Marguerite Bourgeoys

Life & Legacy

Marguerite Bourgeoys, CND (French pronunciation: [maʁɡəʁit buʁʒwa]; 17 April 1620 – 12 January 1700), was a French religious sister and founder of the Congregation of Notre Dame of Montreal in the colony of New France, now part of Québec, Canada.
Born in Troyes, she became part of a sodality, ministering to the poor from outside the convent. She was recruited by the governor of Montreal to set up a convent in New France, and she sailed to Fort Ville-Marie (now Montreal) by 1653. There she developed the convent. She and her congregation educated young girls, the poor, and children of First Nations until shortly before her death in early 1700.
She is significant for developing one of the first uncloistered religious communities in the Catholic Church. Declared "venerable" by the pope in 1878, she was canonized in 1982 as the first female saint of Canada.