Laura Vicuña Pino was born in Santiago on April 5th, 1891. The daughter of a Chilean army man of noble family and a humble housewife, she had to face many difficulties from a young age, like her exile due to the civil war of 1891 and the death of her father when she was only three years old.
After the sad event, her mother decided to move to Argentina in search of better opportunities along with Laura and her younger sister Julia. However, life would present them with a new challenge, because after settling down in an estancia near Neuquen, her mother began to be harassed by the owner, Manuel Mora. He did not ask her to marry him, rather he stalked the woman en exchange for supporting her daughters.
Laura Vicuña enrolled in the Hijas de Maria Auxiliadora school, where she began to grow closer to God and increase her faith. At the same time, she gained awareness of the real situation her mother was going through, which led her to pray for her everyday. Misunderstood by her peers and friends, Laura Vicuña spent most of her time off praying.
After being attacked by Mora, and seeing that the situation of her family wasn’t changing, Laura decided to devote her life to God in exchange for her mother’s redemption. She fell ill soon after, dieing on January 22nd, 1904.
Before passing away, she revealed her pact to her mother, managing to get her to promise to leave Manuel Mora and continue down the path of faith. Her devotion and early dedication made John Paul II name her blessed on September 3rd, 1988.
