Foundation

In the early 1960's, the Carmel of Bangkok, Thailand, was making preparations for a new foundation. The Archbishop of Thare, in Northeast Thailand, Michael Kien wanted a Carmel in his diocese. In 1973 permission for a foundation fund had come from Rome and all was ready. However, due to the troubled political situation, Thare being close to the Laotian border--the Archbishop decided that it was not safe to make the foundation and it was postponed indefinitely.

By Divine Providence, in 1974, Bishop Myles McKeon of Bunbury visited the Carmel of Bangkok, Thailand. There were 31 in the community and many young girls wanting to enter. The Bishop had already had a desire to have a Carmelite Monastery in his diocese and invited them to make a foundation but the reaction of the nuns was that it was out of the question. In October of 1975 the Bishop wrote, repeating his invitation and this time it was taken up seriously. The Carmel of Bangkok had been saving funds and goods for many years for the proposed foundation of Thare, and now they devoted everything to the foundation of Bunbury. They took great care that the sisters were well equipped to start off with.

The Carmel of Our Lady of Lourdes, Gelorup (in the Diocese of Bunbury)

is the second monastery of the Discalced Carmelite Order in Western Australia.

The first is the Carmel of the Holy Trinity, Nedlands, in the metropolitan city, Perth.

The Foundresses remained there for eight months while the new monastery was being renovated; they spent the time learning something of their new homeland and for some, learning English. They made several trips to Dardanup to see how the work on their monastery was progressing and to meet the people. This interval was of great benefit to the nuns.

The Bishop of Bunbury offered the nuns a former Mercy Convent, which was vacant, as a temporary home. This was situated in Dardanup, a small farming centre, 12km from the city of Bunbury.

The ten foundresses left Bangkok by plane on November 4th, 1976, arriving at Perth airport early in the morning of the 5th November 1976, where Bishop McKeon and friends met them.

From there they were taken to the Carmel of Nedlands (Perth) with which the Carmel of Bangkok had had close ties for long years. Some years before six sisters (two of whom were among the foundresses) had stayed there to learn English.