Blessed Marcelina Darowska

Marcelina Darowska (16 January 1827 – 5 January 1911) was a Polish religious sister who was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 1996. She was inspired to co-found the Sisters of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, a congregation in Poland, Belarus and Ukraine. Marcelina (or Marcellina) Kotowicz was born in Szulaki, a part of Poland that was controlled by the Russians at the time. Her parents, Jan and Maksymilia Kotowicz, were wealthy landowners. She attended a school in Odessa for three years, before working on her father's farm. Some sources state that she was pious from a young age. Before his death, her father made her promise that she would marry and start a family. On 2 October 1849 she married Karol Darowski, a land owner from Podolia. He died of typhus three years later, leaving her with two children, Jozef and Karolina. A year after that, her son died. This series of tragedies influenced her thoughts; she claimed that she no longer belonged to any earthly being but rather to only God. Weakened by the traumatic experiences, she was sent abroad for medical treatment. She traveled to Berlin, then to Paris, and finally to Rome, arriving on 11 April 1853. In Rome she met Father Hieronim Kajsiewicz, a priest of the Resurrectionist Congregation, who became her spiritual director. On 12 May 1854 she made private vows before him. Kajsiewicz introduced her to a nun, Maria Józefa of the Crucified Christ (Józefa Karska), who became a close friend. Marcelina had to return to Podolia to look after her daughter. Troubles and worries accompanying the upbringing of sickly Karolcia, as well as the family's opposition to her plans related to religious life. While managing the estate in Żerdz, she started social and educational work, helping peasants to become independent after the enfranchisement. Whilst in Poland, she decided to found a religious community dedicated to the education and support of women.