St. Rose of Lima

Born in 1586 to Spanish immigrants in Lima, Peru, Rose was a beautiful girl and devoted daughter. She was so devoted to her vow of chastity, she used pepper and lye to ruin her complexion so she would not be attractive.

She lived and meditated in a garden, raising vegetables and making embroidered items to sell to support her family and help the other poor. In 1606 she became a Dominican tertiary. A mystic and visonary, she received invisible stigmata, and suffered from assorted physical and mental ailments.

St. Rose is the first saint born in the Americas. She died in 1617 in Lima. She is a patron of Central and Latin America. Her Feast Day is August 23.