This is a brief summary of the story of Sister Giuseppina’s life, taken from information provided by the Daughters of Charity.—Father Grodecki.
Giuseppina Nicoli was born in Casatisma, in the province of Pavia, in northern Italy on November 18, 1863. After receiving an extensive private education, she entered the Daughters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul in Turin, Italy, at the age of 20.
To Sardinia to Serve the Poor
Upon completion of her initial formation at the motherhouse on rue du Bac in Paris, she was sent to serve the poor on the island of Sardinia, Italy, in 1884. Sister Giuseppina worked at the Providenza Conservatory in Cagliari from 1885 to 1899. While there, she took simple vows on Christmas Eve, 1888.
At Cagliari, she taught catechism to the young students and workers of the Society of the Pious Union of the Sons of Mary, which she founded and directed. She cared for the poor, orphans, and the sick, all the while evangelizing them.
She Falls Ill, but Continues Her Work
In 1893, at age 30, she contracted tuberculosis, a disease that would eventually cause her untimely death. In June 1899, Sister Giuseppina was named Sister Servant (local superior) of the Sassari orphanage. She encountered difficulties running the orphanage, difficulties caused largely by distrustful administrators. She continued her work, in time gaining recognition for her dedication, courage, and good will.
In Sassari, Sister Giuseppina continued her work in religious education for needy people of all ages. And while there, she opened the first Italian section of the “Daughters of Charity” society, dedicated to mending, sewing, and distributing clothing to the poor. These women also taught catechism to approximately 800 young children every Sunday.
After a brief stint of service back in Turin, her superiors returned her to Sassari, due to her deteriorating health, thinking the warmer climate of the island would be better for her. However, upon her return, she found things to be drastically changed due to anticlericalism and the influence of private interests on behalf of politicians and civil administrators. This changed situation led her superiors to transfer her back to Cagliari on August 7, 1914.
New Apostolic Works
The hostilities of World War I did not spare the island of Sardinia and Sister Nicoli and her Sisters set to assisting the wounded. They remodeled a local kindergarten building into a hospital and lovingly nursed the injured. In Cagliari she was called by the local bishop to set up the Dorotean Society, whose members were consecrated laywomen. With the young women who joined her, Sister Giuseppina founded the “Young Women of Charity” in 1917, and with them opened a facility for the care of children afflicted with rickets and scrofula, a form of tuberculosis, in the poor overpopulated suburb of Marina del Poetto.
She founded the Saint Teresa Circle, the first group for young Catholic women in Cagliari and the nucleus of what would later become the Women’s Catholic Action. Sister Giuseppina also established the Josephite Association (with Saint Joseph as its patron) for religious instruction.
Her Death and Beatification
This kaleidoscope of apostolic works that brought so much spiritual and material benefit to many is an example of the great things God can do in those who are entirely dedicated to him. After her death at the age of 61, on December 31, 1924, a handwritten prayer was found tucked in the hollow of the crucifix she had received at her first vows. In this prayer, she had written, “I want to serve you faithfully, practicing poverty, chastity, and obedience for the love of the poor.”
On July 6, 2007, Pope Benedict XVI authorized promulgation of a decree concerning her cause. Her beatification ceremony took place on February 3, 2008 in Cagliari, Italy. The ceremony was presided over by Cardinal José Saraiva Martíns, Prefect of the Congregation of the Saints.
