A missionary of the first giyr!

On November 14, 1877 she left for America as the leader

of the first FMA missionary expedition

A soul rich in faith.

Inflamed with love for God and others.

A life of absolute dedication and total obedience.

A protagonist of a generous missionary life, willing to make a gift of

herself, ready to sacrifice, humble, daring, invincible - like the Patagonia wind - in facing every type of difficulty

in her 36 years of missionary life.

Sr. Angela Vallesefirst among the early missionaries

«It is true that now a vast distance separates us, but we can console ourselves with the thought that this life is very short, and the day will

soon come when we will meet again in Eternity, if we have observed our Holy Rule exactly. Although an immense sea separates us, we can meet and be close to one another at every moment in the Most Sacred Heart

of Jesus. We can always pray for each other and so our hearts will always be united.»

(L 22. To the Community Animator of the House of Montevideo - Villa Colón -Uruguay, Sr. Angela Vallese – Nizza [Monferrato], April 9, 1879)

«Take courage, my good Sisters; Jesus must be your whole strength. With Jesus, burdens become light, fatigue becomes easy, thorns are turned

into sweetness ...»

(L 22. To the Community Animator of the House of Montevideo-Villa Colón - Uruguay, Sr. Angela Vallese – Nizza [Monferrato], April 9, 1879)

«You tell me that you have a lot to do, and I'm happy, because work is the father of virtue. When we work, whims [grilli] disappear , and we are always cheerful. While I recommend you to work, I also recommend that you take care of your health, and I also recommend that you all work without ambition and only to

please Jesus. I would like you to instil into the hearts of all those dear Sisters a love for sacrifice, self-contempt, and absolute detachment from their own will.

We became Sisters to assure ourselves of Heaven, but sacrifices are needed to win it. Let us carry the cross with courage, and one day we will be happy.»

(L 25. To the Community Animator of the House of Montevideo-Villa Colón [Uruguay], Sr. Angela Vallese - Nizza [Monferrato], July 22, 1879)

«Courage then, let us truly imitate our dearest Jesus in everything, especially in humility and charity... Pray also for me that I too, may do the same. Be cheerful then! ... Always cheerful. Never take offence. Rather, as soon as you notice that

someone needs some comfort, give it to her immediately; console and help one another! ...»

(L 26. To the Sisters of the House of Montevideo-Villa Colón [Uruguay] –Nizza [Monferrato], September 11, 1879)

«My good Sr. Angiolina, take courage, be cheerful and keep all those dear Sisters of mine cheerful.

The Lord loves you very much; it is up to you to love Him in return, isn't it true?»

(L 27. To the Community Animator Sr. Angela Vallese and the Sisters of the Houses of Montevideo-Villa Colón and

Las Piedras [Uruguay] - Nizza [Monferrato], October 20, 1879)

«Therefore, my good Sisters, when you want to come to visit me, don't go to Mornese, but come here to Nizza. Poor Daughters! We are too far

away to do this! It is better for us to go into the Heart of Jesus and we can tell each other everything there. I assure you that every morning I speak to you in this adorable Heart, and I speak to Him in Holy Communion and tell him many things for each of you. Are you happy that we meet in this

way? You do the same, won't you?»

(L 27. To the Community Animator Sr. Angela Vallese and the Sisters of the Houses of Montevideo-Villa Colón and Las Piedras [Uruguay].

Nizza [Monferrato], October 20, 1879)

«Tell me, do you all love one another? Do you practice charity

towards each other? I hope so, but even in these things there is always

room for improvement. Therefore, to please our dear Mother, Mary Most Holy, practise all the charity you can

towards one another, help each other in work, counsel one another

with kindness and always take advice willingly no matter from whom it

comes. Courage my Daughters, this life passes quickly and only our

works will remain at the moment of death. The important thing is that

they be well done. »

(L 27. To the Community Animator Sr.Angela Vallese and the Sisters of the

Houses of Montevideo-Villa Colón and Las Piedras [Uruguay] - Nizza [Monferrato],

October 20, 1879)

«Now, Angiolina my dear, it only remains for me to tell you to have great Courage, and don't have such a small heart, but a big, generous heart.

