Saint Louise de Marillac was born into a wealthy French family in 1591. When she was a young woman, she wanted to become a nun, but she married a royal official on the advice of others. She gave birth to a son and lived a happy life.
Twelve years later, her husband died. Saint Louise de Marillac revisited the idea of becoming a nun. With her friend, Saint Vincent de Paul, she founded an order of religious sisters called the Daughters of Charity. Saint Louise traveled all over France, establishing convents, hospitals, schools and orphanages. Her mission and the mission of the Daughters of Charity was to serve the poor as if serving Christ himself.
The Daughters of Charity now have houses all over the world. Saint Louise de Marillac is the patron saint of social workers. Like Saint Louise, let us try to serve people as though we were serving Christ himself. We may not be able to minister to the poor, but we can treat our family and friends the way Jesus would treat them, with honor, respect, kindness, and generosity.