Feast day: January 27

When did St. Angela Merici live: 1474 - 1540

Biography of St. Angela Merici:
Angela Merici was born in 1474 in Desenzano del Garda (Italy) and lost her parents at the age of fifteen. After having lived with her uncle for a short period, she joined the Third Order of St. Francis. As her uncle died when she was twenty, she returned to her home which she had converted into a school and started teaching young girls. Later, she founded another school and then the "Company of St. Ursula" of which she became superior. Angela Merici died in Brescia in 1540.

Patronage: St. Angela Merici is patron saint of Desenzano del Garda, of the handicapped people, at loss of parents and against sickness

Statues and wooden sculptures representing St. Angela Merici - portrayal, imagery and emblem: St. Angela Merici is shown as a nun with cross and ladder because of her vision of maidens ascending to heaven on a ladder of light.