OUR HISTORY
Our Congregation was founded by Frances Schervier in 1845 in Aachen, Germany. Our mission today, as it was then, is the care of poor and suffering humanity.
The first activities that our Sisters in Germany dedicate themselves to are the care of the sick, helping the impoverished, prison visits and spiritual assistance to the detained, assistance to women at risk of falling into prostitution, and assistance to children.
Inspired by the values of the Gospel and love for the poor, in 1858 the first group of Sisters lands in the United States alongside communities of German immigrants fleeing hunger and poverty who are settling primarily in the Cincinnati-area. Our presence in the United States grows quickly, as do the services we offer, especially in the healthcare field, from training nurses to the management of hospitals.
With the transfer of the Generalate to Rome in 1946, the Congregation also arrives in Italy where it is dedicated to the care of childhood and to working in service of the poor and young people.
In 1961 the first mission in Brazil is launched in the city of Pires do Rio with a soup kitchen and a clinic. Our presence also grows here with activities caring for children, education, and closeness with the most vulnerable.
1974 marks another important step for our Congregation: Frances Schervier is proclaimed Blessed by Pope Paul VI, at the conclusion of a process begun in 1912 in the Diocese of Cologne to testify to the sanctity of the life of Mother Frances and her ability to read people’s hearts.
In 1978, our mission extends to Senegal, where we offer care through medical clinics, programs caring for and educating young children, and education for the advancement of women.
Finally, since 2009, we have also been in Dumaguete, in the Philippines, where we support minors, people in situations of serious poverty, and needy families.
In all these countries, our charism is vital and generative and operates in people’s lives, bringing care and healing to many difficult situations. In listening to the needs that emerge where we are, we try to respond to them creatively, promoting the global good of the person.
There are also SFP Associates who participate in our work. They are laypeople who cultivate the spirit of service to others and share our same mission.