Whereas Mother Marianne Cope, O.S.F. was born Barbara Koob
in Heppenheim, Germany, on January 23, 1838, and immigrated to the United
States the following year, settling in Utica, New York;
Whereas in 1862, at the age 24, she received the religious
habit and became a Sister of St. Francis at the Church of St. Mary of the
Assumption in Syracuse, New York;
Whereas in 1863, she professed her vows of poverty,
chastity, and obedience as a Sister of the Third Order Regular of Saint Francis
based in Syracuse, New York, was given Mary Anna as her religious name, which
in time and usage became Marianne, and began serving as a teacher and principal
at several New York elementary schools;
Whereas in 1866, the Hawaiian government forcibly sent
individuals with leprosy, now known as Hansen's disease, to the Makanalua
peninsula on the island of Molokai, commonly known as Kalaupapa, to prevent
further spread of the disease;
Whereas in 1866, Mother Marianne was influential in
establishing St. Elizabeth Hospital in Utica, New York, and in 1869, Mother
Marianne, as administrator and founder of St. Joseph’s Hospital in Syracuse,
New York, established the importance of sanitation in the practice of caring
for the sick;
Whereas in 1883, as head of the community, Mother Marianne
led six sisters to the Hawaiian Islands at the request of Father Leonor
Fouesnel, emissary for King Kalakaua and Queen Kapiolani who came to Syracuse
as part of his search for Sisters to assist in taking care of persons with
leprosy;
Whereas in 1884, Mother Marianne established Malulani
Hospital, a general hospital at Wailuku, Maui, at the request of the Hawaiian
government;
Whereas in 1885, Mother Marianne was awarded the royal
medal of Kapiolani by King Kalakaua for her leadership in benevolent works in
the Hawaiian Islands at the opening of Kapiolani Home at Kakaako, near
Honolulu, Oahu, for the female children of those at Kalaupapa with leprosy, a
project initiated by herself together with the Royal Family of Hawaii;
Whereas in 1886, Mother Marianne ensured special care for
Father Damien de Veuster, now Saint Damien of Molokai, during his stay on Oahu,
who, after serving the leprosy patients on Molokai, was eventually diagnosed
with leprosy and rejected because of this;
Whereas in 1889, following the death of Father Damien,
Mother Marianne was officially named by the government leadership to be Father
Damien's successor at the Boys’ Home at Kalawao on the island of Molokai and
led the effort for the building of a new home;
Whereas in 1899, Mother Marianne was appointed the
director of the Bishop Home at Kalaupapa by the Hawaii Board of Health and
oversaw its expansion and established programs to educate and tend to the
spiritual needs of its residents;
Whereas in 1918, Mother Marianne died of natural causes at
the St. Elizabeth Convent at Kalaupapa and was buried on the grounds of Bishop
Home;
Whereas, on April 19, 2004, Pope John Paul II declared
Mother Marianne Venerable, the first of three steps that lead to
sainthood;
Whereas, on February 2, 2005, the remains of Mother
Marianne were moved from Kalaupapa, Molokai, to the chapel at St. Anthony
Convent and Motherhouse in Syracuse, New York;
Whereas Pope John Paul II ratified the
beatification of Mother Marianne and his successor, Pope Benedict XVI, declared
her beatification on May 14, 2005, and she was named Blessed Marianne
Cope, with her feast day set on January 23, the day Mother Marianne was
born; and
Whereas Mother Marianne was canonized as a saint of the
Roman Catholic Church on October 21, 2012, by Pope Benedict XVI at St. Peter’s
Basilica, Vatican City: Now, therefore, be it
That the House of Representatives honors
and praises Saint Marianne Cope for her legacy of compassionate care where she
promoted the value of every individual and recognizes her example of what it
truly means to dedicate one’s life in service to others, especially to those
she served at the leprosy settlement at Kalaupapa on the island of
Molokai.