Saint Louis Martin

I was born as the third of five children in France in 1823. At a young age I wanted to enter religious life, but was rejected because I did not succeed in learning Latin. So I decided to become a watchmaker and studied my crafts in Rennes and in Strasbourg. In 1858, I married a beautiful woman named Zelie. We promised that we would serve God first in our life together. We had several very painful experiences, such as the death of one of our children at a young age. We taught our remaining children to know, love and serve God. Sadly, my dear Zelie died in 1877, because of an illness, but not before helping us understand that  illness and death are also part of God’s plan. After her death, I raised my daughters who eventually decided to join the convent. I died in 1984, happy that my family showed true signs of God’s love.