VISHVENDU JAIPURIAR
Hazaribag, Mar 9: Mother of orphans, Sister Lucia M Grabner breathed her last on Wednesday at her Koyal Kunj residence in Deepugarha. She was in India for the past 66 years as a musician and mother of many children. Sister Lucia would say that she did what she did with all her heart, and her aim was to help people and bring out the best in them.
Born in 1929 in Achau, Lower Austria, as a teenager, she experienced the terrible Second World War and its severe aftermath, when Vienna came under the occupation of the Russian army.
During the war, school attendance for young girls was very irregular, and often classes had to be held in cellars to protect the children from the air raids. With the constant threat to life, people had no choice but to surrender their lives into God’s hands. At such crucial moments, Lucia as a young woman, after completing her schooling entered the Institute of the Sisters of Charity of the Holy Cross in Laxenburg.
After a few months, she came to the Mother’s house for further formation. She finished the novitiate on April 23, 1953, with her First Profession. Her first task was as a music teacher in the Theresianum in Ingenbohl.
Father Angelo, S.J., from Bettiah in Northern Bihar, had asked the then Superior General, Mother Elena Giorgetti, for a music teacher to take care of the church singing in the parish church of Bettiah. Sister Lucia, who was well trained for this task, arrived in India in 1955 accompanied by Sr. Johanna Brandstätter.
Musical Activity
With her arrival, new life came to the parish church of Bettiah. Sister Lucia built up a choir with boys and girls, in fact with the entire youth of Bettiah. At first, she formed the voices of the children and youth and soon produced the most beautiful liturgical songs, especially during feast days such as Christmas and Easter.
Although Sr. Lucia was specially trained in Western music, she did not limit herself to that but rather developed a taste for Indian music according to the needs of the time and the local people. She learned Hindustani classical music, which is common in northern India, and taught the students of St. Teresa’s School in Bettiah for almost 14 years.
Sr. Lucia worked with Sr. Eugenia, one of the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth and Rev Fr. Edmund OFM Cap who were also committed to music to adopt Indian music (Hindustani, Classical Music of North India) as liturgical church music. The then Bishop of Patna, Rev. Augustine Wildermuth, S.J., encouraged the team in their efforts.
She travelled to other schools and eventually brought out a hymnal titled “STHUTI GAAN” (Hymns of Praise) to teach music. Besides working on the compositions and compilations of the hymns and publishing the hymnal, she also found time to help with the furnishing of the new house in Tripoli, Patna, where she stayed from 1968 to 1973.
After learning Hindi and Hindustani classical music, she began composing church music in Hindi. The team organized music courses and summer seminars and trained a large number of young religious Catholic students to become successful leaders who would organize church music in various parishes. She also trained candidates and sisters of the Indian Province of Holy Cross, moving from community to community to teach music.
Regarding her mission of music, Sr. Shashi Pakki of the Central Province remarks, “Sr. Lucia, with her special gift for music, was able to recognize the budding talented musicians. As a young candidate, I studied in Ranchi where I came in contact with Sr. Lucia Grabner. She trained the candidates and taught liturgical music along with light and harmonic songs. Those who were musical enjoyed and appreciated her teaching very much.”
In 1973, when Sister Lucia was on home leave, she came into contact with an Austrian organization known as “SOS Children’s Villages,” which takes orphans into families suitable for them. These institutions inspired her.
When she returned to India, in addition to her musical activities, she felt especially called to care for neglected children who had been half-orphaned or orphaned. She raised these children as if they were part of a family. In a residence on the way to Canary Hill Road in Hazaribag, she founded a children’s home and named it “Koyal Kunj” (House of Birds). In the beginning, 24 children, 13 girls and eleven boys inhabited the house. Later, more were added until there were about 30 children.
With the help of benefactors, she had all the children educated and ensured a happy future by caring for them. All of them found good jobs, started families again and had their children educated in good schools. Even with the problematic children, she had a lot of patience, cared for them and gave them her love, although this is exhausting hard work. She simply loves the children and lives in their midst. The children who came in contact with Sr. Lucia have embraced the value of life and have grown in faith. So today they can lead an orderly life because they experienced the loving family atmosphere under Sr. Lucia’s maternal guidance, and they are grateful to her for that, are upright people and full of respect for Sr. Lucia’s work, even though they now live in different parts of the country.
Those who grew up under her love and care said God has many ways of showing his love and compassion. Sr. Lucia will continue to be an instrument of this compassionate love that she has shown for the past 47 years, they added.
One of the fosterlings, Saroj Ekka from Hazaribag, said, “We have learned many good things from her and we have grown together like a family. She was a loving mother and companion. She was also a good cook and cooked different dishes during the celebrations. In Hazaribag, we were among the first to ride bicycles to school. There are many fond memories. We are grateful to her for what we are today. We owe Sr. Lucia an infinite amount! Almost all the members of “Koyal Kunj” have settled in different places like Delhi, U.P., Mumbai, Gujarat, Muzaffarpur, Hazaribag and other parts of Jharkhand.”
“Though we are scattered far and wide, we always remained in touch with her and come to Koyal Kunj from time to time. In 2003, when the 40th anniversary of the establishment of Koyal Kunj was celebrated, we were all present with our families. It was the experience of Nani Ghar which means Grandmother’s house with Sister Lucia in the midst of us. Every year on June 9, we celebrate Sr. Lucia’s birthday as KoyalKunj Day. On June 9, 2019, we celebrated Sr. Lucia’s 90th birthday on a grand scale. She is our loving mother, teacher, caregiver and kind-hearted grandmother to our children. She is like a mother bird who gathers her young under her wings,” she added.
