House Saint – St Katharine Drexel
Head of House - Mike Crompton
House Captains - Marcus Osei-Tutu and Katrina Galve
House Charity - CAFOD
House Colour - Yellow
Feast Day - 10 March
Drexel House Prayer
Ever-loving God, you called Blessed Katharine Drexel to teach the message of the Gospel and to bring the life of the Christian Church to all people. By her prayers and example, enable us to work for justice among the poor and the oppressed and keep us undivided in love for our neighbour.
Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ.
St Katharine Drexel
Pray for us
Amen
Saint Katharine Drexel
Saint Katharine Drexel, Religious (Feast Day-March 3) Born in 1858, into a prominent Philadelphia family, Katharine became imbued with love for God and neighbour. She took an avid interest in the material and spiritual well-being of black and Native Americans. She began by donating money but soon concluded that more was needed - the lacking ingredient was people. Katharine founded the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament for Indians and Coloured People, whose members would work for the betterment of those they were called to serve. From the age of 33 until her death in 1955, she dedicated her life and a fortune of 20 million dollars to this work. In 1894, Mother Drexel took part in opening the first mission school for Indians, in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Other schools quickly followed - for Native Americans west of the Mississippi River, and for black people who lived in the southern part of the United States. In 1915 she also founded Xavier University in New Orleans. At her death there were more than 500 Sisters teaching in 63 schools throughout the country. Katharine was beatified by Pope John Paul II on November 20, 1988.
Because of her lifelong dedication to her faith and her selfless service to the oppressed, Pope John Paul II canonized her on October 1, 2000 to become only the second recognized American-born Saint.