The Vatican is considering The Little Cajun Saint for sainthood, as it’s believed she has performed miracles. Charlene Richard from Acadia Parish died in 1959 from leukemia at the age of 12 years old. President of the Charlene Richard Foundation, Nanette Reiners, says Richard knew she would die at a young age, but every day she offered her suffering for other people.
“It was never about ‘I’m in pain, I’m suffering, poor me.’ It was always, you know, she offered it for everybody else,” Reiners said.
Word of Reiner’s deep faith and her passion to help others spread, resulting in many visiting her grave to pray and ask for their prayers to be answered. Reiners says several of those prayers were answered, including a pregnant woman from New York who was told by doctors her fetus had two severe brain abnormalities.
“She had the baby in December of this past year. After she delivered the baby, they ran test and the test all came back negative; there’s nothing wrong with the baby,” Reiners said.
The Catholic Church considers someone for sainthood if they have performed at least two documented miracles. Reiners says the Dioceses of Lafayette and Alexandria have submitted evidence of the unexplainable happenings that have occurred as a result of Charlene’s intercession.
“Some of these stories that are happening have been sent to Rome, and they’ll study them and look into the virtues of Charlene’s life. And that’s where we at right now with the process of canonization,” Reiners explained.
Richard has been declared a Servant of God. It remains to be seen if she will be declared Venerable, then Blessed and then finally a “Saint.” There are 11 canonized American Saints and Richard would be the first from Louisiana.
