunteers from the Dunedin North Shed.
In her speech, Mrs Meikle highlighted the enormous fundraising efforts that had also gone into the major repairs needed for the exterior and interior of the church.
“What has kept me moving forward was the shared belief that we were safeguarding something truly special,” she said.
Mrs Meikle also spoke of the support of her “buddy and special friend” Graham Bain, who said “deary get your project completed” before his death.
The event was not only an unveiling of the research, it was a “celebration of our parish and community’s history and unity”, Mrs Meikle said.
“It stands as a reminder that when a community comes together with a common purpose, remarkable things can be achieved.”
In the days following the unveiling and celebration, Mrs Meikle has hosted special morning teas for representatives of Port Otago and Koputai Lodge, to thank them for their support with the project.
Mrs Meikle is now looking for volunteers to help with opening the church by appointment, so that visitors can view the collection.