Sr. Deirdre Twomey, baptised Eileen Deirdre, was born in Cardiff, Wales in 1933. Her father, Jeremiah Twomey was Irish and although Deirdre’s early education was in Wales and England, the Irish ties were strong and the family eventually moved back to Dublin. Deirdre entered MMM immediately after she finished her secondary education, aged eighteen. As was customary in those early days of MMM, her professional studies were integrated, as far as possible, with her early religious formation and she went almost immediately to study medicine in University College, Dublin, graduating in 1957. She did her intern year in Drogheda and was sent almost immediately to Nigeria.
