*** *** *** From a young age, St. Damien’s true desire was that of religious life; when he was old enough, he entered the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary. In 1864, St. Damien was sent to Hawaii and would serve there for nine years before his request to go to the leper colony at Molokai. St. Damien found the colony poorly maintained, but under his devoted care and leadership, the colony would build houses, schools, and a church. He asked to remain there permanently and eventually contracted leprosy himself. Despite his illness, St. Damian continued his mission work.

~ “Father of mercy, who gave us in Saint Damien a shining witness of love for the poorest and most abandoned, grant that, by his intercession, as faithful witnesses of the heart of your Son Jesus, we too may be servants of the most needy and rejected. Through our Lord Jesus Christ.” ~ from the Proper of Saints, Daily Roman Missal