Coirle McCarthy (Congregational Leader)

Coirle comes from Cork City in Ireland and was educated by the Ursuline Sisters in Blackrock in Cork. Having trained as a nurse she entered Religious Life in St. Maries of the Isle in 1970. She trained as a teacher and taught at St. Aloysius School and at Mount Mercy College in Cork. She later worked for 9 years as Diocesan Advisor for Religious Education in the Diocese of Cork and Ross.

Coirle was a member of the Provincial Leadership Team in the Southern Province between 1995 and 2001. For 4 years previous to her election as Congregational Leader in July 2006, she ministered as the Congregational Co-ordinator of the Child Protection Office in Dublin.

Cait O’Dwyer

Cait, the second of eight children, comes from Tipperary, Ireland and was educated at Gaile N.S. and Mercy Convent, Doon. Having worked in the Department of Social Welfare, Dublin for some years, she answered the call to Mercy in 1974 and entered what was then the Cashel and Emily Diocesan group. She worked as a Community Social Worker for 10 years before retraining in Psychology. For 7 years Cait was a member of the teaching faculty of the Institute of Psychology, Gregorian University, Rome. From 2001- 2006, she was a member of the Provincial Leadership Team of South Central Province.
Her motto reads: “Go dTaga do Riocht” (Thy Kingdom come) .

Susan DeGuide

Susan was born in Chicago and grew up in San Diego, California. Her grandparents had immigrated to the USA from Italy and Germany. Susan fell in love with the charism of Catherine McAuley during her primary school days with the Mercy Sisters in San Diego. After completing her degree in education, she entered the novitiate in Sligo, Ireland in 1971. In 1973, she returned home to California to begin a variety of ministry experiences. These included: teaching at all levels, school administration, cross cultural training, jail ministry, and pastoral work in Peru. For the past 7 years she has been a Director of Small Faith Communities in the Diocese of San Bernardino. From 2001 - 2006, she served as a member of the Provincial Leadership Team of the US Province.
She has two married sisters with one niece and four nephews.

Kathy Rule

Kathy was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, attended the Mercy School in Rosebank and entered the Convent of Mercy there in 1966. Her main ministry was in education. In 1980 she went to Soweto to start a High School and worked there for 9 years. She studied Theology in Rome for three years after which she became Principal in the Mercy school in Iona, Pretoria. Kathy has also worked in other ministries in Pretoria including Vicar for Religious, and Director of Mercy House for homeless women and children.

From 1995 to 2006 she was a member of the Provincial Leadership Team of the South African Province. There are eight in Kathy’s family. Her sister, Goretti is a member of the South African Province, currently working in the continental novitiate in Nakuru, Kenya.

Miriam Kerrisk

I was born in Killarney, County Kerry, Ireland in 1956. I lived with my parents, Pat and Lizzie on a small farm. I have two brothers, Tom and Ollie, sister-in-law, Gerardine and nephew Liam.

I enjoy being with nature, conversing with people, listening to music, reading, poetry and literature.

I attended the local Mercy Primary and Secondary schools in Killarney.I enjoyed school and my favourite subjects were English and History. After completing school I worked with Telecom Eireann as a Telephonist in different parts of Ireland, I enjoyed my work and my colleagues had a significant influence on me through the sharing of our experiences on the longings of the human heart.

Mercy found me in 1983 and I began my formation process leading to my Final Commitment in 1993. I continue to be grateful for my relationship with Mercy as I endeavour to live my ongoing commitment in a life enhancing way. In between I studied Theology and taught Religion and Pastoral Care in St Mary’s Secondary School, Moyderwell, Tralee, Ireland. I enjoyed my time with young people and their idealism inspired me. After that I became a member of the Provincial Leadership Team in the Southern Province from 1995 to 2001. My time in Leadership was a time of excitement as I engaged in the creation of our Province and soul making as I interacted in that process with all those involved. Following this I retrained in Hospital Chaplaincy and worked in Mercy University Hospital Cork. I experienced this work as very meaningful and privileged. It afforded me the opportunity to get glimpses of what is really essential in life as I witnessed the journey of living with illness to health and life to death. From that place I said yes to becoming a member of our Congregational Leadership Team. My desire as I begin this journey is that I continue to allow myself be open to be inspired and transformed by God’s dream of Mercy for all of life.