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Savina Petrilli was born in Siena, Grand Duchy of Tuscany, on August 29, 1851, second daughter of Celso Petrilli and Matilde Venturini. Savina’s elder sister was Emilia.
When she was 10, Savina read the story of Saint Catherine of Siena and developed a strong attachment to that saint, a devotion that lasted throughout her life.
When she was 15, Savina joined the Daughters of Mary, a lay group of women that had a particular devotion to Saint Mary. In time, she became the president of the group.
In 1868, at the age of 17, Savina made a private vow to remain a lifelong virgin. One year later, Savina had a private audience with Pope Pius IX. When he learned that Savina was from Siena, he suggested that she found a new religious congregation devoted to Saint Catherine of Siena. Savina took the pope’s advice to heart, and she shared the pope’s suggestion with her sister Emilia who was on her deathbed.
On August 15, 1873, Savina and five other women made their profession as religious women in the little chapel in Savina’s family home. The Archbishop of Siena, Enrico Bindi, was present on this occasion. He approved the new congregation under the name of the Sisters of the Poor of Saint Catherine of Siena. So, August 15, 1873, is considered the date of the order’s founding.
The new little congregation obtained a house for communal living and moved in together on September 7, 1874. In 1881, the Sisters founded a new house in Onano in the Province of Viterbo, and in 1903, they became an international order when they sent some of the sisters to be missionaries in Brazil.
The entire process of papal approval for the order came on June 17, 1906, during the reign of Pope Saint Pius X.
Sister Savina Petrilli died from cancer on April 18, 1923. Pope Saint John Paul II beatified Savina on April 24, 1988. Blessed Savina Petrilli’s feast day is April 18.
By 2025, the Sisters of the Poor of Saint Catherine of Siena were found in nations of Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, and South America. Their ministries include those in education, healthcare, social work, parish ministries, and care for abandoned children.