Don't be so fearful, understand? Be cheerful, all of.»

(L 27. To the Community Animator Sr.rAngela Vallese and the Sisters of the Houses of Montevideo-Villa Colón and Las Piedras [Uruguay].

Nizza [Monferrato], October 20, 1879)

«And you, my dear Sr. Angiolina, always take

courage, pray much. From prayer you will get all the help you need to do your

duties well. Always give your Daughters good example by

observing the Holy Rule. Always be cheerful; your

cheerfulness must always be greater than all your

afflictions.»

(L 47. To the Community Animator of the House of Carmen

de Patagones [Argentina], Sr. Angela Vallese and

Community - Nizza [Monferrato],October 21, 1880)

«And you my good Sr. Angiolina, I read your “rendiconto”. Be at peace and remember that our defects are the weeds in our garden. We must humble ourselves and fight them with courage. We are wretched and

cannot be perfect, therefore be humble, confident and cheerful.»

(L 55. To the Sisters of the House of Carmen de Patagones [Argentina].Nizza [Monferrato], December 20, 1880)

From the Letters of Sr. Angela Vallese

«As for myself, good Father, I am a very muddled person. Just imagine: I have charge of two Houses, that of Villa Colón and that of Las Piedras,

and I am not capable of directing one. I ask you, therefore, to pray much for me.»

(Letter of Sr. Angela Vallese to Don Bosco - Villa Colón, October 20, 1879)

«I also ask you to send us some healthy, holy Sisters, among them one who will take my cross so that instead of commanding I will only have to obey. It seems easier to get to heaven by way of obedience than by that of commanding. But may God's will and that of my Superiors be donein all things.»

(Letter of Sr. Angela Vallese to Don Bosco - Villa Colón, October 20, 1879)

«We are preparing little dresses and so forth for our poor Indians, and it seems that the Lord is preparing plenty of work for us. We greatly desire it, so that we

may save many souls who live in the darkness of ignorance. Oh! Reverend Father, if you saw how many Indians there are, and how miserable in body and

soul! They really arouse our compassion and we are so sorry that we cannot help them all, because we are so few and so poor.»

(Letter of Sr. Angela Vallese to Don Bosco - Carmen de Patagones, October 6, 1880)

«Before concluding I would like to ask your Reverence for a favour, or rather, for two. Please recommend

us in a special way to our sweet Mother Mary Help of Christians, so

that having come to these far distant lands to make known the

name of Jesus, our heavenly Spouse, we may remain faithful to Him until death. All four of us wish to become saints, and we hope to succeed with

the help of your prayers.»

(Letter of Sr. Angela Vallese to Don Bosco - Carmen de Patagones,

October 6, 1880)

«The other favour is that you send other Sisters to help us, so that we may save a greater number of poor Indians. We had hoped that some would come soon. Oh! How long that day is in coming!»

(Letter of Sr. Angela Vallese to Don Bosco.Carmen de Patagones, October 6, 1880)

«May the centenary of Sr. Angela Vallese’s death be a stimulus for us

to live the missionary imprint left by Don Bosco to our Institute and

assumed by Mother Mazzarello with a true apostolic ardour with

renewed enthusiasm.

Today we are called to a serious but joyous missionary

commitment, which receives strength through the teaching of

Pope Francis. We are invited to go out, to meet the marginalized, the

little ones, and the poor in order to give them hope and help them to experience the merciful goodness

of God the Father.»

«With the enthusiasm of our origins, assumed with love by every FMA, the Institute will continue to open the doors of the charism on new

missionary horizons. The dream of Don Bosco and Mother Mazzarello is alive today in our generous and unrestricted answer:

I’ll Go! »

(January 1st, 2014)

Rome, August 17, 2014Centenery og the death of Sr. Angela Vallese

Missionary Sector ad/inter gentesArchive photo PEM 2013