Generations of Mary Ward Women

Women in Time

Eileen Lucy Lennon (Winship)

The Winship family has a long and enduring connection with Loreto Australia.

In 1896 at 12 years of age, Eileen Lucy Lennon (later Winship) commenced at Loreto Portland and developed a great affection for the nuns. Eileen Lennon married Charles Winship in Brisbane in 1910. They had six children. The eldest daughter, Ruth, was sent as a boarder to the newly opened Loreto Coorparoo in 1930. In 1934, Ruth went to Loreto Toorak in Melbourne for two years to finish her schooling.

She went on to enter the Loreto Novitiate at Mary’s Mount in Ballarat in 1937 which became a lifetime of commitment to the IBVM as Mother Assumpta and Sr Ruth Winship.

Following in the footsteps of Ruth and her sisters (all of whom attended Loreto Coorparoo), future generations of this family have enjoyed a Loreto education, be that at Toorak, Normanhurst, Kirribilli or Ballarat. 80 years after her grand-mother commenced at Loreto Portland, Sarah Perrett (Winship, 1976) became School Captain of Loreto Toorak in 1976. It is fitting that 80 years after Ruth commenced at Loreto Coorparoo, her great grand niece, Evie Ford, is thriving in her senior years at Loreto Ballarat. The tradition continues with Mia Ford commencing at Loreto Ballarat in Year 7, 2021 and Grace Ogilvy commencing at Loreto Toorak in Year 7 in 2022.

The love for Loreto, which was epitomised in Sr Ruth, is very evident amongst these five generations of the Winship family.

First Generation: Eileen Lennon (Winship, 1896), Loreto Portland

Second Generation: Ruth Winship: 1930-31 Weekly boarder at Loreto Coorparoo, 1932-33 Full time boarder at Loreto Coorparoo, 1934-35 Boarder at Loreto Toorak. Claire Sheahan (Winship, 1937), Loreto Coorparoo. Celia Winship (1940), Loreto Coorparoo

Third Generation: Prue Ogilvy (Winship,1970), Roe Maas (Winship,1973), Sarah Perrett (Winship, 1976), Kate McCulloch (Winship,1980), Loreto Toorak, are the daughters of Bill and Moya Winship. Mary Alexander (Sheahan, 1965) Helen Botham (Sheahan, 1968), Loreto Toorak, are the daughters of Ken and Claire Sheahan (Winship).

Fourth Generation : Emma Ford (Ogilvy,1996) and Claire Barrett (Ogilvy, 2001) are the daughters of Chris and Prue Ogilvy (Winship).

Fifth Generation : Evie Ford, daughter of Emma Ford (Ogilvy) commenced at Loreto Ballarat in Year 7, 2018. Continuing the Loreto connection, Moya Winship’s family, the Bowen sisters, also all attended Loreto Normanhurst. Jeanette Schlesinger (Bowen, 1936), Lorna Bowen (1939), Audrey Drury (Bowen, 1942), Moya Winship (Bowen, 1944). Jeanette’s daughters, Anne Marie Kemp (Schlesinger, 1966) and Jane Barrington (Schlesinger, 1971) attended Loreto Toorak. Peter Bowen’s daughter, Sue Casey (Bowen, 1977) attended Loreto Kirribilli. Audrey’s daughters Cathie Klein (Drury, 1975) and Meg Drury (1978) attended Loreto Normanhurst.