If I can summarise the life of my mother, it would be, ‘A long and fruitful life, where she touched many lives positively and made a differences for the better’.
Iris Wilkinson was born and raised in Allahabad, UP, where she did her schooling. For higher education she studied in Isabella Thoburn college Lucknow where she met my father and got married. They moved to Nagpur in 1958.
She taughted in St. Joseph’s Convent until she retired in 1990. Scores of her students remember her fondly for being gentle and soft spoken but also firm. She was very approachable. Many students approached her for advice. Her suggestions were always very practical. One of her students whose name is Jumana, herself recounted this story. She complained to my mother that another girl constantly teased her by calling her Jurmana. My mother asked her what was the girl’s name? ‘Chadha’ she replied . My mother suggested “just call her chaddi and she will stop teasing you”.
And it worked like magic!
Along with her regular job she was also managing the orphanage of the Diocese, the Shishu Sangopan Griha. She told me that working with the orphans and abandoned children was the most fulfilling thing in her life.
There was a time when she kept the new born babies who were most vulnerable in our house. So there was a row of cribs and a caretaker who worked under the watchful eyes of my mother.
Many of these children were adopted by families in the Netherlands and Norway. Annelies who is present here adopted two beautiful girls from Shishu Sangopan Gruha, who are now mothers themselves. All of these children when they met my mother, despite the passage of time, felt and instant connect and chemistry. They now consider her as their Indian mother.
My mother and Annelies founded Navjeevan Sanstha and the Dr. T.S. Wilkinson Memorial school. The logo is hands holding a diya and the motto is to lead to the light.
My mother used to see children begging outside the church after services. She discovered that in Government Schools nothing was taught so they lacked even the basic knowledge and no motivation to attend. She felt they require one wholesome meal a day as an incentive. So the school started initially on rented premises. In the Chatterton Hall at first. There were days when the hall was booked by other people, then my mother conducted classes under the trees in this church compound. Because they were dealing with street children no one was willing to rent out premises. With the help from donors in Netherlands they were able to make a residential school in Godhani, which now has 200 students. Many of the ex students are now employed as nurses, accountants and technicians. These are the success stories.
My mother was happiest when she was visiting the school and like a child refuse to return home.
It’s only in the last few months her health deteriorated and she was confined to bed. Ultimately nobody runs forever and her time had come. She is definitely in a better place now.
In conclusion to quote 2 Timothy 4:6, which would be apt for her life.
“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”