3rd June, 1962, was the dawn of a new era for our community under the patronage of St. Joseph. The sisters were then residing in the house of the late Dr. AgostinhoMonteiro. The first Superior of the house was Sr. Josephine, s.f.n. At the request of Rev. Fr.Hilario D’Souza the then Parish Priest and dean of Verna, the HolyCrossParochial School to our sisters. The classes were being held at the house premises of Carlos Castello and in the church premises.
Nagoa is a small village with scope for development and one of the needs of the villagers is education when Goa was liberated on 19th December 1961, the then existing medium of instruction was Portuguese. Few people had knowledge of written and spoken English. In South Goa there were just a few schools where English was the medium of instruction. But this was for a brief period. Due to some unavoidable reasons, the school had to be close down and St. Joseph’s ConventSchool was opened. The sisters had no premises of their own to carry on classes. It was at this stage that they showed real grit and determination to carry on their mission in spite of the obstacles.
Sr. Magdalene with her loyal supporters, teachers Miss TherezinaBarreto, Celine Rebello and Mrs. Anita Fernandes, shouldered the work Mr. PiedadeFernandes kindly consented to give his house to carry on the classes because of the lack of accommodation, the sisters, teachers and boarders were scattered about in various houses offered by a few villagers like Mrs. Gabriel Cabral, Mrs. Elvira Monteiro, Mrs. CatarinaVaz and Mrs. Roza Maria Amon. The then Bishop Rebello supported the sisters as an entity of the Holy Family Society, on the contention that they would help the poor people who were deprived of getting a good education. Miss Lucinda Machado donated a plot of land to help sisters carry on this noble task.
Ten years later… in 1972, the school could boast of having classes up to Std X. In 1973 the school got its recognition. The children were not only being supplied with a sound education but also good nourishment in the form of milk and cereals, as the sisters were getting aid from Caritas Goa. The aim of the convent was to cater to children whose parents were otherwise occupied and could not give enough attention to their children’s studies. Many children also came from a background where the parents themselves were uneducated…. but wanted some sort of education for their children. It was here where the sisters came forward with a helping hand. The school started with a small band of boarders.
In 1972, when the new construction was ready, Mrs. Anita Fernandes was the Headmistress and Sr.Magdalene was the Principal. Under their dynamism and with the help of devoted sisters and teachers, the School really blossomed.
In March 1974, the first batch of students appeared for S.S.C Examination .The percentage of the results was 50% yet this did not dishearten anybody. The sisters, teachers and students worked in harmony with one another. There was really love and solidarity, which helped in achieving progress.
In a few years’ time, the strength of the boarders increased. The School premises could not accommodate a boarding as well as classroom; a new building was constructed for boarders. As time went by the school progressed in all spheres. The strength of students increased and with the increased came the demand for more teachers.
Now in 2008 St. Joseph’s High School can boast of a vast improvement. Sisters, hello in the Parish by teaching catechism, preparing the Liturgy, organizing B.C.Cs, visiting the families in various wards distributing Holy Communion and any other necessary work.
As we have seen the past history and reflected the life of sisters who toiled very hard to achieve the aim today we enjoy the fruits of their labour and glorify the Lord. We thank God for His numerous blessings and graces to keep going in His vineyard.