Sr Clare Richardson RSC, "Saint of Darlo" You are here:HomeNewsroomNews Sr Clare Richardson RSC, "Saint of Darlo" 23 Aug 2022 May Richardson was born in Woollahra, Sydney in 1880 and trained as a nurse at St Vincent’s Hospital, graduating in 1917. As soon as she completed her training, she joined the Sisters of Charity as Sister Mary Clare. Appointed Sister-in-Charge of the Outpatients Department in 1923, she presided over the Department for 41 years with a mixture of benevolence and firmness. When Sister Clare first took charge of the Department it averaged between 70 to 80 patients each day, by the 1960s it was almost 500. Sister Clare never forgot the words of a female patient, a well-known underworld character, Tilly Devine who said to her ‘It doesn’t matter who a person is, they like to be treated nicely.’ A philosophy that Sister Clare personified. This interaction grew into trust, friendship and cooperation. Tilly would bring 20 working girls to the Clinic for their monthly medical check‑up. When a colleague asked Sr Clare how she could mix with such people, her reply was ‘God will decide who I mix with’. Sister Clare's care for the marginalised and vulnerable extended beyond her patients, and two or three times a week she served hot soup and bread rolls to hundreds of community members from the balcony of the convent. In 1962 she was awarded an MBE for her service to the community, bringing an avalanche of congratulatory letters from friends and patients. She died in 1963 and her compassionate approach and concern for all people was evidenced at her funeral service, which was attended by a large number of well-known underworld identities who had come to pay their last respects. The Darlinghurst Police Officers provided a full police escort for her funeral procession from Sacred Heart Church to Rookwood Cemetery. Contemporary newspaper articles christened her ‘The Saint of Darlo’.