OTHER DONORS
AFTER more than 176 collective years of serving the Church and their parish of St Luke’s, Buranda, twin stalwarts draw on similarities between their youth and how Gen Z and Gen Alpha can get involved.
At morning tea on Sunday, August 10, twins Betty and Jessie Bourke were celebrated for their significant contributions to the Church.
Monsignor Meneely, who spent 17 years in the parish community, also acknowledged the “remarkable women” in a note and valued their faithful service.
“Each of you are both a wonderful example of the servant leadership that Jesus calls us to as faithful disciples,” he said.
“Year after year you always made sure that the church was available to those who wished to pray; to those who were celebrating significant events in their lives; for those who gather each weekend for the parish masses and all the other celebrations that were part of our parish’s life.”
Jessie and Betty have given 50 years each of service to St Luke’s. Jessie shared a few of the many memories she had collected over the years.
She remembered enjoying ringing the bells at her church as a 20 year old.
And another time when they could almost “swim in the church” after a thunderstorm tore open a part of the roof and flooded the interiors.
The twins were brought up in the faith and hence serving the Church came as second nature to them.
For Jessie and Betty, generosity is not only about helping their local community, but wider Church too.
As Eternal Guardians of the Archdiocese of Brisbane, they have confirmed gifts in their Wills to sustain vital ministry across South East Queensland.
Betty said her choice to volunteer in the church was simply her following in the footsteps of her parents and siblings.
“Our parents, our brothers and sisters, did a lot for the church and we just carried on,” she said.
“Religion was a major part of our lives.
“Our father’s sister was a Mercy nun. She was a great musician, and the nuns and priests were often in our house.
“So, it just seemed so natural.”
Jessie said she used to polish the floors and sweep the church and get it ready for mass, while Betty used to do the flower arrangements.
They used to sing in the choir and when asked, both separately said that their favourite hymn was How great thou art.
Betty recalled a memory from her childhood that was refreshed after something Pope Francis said.
“When I was about 10, my parents had a photographic studio in Toowoomba … I was with them in the studio, and I heard my one of my sisters say, ‘come on, let’s start prayers’. They had morning prayers every morning before they started work,” she said.
“Then I heard our father say something which I didn’t know what it was. Anyway, years went on, and last year I opened up The Catholic Leader one Sunday morning and there it was – Pope Francis was saying exactly the same as my father’s words: ‘Pray for harmony’.
“That was a big moment.”
When asked what she would say to encourage Gen Z and Alpha to get involved with the Church, Jessie said a “motivation” for her was getting involved. Recalling her younger years, they “had lots of things, we had choir practise, we had tennis”.
“Jess and I, when we were in our teens, we used to organise dances and barbecues,” she said.
She said the church had and would continue to change.
“I don’t really want it to change … but you just have to go with the times,” she said.
Similarly, as for the future of the church, Jessie said: “We like it the way it is.”
But she had a tip for young Catholics.
For those who struggle to sleep at night, Jessie said: “Don’t take a tablet, just start saying the Hail Mary.
“(By) the second Hail Mary, you’re yawning away, and you’re fast asleep in a minute,” she laughed.
“God listens to you, he’s listening all the time.”