History of Hope (formerly Nazareth) House, Tafuna, American Samoa

The Sisters of Nazareth were founded in London in the 1860s by a Frenchwoman, Victoire Larmenier, from Brittany. Their original work was the care of the elderly, but to this was soon added care for infirm girls and then for children. They also ran a soup kitchen to which many poor people came for a hot meal. As time went by, their work spread to Southern Africa, Australia, New Zealand and the United States of America.
In 1984, the late Cardinal Pio Taufanu’u asked the Superior General of the Sisters of Nazareth if she would open a home for the elderly in American Samoa. Several Samoan girls had already entered the Congregation through the influence of a priest who knew the sisters well because his mother had been a Resident in Nazareth Hose, Christchurch. The Superior General agreed to the request and the first Sisters arrived on island in 1985.
Before the Home was built, the Sisters were approached by the local people asking them to do something for the children, so a small day-care was started. When Bishop John Quinn Weitzel arrived on island, he persuaded the Sisters to develop this into a Montessori school, as his cousin was an expert in that philosophy of education.
When the building was completed, the American Samoan Government approached the Sisters regarding providing respite care for children with severe disabilities. In 1988 the Government requested that we run a Day Care program and so this was added to the Sisters work. This Day Care was run for several years before the programs with federal funding were set up, when it came under that same scheme. The Sisters, also, through the Part H scheme, provided care for babies with severe problems, and space for the Part H meetings for several years.
For several reasons, including the decrease in the number of Sisters it was decided that they would withdraw from American Samoa, though the Congregation would continue to support the work for a few years. The House and contents were given to the Bishop, who arranged for a Filipino Congregation of Dominican Sisters to take over the running of the Home, which was renamed Hope House. The last Sister of Nazareth left in February 2009.
“I should like to add a personal appreciation of the many individuals, groups, organisations and church groups which supported us in so many ways while we were on island. May God bless them all. “ Sister Sheila, Sisters of Nazareth