Leopoldina Burns
Religious | |
---|---|
Born | August 28, 1855 Utica, New York, United States |
Died | June 3, 1942 Honolulu, Hawaii, United States |
Venerated in | Roman Catholic Church |
Mary Leopoldina Burns (August 28, 1855 – June 3, 1942), was an American religious sister who was a member of the Sisters of St Francis of Syracuse, New York, and a close companion and biographer of Saint Marianne Cope during the 1883 Hansen's Disease epidemic on the island of Molokaʻi, Hawaii.[1]
Born on August 28, 1855, she was the daughter of James and Mary Burns, of Utica, New York. She joined the Sisters of St Francis of Syracuse, New York in 1881.[2]
Together with Mother Marianne Cope and 5 other sisters, they departed from Syracuse to travel to Honolulu to answer the request of King Kalākaua of Hawaii to care for leprosy sufferers arriving on November 8, 1883. They traveled on the SS Mariposa. With Mother Marianne as supervisor, the Sisters' task was to manage Kakaʻako Branch Hospital on Oʻahu, which served as a receiving station for Hansen's disease patients gathered from all over the islands. The more severe cases were processed and shipped to the island of Molokaʻi for confinement in the settlement at Kalawao, and then later at Kalaupapa.
In 1889, together with Mother Marianne and Sister , they opened and ran a girls' school in Hawaii, which they named in Henry Perrine Baldwin's honor, a prominent local businessman who supported their missions.
After serving for nearly 40 years on Molokai, she retired in 1928 to the St. Francis Convent in Manoa Valley where she lived until her death.[2]
Sister Leopoldina died on June 3, 1942 with the reputation for holiness. She was the last of the Catholic sisters to serve alongside Father Damien.[2]
References[]
- ^ Tayman, John (11 May 2010). The Colony: The Harrowing True Story of the Exiles of Molokai. ISBN 9781416551928. Retrieved 14 July 2017.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c Honolulu Star-Bulletin (Honolulu, Hawaii) 03 Jun 1942
- 1855 births
- 1942 deaths
- Third Order Regular Franciscans
- American Roman Catholic religious sisters and nuns
- Female Roman Catholic missionaries
- Roman Catholic missionaries in Hawaii
- People from Kalawao County, Hawaii
- American Roman Catholic missionaries
- People from Molokai
- 19th-century Christian nuns
- 20th-century Christian nuns
- People from Utica, New York
- Catholics from New York (state)
- Catholics from Hawaii
- Educators from New York (state)
- American women educators