In the tradition of great charismatic women of God, our foundress Mary of Providence was passionate about leading other women to bring God’s love to those who suffered the most. She chose the Souls in Purgatory as the focus for her spiritual work, and those forgotten and abandoned in this world as the focus for her earthly ministry. We celebrate the founding of the institute as January 19, 1856.

Born Eugénie Smet and educated at the convent of the Sacred Heart in Lille, France, her faith led her to the revelation of God as Providence. Charting an unconventional path to answer God’s call, she believed that with God all things are possible. She wished to “go to the depths of Purgatory to the utmost ends of the earth” to fulfill her mission, and moved to Paris in 1856 to establish the Institute of the Helpers of the Holy Souls.