Saint Mother Theodore Guerin
The Sisters of Providence are the group of women who sponsor this Web site! In 1840 (a long time ago!), they were started by a woman known today as Saint Mother Theodore Guerin or Saint Theodora.
Mother Theodore came to the United States from France. She was from a religious congregation known as the Sisters of Providence of Ruillé, France.
Her congregation asked her to travel to what was then the wilderness of Indiana to start schools for children and to nurse the sick. Back then, very few people had the opportunity to go to school. And in the "wild west" of Indiana, it was really hard to find schools at all! It was also hard to find a doctor or anyone to take care of you if you became sick.
So, Mother Theodore, along with five other sisters, traveled to the U.S. to help where they could.
Mother Theodore was a very special person. In her era, women weren't allowed to own property and weren't expected to conduct the ordinary business that they do today. However, Mother Theodore did those things and was very well-respected as a business person. She founded several schools, two orphanages and a college. In the way she lived her life and her dealings with others, she helped break new ground for people of color, women and children. She gained the respect of people of her own faith and others. She was truly ahead of her time!
In October 2006, Mother Theodore was named a saint in the Catholic Church! This is a very special honor. She was only the eighth person from the U.S. ever to be named a saint and the first person from Indiana!
This section of our Web site tells much more about the life of Mother Theodore.
For more information
For much more information about Mother Theodore, visit the Sisters of Providence Web pages about her at www.mothertheodore.org. You can also visit the History section of WoodsUp.com where we have a page about her travels!
| The Sisters of Providence have always referred to their foundress as Mother Theodore Guerin and continue to do so, even though the Roman Catholic Church canonized her as Saint Theodora. |
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