A BELFAST woman beaten and bullied in an orphanage has been speaking about her harrowing and remarkable experience as a book she wrote about her life goes back on sale.
Marie Therese Rodgers-Moloney (73) was born in Clifton Street in North Belfast in 1950 and a short time later given up by her mother who became pregnant following an extra-marital affair.
She was put into the care of nuns in Nazareth House on the Ormeau Road and spent the next 17 years in a life of servitude before she was able to return to education and embark on a successful career as a nurse.
Marie Therese set about recounting her tale in her book, 'For the Sins of my Mother', which was published in 2014.
The book sold over 6,000 copies and on the back of the interest it generated Marie Therese has since been busy giving talks across the island about her traumatic life.
In Nazareth House, Marie Therese was bullied and beaten by the nuns who were supposed to care for her.
"It wasn’t easy," she recalled. "They were the coldest people I have ever met. The cruelty was dreadful. It was all girls and you were given a number. I was 51 and it will be with me until the day I die. I spent my time scrubbing, waxing, polishing and praying. There was no care or empathy shown. Every Tuesday and Friday we were washed in Jeyes Fluid. It stung you and I will never forget it."
At 17, uneducated and afraid, she was forced to leave the orphanage to live with a couple she described as "manipulative" and as a result Marie Therese suffered a breakdown.
Astonishingly, in the midst of the turmoil, Marie Therese determined to take control of her life, educating herself and gaining the confidence to embark on a nursing career.
"I was put into service with a family after Nazareth Lodge," she added. "I spent three months there and escaped one day. I managed to get into lodgings and got a job in a stitching factory. When I was in work one day, I was told by a solicitor that any contact with my mother had to be done through her – she was too busy a woman.
"I took a nervous breakdown. Nobody wanted to know me. Then I got a job in Belvoir Park Hospital looking after little babies and I ended up moving into nursing. I started nursing in 1980 and I absolutely loved it."
After retiring, Marie Therese set out to find out who she really is and went on the trail of her mother, who the nuns told her did not exist.
"When I was told my mother was dying, I went to Letterkenny Hospital. It was the first time I had since I was 38. She had dementia. I wanted to scream at her. She recognised me and it was a shock. I found my father, too, which is revealed In the book. I also found my brothers on my father’s side and my late sister."
In 2017, the Historical Institutional Abuse (HIA) inquiry found that church, charitable and state homes had been the scenes of widespread abuse over several decades – including Nazareth House.
"It took me over 50 years to come out of a shell," she continued. "I took part in the HIA enquiry. I wanted to be a voice for all the girls who suffered in Nazareth House. The late Judge Harte was the first person to believe us. Those nuns ruined my childhood and took everything away from us. Shame on them. I travel around Ireland giving talks. I want more and more people to know about the story. I hope what happened to me is never repeated.
"I was nervous about publishing it but I went for it. To date, I have sold almost 6,000 books and I want to continue telling my story."
• 'For the Sins of My Mother' by Marie Therese Rodgers-Moloney is available at all good book shops and online at Amazon, priced at £11.99.
