Mum Shirl
(Acts 13:14,43-52; Rev.7:9,14-17; Jn.10:27-30)
Ever since Jesus first revealed himself as the Good Shepherd, countless people have tried to follow him by guiding, protecting and nurturing other vulnerable souls.
Some of these good shepherds are widely known, like Mother Teresa and St Francis Assisi, who gave up everything to care for the poor, the sick and the outcast. And Florence Nightingale, who helped wounded soldiers and transformed the nursing profession.
Other shepherds are less well-known, but no less good. Like ‘Mum Shirl’, who devoted her life to caring for poor, lost and homeless indigenous Australians.
Mum Shirl was born Coleen Shirley Perry in Cowra, NSW, in 1924, into a large and very poor family. Because her parents were cattle drovers, she was raised by her grandfather, who taught her to ‘first love yourself, then spread it around’.
Shirley suffered from severe epilepsy, for which she could not get medication. This disrupted her schooling, so her grandfather taught her instead. She could not read or write, but did learn to speak sixteen Aboriginal languages.
She helped to raise her nine brothers and sisters, however the authorities disapproved of their situation and sent them all into state care. In one of her first battles against injustice, Shirley successfully fought for their return.
At sixteen, Shirley met and married a professional Boxer, Darcy Smith. Her first child died in childbirth during an epileptic fit, and she went on to have a second baby. However, fearing her own epilepsy, she placed this child into care.
In the mid-1930s, Mum Shirl’s family moved to Sydney, and one of her brothers was sent to prison. She often visited him and when he was released she continued to visit his friends, encouraging them, supporting them in court, and helping to find their families.
It was here that she got her name, ‘Mum Shirl.’ Whenever she was asked to explain her connection with the prisoners, she always replied, ‘I’m his mum.’ The prison authorities valued her tireless work and gave her access to any prisoner she wanted. The courts also placed countless children in her care.
She lived on a pension, because her epilepsy made a steady job impossible. However, she opened her Sydney home to anyone seeking shelter, including alcoholics and the homeless.
She also managed to rent houses for single mothers, and she helped to establish many important services, including the Aboriginal Legal Service, the Aboriginal Medical Service, the Aboriginal Children’s Service, the Aboriginal Housing Company and a detoxification centre.
From the moment of her birth, Mum Shirl’s life was one of tragedy and hardship. She suffered poverty, poor health and pain, but she never gave up.
What sustained her was her deep faith in Jesus Christ, and the love of those who encouraged and supported her, like her grandfather. She said that her gratitude to those who supported her through her epileptic seizures gave her a deep compassion for others.
By the early 1990s, she had helped to raise over sixty children, and she had improved the lives of countless homeless and disadvantaged Australians.
The Church was always important to Mum Shirl. She received her faith from her grandfather and from her mother, who some called the ‘Mad Roaming Catholic.’ And one of her favourite saints was St Martin de Porres, who devoted his life to serving the downtrodden in Peru.
She played an active role in parish life, and served as an advisor to the Archbishop of Sydney. And in 1998, just before she died aged 73, she was declared ‘one of Australia’s living treasures’ by the National Trust.
Today, on Good Shepherd Sunday, Jesus tells us that he’s the Good Shepherd who does three things for his sheep: he knows them well, he protects them from harm, and he leads them to eternal life.[i]
This describes Mum Shirl’s life. She knew her people well, she did whatever she could for them, and she gave them hope.
Mum Shirl lived by Jesus’ words: ‘I was hungry and you fed me; thirsty and you gave me a drink; naked and you clothed me; sick and you cared for me’ (Mt.25:35-40).
And she listened very carefully when Jesus said, ‘I have come to give liberty to captives and sight to the blind…’ (Lk.4:16-21).
She was a very Good Shepherd, doing whatever she could.[ii]
In what way are you a Good Shepherd to others?
[i] The parable of the Good Shepherd is the only parable in John’s Gospel.
[ii] Coleen Shirley Smith (with Bobbi Sykes) Mum Shirl: An Autobiography, Heinemann Publishers, Richmond Victoria, 1981.