Thomas Baker
In the records of history, the story of Thomas Baker stands as a stark reminder of the perils faced by missionaries during the 19th century. Born on February 6, 1832, Baker was a Methodist missionary who ventured to Fiji, eager to spread the Christian faith. Little did he know that his journey would end in…
Read MoreDorothy Kazel
Dorothy Kazel was born on June 30,1939, and joined the Ursuline Sisters, a teaching order in Cleveland, in 1960. Before entering religious life, she was engaged to be married. Feeling called to the life of a religious, she postponed her marriage in order to test her calling. She remained with the Ursulines until her death.…
Read MoreMaura Clarke
Sister Maura John Clarke was born Mary Elizabeth Clarke on January 13, 1931, the eldest of three children. Her parents, both born in Ireland, settled in Belle Harbour, Rockaway Beach, Queens, New York in the late 1920’s. It was in Manhattan that Maura, as we affectionately called her, was born. She entered Maryknoll in 1950,…
Read MoreIta Ford
Sister Ita Ford “I never said, ‘Help, or save me, or I’m drowning’,” Ita told her mother on a tape she sent home describing her close call with death on August 23rd 1980 in a flash flood which took her friend, Sister Carol Piette, M.M. “Something was happening and I said, ‘Receive me, Lord, I’m…
Read MoreMaria Laura Mainetti
“Lord, forgive them.” Teresina Elsa Mainetti was born in 1939 in Lecco, Italy, and was baptized within 2 days. She was the 10th and last child and her mother died when she was just 12 days old. After turning 18, she attended the Istituto Magistrale and decided to join the Sisters of the Cross. In…
Read MoreJohn Allen Chau
John spent almost a decade preparing to take the gospel to the Sentinelese, one of the last uncontacted people groups. His journey began in 2008, the year he turned 17, when he became what he described as “an apprentice to Jesus.” After taking his first missions trip the following year, he began to pray about…
Read MoreAnne Askew
A hot day in July 1546 was about to get hotter for Anne Askew, who was tied to a bundle of sticks between two similarly restrained friends. Her jailers had secured the wood to her mid-section because she’d been tortured to the point where she could no longer hold herself upright. Anne was the married…
Read MoreSimon Peter
Peter was born at Bethsaida, near the Sea of Galilee. Peter, whose name was originally Simon, was a fisherman along with his brother Andrew. Andrew was one of the first followers of Jesus and he encouraged his brother to join him. During Jesus’ ministry, the gospels show Peter as the foremost apostle in declaring faith…
Read MoreGeorge Fox
In 1647, as a 23-year-old, Fox was already a discerning critic of his culture. When human counselors could not fill his spiritual void, he turned to Bible reading and prayer, often in the sanctuary of “hollow trees and lonesome places.” On some of these occasions he received “openings,” e.g., that attending a university does not…
Read MoreJean Donovan
Jean Donovan was born on April 10, 1953. She was the younger of two children and raised in an upper middle class family in Westport, Connecticut. Her father, Raymond, was an executive engineer, and later chief of design, at the nearby Sikorsky Aircraft Division of the United Technologies, a large defense contractor for the U.S.…
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