As the Presentation Sisters mark the 250th anniversary of their founding, their story, rooted in the life, vision, and courage of Nano Nagle, feels strikingly contemporary. For the congregation worldwide, this anniversary is not only a milestone but an opportunity to honour and commemorate the past and to reflect on the remarkable evolution of a global mission rooted in rural North Cork.
To celebrate the anniversary, we welcomed Sr Sharon Fagan, Congregation Leader of the Union of Presentation Sisters, to the Education Nation studio. On first meeting I am immediately struck by Sr Sharon’s grace, her quiet confidence, authenticity and the calm sense of authority with which she speaks. With consummate ease she shares her reflections on the congregation and her own vocation, as she outlines what she regards as the enduring relevance of Nano Nagle’s vision, the bedrock of the founding intention and charism of the Presentation Sisters.
A global family with Irish roots
While communities of Presentation Sisters take different organisational forms around the world, the Union of Presentation Sisters, founded in 1976, unites communities from 19 countries under one shared administration. This unity, Sr Sharon explains, is not forced, nor is it merely structural; it is a spiritual bond that keeps Nano’s vision at the centre. “We are a global organisation,” she notes, “but one that traces its heart back to Nano Nagle and her dream for the poor of Ireland.”
During our conversation, I listen to Sr Sharon speak passionately about Nano Nagle as a woman far ahead of her time. Born in 18th century Cork, under the shadow of the Penal Laws, she was convinced that education was the surest path out of poverty. This led her to establish clandestine schools, often at huge personal risk. Her vision, courage and compassion lit a flame and ignited a movement that would eventually span continents.
The story of Nano’s life of ‘heroic virtue’ and her commitment to the poor during a time of religious persecution in Ireland was formally recognised when she was declared Venerable by Pope Francis in 2013. The cause for Nano Nagle’s canonisation is well advanced.
“She wouldn’t have sought recognition,” Sr Sharon notes. “But she would be glad to know that her charism is alive in so many people.”
Their ministries worldwide extend across healthcare, pastoral outreach, advocacy, and community development, always with a razor-sharp focus on those most in need”
Her canonisation would be a moment of immense pride for Ireland — and for the many hundreds of thousands of past pupils and others associated with the Presentation Sisters worldwide.
Today, Presentation Sisters live and serve in communities in Ireland, India, Pakistan, the United States, Africa, Latin America, and beyond. While they are best known in Ireland for their contribution to education, their ministries worldwide extend across healthcare, pastoral outreach, advocacy, and community development, always with a razor-sharp focus on those most in need.
A mission that evolves with the times
Like many congregations, the focus of the Presentation Sisters in Ireland has changed in recent decades, moving from staffing, leadership and management of schools towards governance and trusteeship; their mission remains rooted in service to the marginalised.
Across Asia and Africa, Presentation schools continue to educate thousands of children who might otherwise have no access to highquality education. In India and Pakistan for example some Presentation schools serve more than 2,000 students, mostly from extremely disadvantaged backgrounds.
Today the congregation also maintains a strong presence at the United Nations, advocating for women, children, and vulnerable communities through engagement with various UN bodies and agencies.
It’s a different form of education, but still education”
Environmental stewardship has become another key focus, inspired by Laudato Si’ and the congregation’s commitment to socially responsible investment and ecological education. “It’s a different form of education, but still education,” Sr Sharon reflects.
A Newfoundland childhood shaped by Irish Sisters
Sr Sharon’s own personal story echoes the global story and perspective of the Presentation Sisters. Born in St John’s, Newfoundland, she attended the first Presentation foundation outside Ireland, established in 1833.
“I was educated by the Presentation Sisters,” she recalls. “Their compassion, joy, and commitment to every child — especially those who struggled — left a deep impression on me.”
After school, she completed studies in Business before entering the novitiate. In terms of her own pastoral duties teaching came first. However, she soon felt drawn to nursing, eventually becoming a public health nurse — a role that allowed her to leave the community every day and to live Nano’s charism “out among the people.”
Her leadership journey also began in Newfoundland, where she served on the congregation’s leadership team. As Presentation communities worldwide grew closer, the sisters in Newfoundland decided that they too would like to establish firmer and more formal connections with their roots. In 2015, they joined the Union of Presentation Sisters. Three years later, Sr Sharon was elected as Congregational Leader and began her work in Ireland.
A year of celebration and renewal
In Ireland, this year of celebration opened with a major event at Nano Nagle Place, near Mallow in Cork. The event was livestreamed globally and sparked celebrations from Cork to Kolkata, Pakistan to Peru. All over the world in schools, parishes, and communities where the presentation sisters operate the local communities have embraced the milestone with plays, artwork, liturgies, and new and revived service projects.
In this period of reflection and renewal, Sr Sharon notes how deeply children and young teachers are able to connect with Nano’s story. “Her life is incredibly contemporary,” she says. “Young people recognise her authenticity, her courage, her love for children, and her commitment to justice.”
Nano’s lantern, carried through the streets of Cork on her nighttime visits to the sick, remains a powerful symbol of compassion in action.
Looking to the future: hope, unity, and presence
As the congregation marks 250 years, it is also discerning its path forward. Sr Sharon describes a process grounded in communal reflection:
“We ask ourselves: Who are we today? What is the world asking of us? What is the Church asking of us?”
Turning to our final question Sr Sharon provides clear and obviously well thought out answer to the challenge, ‘What do you hope for the Presentation Sisters over the next 25 years?’
that Nano’s contemplative heart, compassion, and commitment to justice will continue to be carried by sisters, teachers, students, and lay collaborators
that young women in parts of the world where the need is greatest will continue to be drawn to Nano’s charism
that the congregation will grow in unity as one global family
and that the sisters will remain a presence of hope, faith, and love in a fractured world.
“The quality of our presence is really important today,” she says. “We live in a world that is so busy, so restless, that people often feel unseen. Sometimes the greatest gift we can offer is simply to be present. I hope that will continue”
