The Sue Ryder Prayer Fellowship

Sue Ryder (Lady Ryder of Warsaw) is well known in the UK for charity shops on high streets, hospices and neurological care centres.

However, less well known is the fact she started her work for the sick and disadvantaged in the aftermath of the Second World War, visiting people who were displaced from their homes. In 1953 she set up the Sue Ryder Foundation as a ‘Living Memorial’ to those who had died in the two world wars and to those who continue to suffer today.

It was her strong Christian faith which sustained her throughout her life.  The work of looking after the sick and disadvanted was founded on faith.  It was her wish that prayer would continue to be the “powerhouse” for the work to continue and, to this end, the Sue Ryder Prayer Fellowship began in 1984 (initially with staff and volunteers from Sue Ryder Homes and Shops in the UK), meeting initially in Walsingham, Norfolk and then transferring to St Katharine’s, Parmoor.

Sue Ryder 1924 – 2000

Sue Ryder often quoted the Reverend Mother Stuart (Superior General of the Society of the Sacred Heart from 1911-14) and this really summarises her own wish for her work to continue:

We have to prepare for the future, and yet we do not know what it will bring.
We have to find a standing ground so firm that nothing unexpected can disturb us,
and so broad that it will carry any undertaking that we may have to base upon it,
and so satisfying that it will take the place of all other satisfactions.
There is only one thing that answers to this and that is the Will of God.

Fast forward nearly 40 years:

What does the Sue Ryder Prayer Fellowship do today?

• It owns and runs St Katharine’s Retreat House, Parmoor – a Christian retreat house open to those of all faiths or none, offering led retreats and quiets days as well as space for individuals and groups to meet.Alongside the house is the Lady Ryder Memorial Garden, a walled garden run by volunteers to provide produce for the house and to provide opportunities to people with disabilities.
• The Prayer Fellowship holds 2 retreats each year at St Katharine’s, in the Spring and Autumn and this is specifically for Fellowship members. These include a led Quiet Day alongside time together for fellowship and to enjoy the peace and tranquillity of the house and gardens.
• Each month we hold an online prayer meeting by Zoom where we pray for the staff and work of St Katharine’s as well as any prayer requests from members. We also remember the work being carried on throughout the world bearing the name of Sue Ryder – in Poland, the Czech Republic, Ireland, Belgium, Macedonia, France (at Lourdes), Italy and Malawi. Also, for the work of the Ryder-Cheshire Foundation in India, Timor-Leste, Australia and New Zealand.

How do I join the Sue Ryder Prayer Fellowship?

Please send an email to St Katharine’s – fellowship@srpf.org.uk – including the information requested below:

Membership Form

Name ……………………………………………………………………………..

Address …………………………………………………………………………..………………………………………………………………………………………..

Email address ………………………………………………………………….Telephone……………………………………………………………………….

Your details will be held for the sole purpose of being able to let you know of news and information about the Sue Ryder Prayer Fellowship.

Please keep me informed by      □  Post      □  Email

There is an annual membership fee of £10. Cheques should be made payable to Sue Ryder Prayer Fellowship (and sent to the address at the foot of this page) or a BACS payment can be made using the following details:

Account Name:            Community of the Sue Ryder Prayer Fellowship
Sort Code:                      30-94-55
Account Number:      0098 3307
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