Many thanks to all who participated in Catholic Charities West Michigan’s patron saint selection. St. Louise de Marillac has been chosen as our patron saint! Wife, mother and foundress of an order of religious sisters, St. Louise de Marillac was a woman of courage, interested in the moral and social problems of her day. She cared for the poor and hungry on the streets of Paris as nurse and social worker. She trained young women from the countryside to be nurses and social workers and these women joined the order of Sisters of Charity, working with Saint Vincent de Paul and also connected with St. Francis de Sales. Together, they served Christ “in the midst of the world” by serving those most marginalized.
Like our staff at Catholic Charities, St. Louise cared for the poor and marginalized in the community in which she lived. She is a fitting choice for CCWM because she embodied Catholic Social Teaching, particularly through the themes of Dignity of the Human Person and Preferential Option for the Poor and Vulnerable. St. Louise sought to see the face of Christ in those with whom she served and, each day, over 300 staff at CCWM walk in her shoes doing critical work in our communities.
The Catholic Church marks her feast day on May 9. As an agency, we will mark that day with a celebration.