St. Marianne Cope – Saints of America Biography
Marianne Cope (1838–1918)was a pioneering Franciscan sister. Born in Germany and raised in New York, she devoted herself to serving the sick and poor, helping to establish some of the first Catholic hospitals in Central New York, where she welcomed all patients regardless of race, religion, or income. In 1883, responding to a call to care for those suffering from leprosy in Hawaii, she and six sisters journeyed across the United States and the Pacific. There, she created homes that nurtured body, mind, and spirit, advocating for humane treatment and providing comfort, education, and joy to exiled patients and children. She cared for St. Damien de Veuster in his final days and continued his mission with grace.
Born: January 23, 1838
Died: August 9, 1919
Patron: Outcasts
The National Shrine of Our Lady of Champion has created Catholic Saints of America as a resource for catechesis on the Causes for Sainthood in the United States.