Orla Treacy is an Irish Loreto sister who runs a boarding school in war torn

South Sudan South Sudan (; din, Paguot Thudän), officially the Republic of South Sudan ( din, Paankɔc Cuëny Thudän), is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia, Sudan, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the C ...

and she works for Women's education and prevent child marriages. Born in 1973 in

Bray, County Wicklow Bray ( ) is a coastal town in north County Wicklow, Ireland. It is situated about south of Dublin city centre on the east coast. It has a population of 32,600 making it the ninth largest urban area within Ireland (at the 2016 census). Bray is ...

, she became an

International Women of Courage Award The International Women of Courage Award, also referred to as the U.S. Secretary of State's International Women of Courage Award, is an American award presented annually by the United States Department of State to women around the world who have ...

recipient in 2019. In 2017 she was awarded ''The Hugh O’Flaherty International Humanitarian Award'' by the Mayor of Killarney. In 2021, Sr. Treacy was awarded the ''Distinguished Service Award for the Irish Abroad'', by Irish President Micheal D. Higgins.In a culture where cows are worth more than women, an Irish nun has dedicated herself to educating girls
By Patsy McGarry, Irish Times, December 27, 2022. Orla was educated in Presentation Convent Tralee, County Kerry, then Loretto Convent in Bray completing her Leaving Cert in 1991. She went to

Mater Dei Institute of Education Mater Dei Institute of Education ( ga, Institiúid Oideachais Mater Dei) was a linked college of Dublin City University from 1999 until its closure in 2016, located in Drumcondra, Dublin City, Ireland, near Croke Park, on the site of what was ...

, Dublin, and completing her degree in 1995 she became a school teacher. She taught in Presentation College Cork, Loreto Letterkenny, St Muredach's Ballina and Loreto Crumlin. Treacy completed an MA in Chaplaincy and Pastoral care with Mater Dei awarded by

Dublin City University Dublin City University (abbreviated as DCU) ( ga, Ollscoil Chathair Bhaile Átha Cliath) is a university based on the Northside of Dublin, Ireland. Created as the ''National Institute for Higher Education, Dublin'' in 1975, it enrolled its f ...

in 2002.Sr. Orla Treacy Award for Societal Impact
Mater Dei Centre for Catholic Education,

, www.dcu.ie, June 19, 2019. At the age of 24 Orla decided to join the Loretto Sisters, and was based in Rathfarnham, Dublin, she was professed in 2005. In 2005 Sr Orla along with two other Irish nuns were invited by Bishop

Cesare Mazzolari Cesare (or Caesar) Mazzolari (9 February 1937 – 16 July 2011) was the Roman Catholic Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Rumbek, in the newly independent Republic of South Sudan. Biography Bishop Mazzolari was born Feb. 9, 1937 in Bresc ...

the Italian-born Bishop of

Rumbek Rumbek ( ar, رمبك) is the capital of Lakes State, central South Sudan, and the former capital of the country. Location Rumbek is approximately by road northwest of Juba, the capital and largest city in the country. Its coordinates are a ...

, to set up a school in Rumbeck, South Sudan. Today Orla, is the Principal and the director of the centre that provides Primary and Secondary Schooling to boys and girls, teacher training,Sr Orla Treacy - Directors Message
Loreto Rumbek and also provides a health centre staffed by Kenyan nuns.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Treacy, Orla Living people 1973 births 21st-century Irish nuns Irish women activists Irish human rights activists People from Bray, County Wicklow Alumni of Mater Dei Institute of Education Recipients of the International Women of Courage Award