The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1919-11-22
The Mercy Home

| 1919, and is reprinted today at the
request of Mrs. w. L. Murdoch, chair
man of publicity for the Mercy Home
drive.)
nm HE MERCY HoMEF Doesn't
the very name mean sweetness
| q and gentleness and kindness?
Doesn't it mean myriads of little chill
dren lowering about the Preside, with
their bright little eyes shining their
pretty little faces beaming. their merry
little childish prattle begging for anoth-
! err story-"'ss one mo- las your heart
thumps and beats for these precious lit
| tie things and you want to hug them all
up close and tight in your arms and
kiss them and love them and do your
very best 20 make them happy?
That's what The Mercy Home" spells
| to me; that's what THE Mercy Home"
means to me; that's what THE Mercy
Home" conveys to my mind
And, my friends-do you know that
this Mercy Home'-which spreads its
sheltering arms about the tiny forms of
motherless and fatherless babies has re-
Gently celebrated an anniversary-an
anniversary which has to do with the
guiding spirit of the home-the sweet
woman-Mrs Margaret B. Ramsay
who only the other day completed her
twenty-fifth year as matron OF the
Mercy Home.
The board of managers planned a
surprise for Mrs. Ramsay on. the oc-
casion and held "called meeting" at
the home, the beloved president, Mrs.
C. Is. Spencer, presiding-Mrs. Spencer,
whose gentle kindly influ snce has sur
I unded this institution in the capacity
of president since 1892.
Mrs. Spencer reviewed briefly Mrs.
Ramsay's work from the day she went
to the NJ ercy Home, stepping from the
station a complete stranger to every
body until the present day; she told of
her loving service; the countless min
istries to the dependent children of
this city; and Of how many of these
same children love and honor her today.
Not alone these children, but a no It of
friepds loving and loyal, among them
the entire board of managers with
whom she has been SO CLOSELY asso-
oiated, who know her as THE Great
Heart OF the Mercy Home
The surprise came when as an ex-
preston of their love and friendship,
confidence and esteem, beautiful
Ramsay-which so completely Devil
dered her that she was scarcely able to
express her thanks.
Anyway, this and the fact that Mrs
Ramsay is leaving this week for a
much needed rest and vacation, surg
gested to my mind a little chat with
this sweet woman. whose name is
Synonymous with "rhe Mercy Home,
whose title of Mother Ramsay has been
accorded her by the hundreds and hun
dreds of little children whom for %
years she has known and loved and
ministered to, over at "The Mercy
! Home" and who in turn have adored
her and to whom she has meant moth
er''-the sweetest name ever spoken--in
every sense of the word
Mrs. Ramsay radiates the sweetness
and the gentleness of her personality
everywhere she goes; when she steps
into as prosy old place as a newspaper
office. where everything is noise and
| confusion, hustle and hustle-the radi
ance of her voice transforms the sur
roundings into different atmosphere
something intangibly sweet-some
thing intangibly gentle!
ITO say that have been at,the Mercy
Home for 25 years conveys at least the
impression that l have been there long
enough to see the results of our work,
Mrs Ramsay said, "for scarcely week
passes but that some girl or boy come;
back home as they call it, bringing
their loved ones to see us and wanting
them to meet Mother Ramsay Our
girls, many of them, have married
splendid men and they bring their hus-
bands and their children and their
friends and I am always glad when
they bring their friends SO that I may
Nsbo ri f,f nil me a n
for you can Judge of the place one occu-
pies in the world Ian gely by their asso
GATES"
THE Mercy Home had been in exist
ence for a couple of years before ]
came here" Mrs. Ramsay continued. 81
came directly from the Moody Training
school, where I had prepared for this
work Then it was called missionary
work. but now it is more Familiarity
known as social work; but the prepare
ton is the same. ! have, always loved
children so that it was very natural
to choose such work as my vocation in
life. l love every child that has ever
been in the Mercy Home"
only recently little incident hap
pened which made me very happy"
Mrs Ramsay said. 'tOf course. We
rather expect our girls to come back
and see us after they have been away
a long time and get back to Birming-
ham, but boys are different A short
time ago one day came in from little
shopping trip and saw big. stalwart
soldier standing in the hallway; at frs
I didn't know him. then he said.
Mother Ramsay, don't you remember
me?' I looked at him and then / rec
ognized him; there he was-one of oul
Mercy Home boys grown into splendid
young manhood; he had enlisted early
in the war and had gone Through the
trials and vexations of war with cred
it and honor to himself, and when he
got back the first thing he did was to
visit his old home-the Mercy Home.
OF course, / was delighted to see him.
and the next day he came again. bring
ing a soldier boy friend and he asked
me to let him take his friend up to
the boys dormitory, so that he might
show him where he lived when he was
boy over at the Mercy Home My
qualification knew no bounds; l was
so happy to see this boy, big, fine,
capable, worthy man-one of our little
Mercy Home ,boys-grown up
81 mention this incident to show the
necessity of such a home in a commu-
nifty" Mrs. Ramsay said "and Nigh.
add another thing which shows how
badly needed the Mercy Home is. and
that is the great number of applica-
tions we have for help; during the in
fluenza epidemic last winter we took in
three families--one of five. another Of