Saint Zélie Martin-Guérin

I was born in 1831 in France. When I was young I wanted to become a nun but I could not because of health problems. Then I prayed to the Lord to give me many children. I became a successful lacemaker. Later, I got to know a wonderful man named Louis and we got married in 1858. Like all married couples we faced many problems, disappointments and sadness, but what sustained us was our mutual love. One of our children died at a young age. We grew in love and turned to God in our sorrow and happy moments. In 1877, when my youngest daughter, Thérèse, was four years old, I fell very ill. It was a great consolation at my deathbed that Louis would lovingly raise our daughters.