College of New Rochelle - Annales Yearbook (New Rochelle, NY)

Page 22 text:

S CHRIST, the Head of the Mystical Body was conceived by the Holy Ghost in the womb of the Virgin Mary, so, with the conception of the idea of New Rochelle in the mind of our foundress, we were placed under the protection of Our Lady of New Rochelle, our mother.

Page 24 text:

T HAS BEEN SAID that all great men leave a shadow on earth. If this is true, then the shadow of Mother Irene Gill is found in the College of New Ro- chelle. And yet, it is not merely a shadow as we know it or envision it, lying over Brescia, Maura, Science and the other buildings on campus, for these are merely the shells which encase the spirit of our foundress. The sha- dow is the spirit of love and charity which is C.N.R.’s to give. For, Mother Irene’s spirit is with us today as she would wish it to be. And Mother Irene — she too is with us. For as she once said: “You are my children. I love and pray for you.” The foundress of New Rochelle was born in Gal- way, Ireland, but came to America as a child of eight years, entering the Ursuline convent at East Morrisania when she was eighteen. Her first assignment was as a teacher in Saint Teresa’s school on Henry Street in New York City, where she later became superior. She sought a better location for the school eventually moving it to Park Avenue. But satisfaction was not yet hers, and so she ventured to Westchester County via trolley car and found herself in the thriving village of New Rochelle which boasted a population of eight thousand. Here Mother saw an estate recently gutted by fire, and in the ruins, the soft spoken Ursuline saw a castle.