Maria Caridad Brader was born in Kaltburn, Switzerland, in 1860. Raised in a pious family, she was very intelligent, and received the best education her parents could provide. There were high expectations for her continued study, but instead she joined the Franciscan convent in 1880, made final vows two years later, and worked as a teacher.

When it became possible for cloistered nuns to work as missionaries, Sr. Caridad volunteered to be one of the first six sisters to work in Ecuador in 1888. There she served as a teacher and catechist. In 1893, she was transferred to Colombia.

To prepare additional missionaries, she founded the Congregation of the Franciscan Sisters of Mary Immaculate in Tuquerres, Colombia, in 1893. She served as its superior general until 1919 and then again from 1928 to 1940.

Her congregation emphasized good education for the sisters and their students, and deep prayer lives for everyone.

Sr. Caridad died Feb. 27, 1943 in Pasto, Colombia. Her grave immediately became a site for pilgrimage and popular devotion. Sr. Caridad was beatified by Pope John Paul II in March 2003.

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