Letters | Canossian Sisters’ message of care and solidarity still resonates, as Hong Kong, Italy and the world battle new crisis

Exactly 160 years ago, on April 12, 1860, six nuns from the Catholic Order of the Canossian Sisters arrived in Hong Kong from Italy after a long and perilous journey.

Their mission: to bring education and health care to the poorest people in the British colony.

They were young, brave and capable.

Just 17 days after they had disembarked, the Sisters founded the Italian Convent School in Caine Road (now Sacred Heart Canossian College). Within 10 more days, they had established the Pui Ching Chinese School, with the support of two Cantonese girls.

An orphanage, a small hospital and a centre for people with disabilities opened in the years that followed.

With the strength of their faith and their determination, the young women brought hope and relief to many in Hong Kong, in the face of epidemics, natural disasters and a challenging social environment.