Amy Vera Ackman, known as Mother Giovanni (3 July 1886 – 23 August 1966) was an Australian hospital administrator and one of the

Sisters of Charity Many religious communities have the term Sisters of Charity in their name. Some ''Sisters of Charity'' communities refer to the Vincentian tradition, or in America to the tradition of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, but others are unrelated. The ...

Biography

Ackman was born into a Jewish family in Randwick,

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

and was educated at the

Sisters of Mercy The Sisters of Mercy is a religious institute of Catholic women founded in 1831 in Dublin, Ireland, by Catherine McAuley. As of 2019, the institute had about 6200 sisters worldwide, organized into a number of independent congregations. They a ...

St Mary's Convent School in

Malmsbury Malmsbury is a town in central Victoria, Australia on the Old Calder Highway (C794), 95 km north-west of the state capital, Melbourne and 11 km north-west of Kyneton. Situated close by the Coliban River, Malmsbury has a population ...

. She studied in London and became an optometrist, and established a practice in

Collins Street, Melbourne Collins Street is a major street in the central business district of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It was laid out in the first survey of Melbourne, the original 1837 Hoddle Grid, and soon became the most desired address in the city. Collins ...

in 1912. She became one of the Sisters of Charity, and made her vows in April 1917 and became "Mother Giovanni". From early 1922 she worked in the admissions office of St Vincent's Hospital in Darlinghurst, Sydney. She was appointed the Sisters hospital administrator for Bathurst from 1932 to 1937 and Lismore from 1938 to 1941, followed by a five-year term at

St Vincent's Private Hospital Sydney ST, St, or St. may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Stanza, in poetry * Suicidal Tendencies, an American heavy metal/hardcore punk band * Star Trek, a science-fiction media franchise * Summa Theologica, a compendium of Catholic philosophy an ...

in Darlinghurst. Ackman was elected to the Sisters general council in 1949, and was sent to

Kangaroo Point, Brisbane Kangaroo Point is an inner southern suburb in the City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. In the , Kangaroo Point had a population of 8,063 people. The suburb features two prominent attractions, the Story Bridge and Kangaroo Point Cliffs. At ...

in March 1953, where she was involved with setting up a town office. Her fundraising led to the establishment of the £428,000 176-bed

Mount Olivet Hospital Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest. Mount or Mounts may also refer to: Places * Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England * Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, C ...

in September 1957. In her final years she volunteered as a missionary in

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea). It is a simplified version of ...

, arriving in 1963 and subsequently caring for some 300 children in

Bundi Bundi is a city in the Hadoti region of Rajasthan state in northwest India and capital of the former princely state of Rajputana agency. District of Bundi is named after the former princely state. Demographics According to the 2011 Indian cens ...

. After returning to a home in Darling Point, Sydney, she moved to

Mount Olivet The Mount of Olives or Mount Olivet ( he, הַר הַזֵּיתִים, Har ha-Zeitim; ar, جبل الزيتون, Jabal az-Zaytūn; both lit. 'Mount of Olives'; in Arabic also , , 'the Mountain') is a mountain ridge east of and adjacent to Jeru ...

, where she died in August 1966. She is buried there in

Nudgee Cemetery Nudgee Cemetery & Crematorium is a large Roman Catholic cemetery at 493 St Vincents Road, Nudgee, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The cemetery opened in 1867 and is still operating. Over 31,000 people are buried there. Services The cemetery ...

References

External links

Mother Giovanni Ackman
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ackman, Amy 1886 births 1966 deaths Australian hospital administrators Sisters of Charity Federation in the Vincentian-Setonian Tradition People from Sydney