Sisters of the Poor Child Ziko

The Sisters of the Poor Child Ziko (not to be confused with the Brazilian footballer Zico) is a Roman Catholic female religious congregation, founded at Finchley in 2002 for the support and education of poor children. It was approved by Pope Benedict XVI in 2006.
History
Mary O'Donoghue, Philomena McDuffy and Patricia Corcoran were at school together in Tipperary before they collectively moved to London in the 1950s. They were the co-foundresses of the congregation. By their late 20s all three had decided to enter the religious life and joined the Tyburn Convent in 1965.
By the late 1990s the three Sisters found themselves increasingly alienated from the contemplative life at Tyburn and decided to begin their own order bringing the values of their order to the outside world, with a focus on inner spirituality and daily prayer. They set up a centre in Finchley, North London, in 2002 in order to have a place for the education of underprivileged children. They decided to name it after the obscure Zambian saint, St. Ziko, due to his work with educating and converting his poor tribe in the 18th century.
In 2006 Cardinal Murphy-O'Connor of Westminster approved the rules and obtained recognition from the Holy See. The growth has been steady and current plans include a centre in Zambia.

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