Maria Bhavan is our only convent that follows the Syro-Malabar Rite in Kerala. The main reason for opening this house was to invite young girls to join religious life. It was the time when congregations could not promote vocations from any Syro Malabar diocese, unless we have a convent in a Syro Malabar diocese. Bishop VarkeyVithayathil of the Ernakulum Diocese gave us permission to open a house in any parish where there were no religious. After much searching, land was bought in 1994 in Amalapuram.

Mary Stanislaus Thanickakunnel and Joicy Madassery were the pioneering RNDMs at Amlapuram. Before they found suitable rental accommodation, Mary Stanislaus and Joicy lived with the Moolan family for a few months. Then they moved to another family near the property. When temporary accommodation was built on the RNDM property, they moved into it. The parish church is on a steep hill, about one and a half kilometers from the convent. The daily climb and early morning walk to church is good exercise.Today the sisters are privileged to own a car, so the steep climb is avoided.

Though Maria Bhavan was opened to promote vocations, the Sisters were engaged in pastoral, catechetical ministry in the parish, in addition to social work such as tailoring classes for school/college drop-outs and unemployed women of the area.  There are vocation camps held regularly in different dioceses in the months of April and May after the Annual examinations. RNDMs participate in the camps which are an important means for introducing the RNDM community to interested candidates.

Though the Sisters were reluctant to open a school in Amalapuram, the persistent request of the parishioners and the decreasing number of students in the parish school. A school was opened, today it is a high school with over three hundred students.