Heroism Of Lepers On Makogai Makes Impression

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 11, Issue 94, 31 October 1947, Page 5

Heroism Of Lepers On Makogai Makes Impression

Heroism of lepers on Makogai and the self-sacrifice of those who have devoted their lives to the service of the unfortunate exiles there were the dominant impressions a recent visit to the Island left in the mind of Mr G. E. Carr, former Dannevirke resident.

Mr Carr, in a letter to Mr P. J. Twomey, secretary of the N.Z. Leper Trust Board, writes: “How different it was from what I had imagined, for there were happy people, suffering, yes, but they bore it like heroes. We were, conducted through clean, bright hospital wards and saw people suffering from the dread disease and just to complicate matters, some had the combination of T.B. and Leprosy, yet even they could smife and laugh. “Very versatile indeed are the Nursing Sisters on the island, whose works of mercy, assisted by their vocational calling play a major part in lightening the burdens of these stricken people. Theirs is a labour of love among the exiles and here are just a few of their duties: They act as nursing sisters, do dressings, give injections, act as operating theatre attendants, X-ray photographers, run the movie projectors, extract and refine the oil from the chaulmoogra nut and are general towers of strength to the doctor. Another heroine is the aged Reverend Mother. Her work represents a lifetime spent among the lepers. How they could shut themselves away in such a colony is perhaps beyond the comprehension of many, but when one sees them at work, their days so full, and never a moment to spare, I should say they find more happiness in the good they are doing than many of us find in a lifetime.”