On a crisp winter morning, a commotion in the house woke me up. I could hear my parents talking. Today would be my first-ever admission test for a prestigious convent school. My father, a professor of history, was baffled by the idea of testing a five-year-old girl who had not been to school ever; in the late 1970s, a preschool or a nursery was unheard of in Bahawalpur.

As we entered the school premises, a cool gust numbed my nose, and my father’s hand tightened on mine. Anxious, he advised me to speak up and not remain silent. We reached the long veranda with its signature arches on one side, and a row of classes on the other.

At the far end, near the principal’s office, stood a tall, lean figure, dressed in white, with sleek shiny black hair and her searching eyes fixed on my face. I could see her smile, but too shaken to meet her eyes, I looked away as we were ushered into the school library. The mysterious figure was still there with her smile, warm but intimidating for me.

That was my first rendezvous with Sister Maureen O’Toole and, from then onwards, my fascination for her only grew. In kindergarten for our lunch break, we used to sit out on a U-shaped bench overlooking the convent entrance. It was a delight to see Sister Maureen pass by on her bicycle, smiling and inquiring about what we were learning, though her towering figure mostly left us speechless.

Sister Maureen O’Toole, who passed away September 5, had made Bahawalpur her adopted home for 52 years. She touched the lives of all those she came into contact with as an educationist and philanthropist

Once, on a very cold day, she decided to join us on the steps of the church, where we sat with our teacher, singing some newly learned rhymes. She sat next to me and I sheepishly stole glimpses of her. Then she praised my singing. Her appreciation broke the ice between us. This was the beginning of a life-long association with one of the most wonderful people I have ever encountered.

Born in Galway, Ireland in 1935, Sister Maureen was the youngest of four siblings, and later migrated to the US, where her aunt lived. As a young girl, she worked in a bank in New York. But poverty and the unequal distribution of wealth in the world made her reconsider her choice of career.

In 1960, she joined the Dominican Congregation of our Lady of the Rosary in Sparkill. She received a BS in education from St Thomas Aquinas College, Sparkill, in 1965, and a MS in religious studies from Fordham University, Bronx, New York. For the next few years, she was involved in educational activities in the States, until she volunteered for the Dominican Sisters Mission in Pakistan.

She was immediately appointed the principal of Dominican Convent School in Bahawalpur, from 1969-1974, when my elder siblings studied there. This school was founded in 1958 by eight sisters who came to Bahawalpur at the request of Sir Sadiq Khan Abbasi, the Nawab of Bahawalpur.

Sister Maureen was a fine teacher. Her classroom personality varied from a stern figure of authority to a calming presence, and her influence is best realised in the retrospect of her old students. Ours was the first generation under her guidance, while my children were the second generation who were enticed by the motherly figure of Sister Maureen. Even after her official departure, she would visit the school frequently, to stay in touch with the children whom she regarded as simply “precious.”

When my sister Saira was in the third grade, she had a stomach-ache that made her writhe in pain. Sister Maureen took her to the Sick Room, checked her up and asked her to rest for as long as she needed to, in a soothing voice. When Saira awoke, the pain had subsided, and she noticed that she lay under a large woolly cardigan that had the name Maureen on the inner tag. Saira, who felt a sense of comfort and happiness, immediately snuggled under the cardigan and slept like a baby.

During his years at the convent school, my brother Raheal, would often go to play cricket matches at the Sadiq Public School. As the team captain, he remembers Sister Maureen’s passion for cricket. In the evenings, she rode her bicycle to witness the fixtures, cheering loudly for the boys, and would be the first one to console or congratulate them.

Warmly accepted by the local community in Bahawalpur, she would dress in a simple shalwar-qameez and dupatta, and loved paratha for breakfast. For many years, she was associated with the Purissima Centre of adult education. Working under the Dominican Sisters, she often bicycled to visit day care centres, informal and formal education set-ups all over the city. She was passionate about the educational and health facilities the nuns were running for the poor community of Loreto village in tehsil Thal.

The 1991 Gulf War was a turning point for the Dominican Convent School, when all the American nuns were called back by the US embassy because of security issues. But Sister Maureen decided firmly to stay back and continue serving the people.

In a recent note to the Sparkill sisters, Maureen wrote that coming to Pakistan was a dream that had seen fulfilment and she expressed her gratitude, an emotion that she seemed to have an abundance of, in the following words: “I am grateful that I was welcomed wherever I went. It was great to know the Muslims and I thoroughly enjoyed working with them.” She invited the new missionaries in the States to visit the amazing city of Bahawalpur and meet her adopted community.

Sister Maureen passed away on the September 5, 2021 and was buried in Bahawalpur. As an acknowledgement of her 52 years of services in education and philanthropy, a road has been named after her. Her smile, magnanimity, humility and love for children will be missed by all those whose lives she touched.

The writer is an animal rights activist, conservationist and assistant professor of English literature at Islamia University, Bahawalpur.

She tweets @S_Siddiqui70

Published in Dawn, EOS, September 26th, 2021