At a time when slavery was still the law of the land in the southern United States, Henriette DeLille founded a congregation for “free women of color” in New Orleans. Henriette was the daughter of a white father and a woman of Spanish and African ancestry. The culture of New Orleans afforded relative freedom for such persons of “mixed race,” though it remained illegal for her parents to marry.  

Henriette was drawn to religious life. Even as a teenager, she taught in the local Catholic school. But there was no congregation that would take her. In 1836 she formed a religious community, Sisters of the Presentation, consisting of herself and seven other “free women of color.” Her brother— who was able to pass for white—objected to her activities, fearful of her calling attention to their roots. But Henriette paid him no mind. She and her sisters dedicated themselves to the care of the old and sick, with special ministry to slaves and those of African descent.  

In 1837 DeLille’s congregation was recognized by the Vatican. In 1842 its name was changed to Sisters of the Holy Family. Mother DeLille died on November 17, 1862, at the age of fifty. She was declared venerable in 2010.  

“I believe in God. I hope in God. I love God. I want to live and die for God.”

—Venerable Henriette DeLille