The Life of Mother Maria Kaupas
In 1897, seventeen-year-old Casimira Kaupas journeyed from her native Lithuania to Scranton, Pennsylvania as a companion and housekeeper for her brother Anthony who was a priest serving the needs of Lithuanian immigrants. In America, Casimira saw religious Sisters for the first time and was drawn to their life of prayer and service to God’s people. After four years, she returned to Lithuania but with a few questions about her future. What should she do with her life? After only a few months, she realized that she had a calling to religious life, and she wrote to her brother that she would return to America and enter a community of Sisters. Her brother responded that the Priests’ League in Pennsylvania wanted her to establish a new religious congregation to teach children in the schools they would build. Casimira readily agreed.
Casimira went first to Ingenbohl, Switzerland for education and religious training. During her time there, she was notified that the Priests’ League had failed to find sufficient resources for the future Congregation and were abandoning the idea. Casimira, however, did not give up. She wrote to her brother and asked him to find a bishop who would sponsor the Congregation and a priest to serve as a spiritual guide, and she set sail for America with two companions – Judith Dvaranauskas and Antoinette Unguraitis.
The new Congregation’s mission of education began at the Holy Cross School in Mount Carmel, which opened on January 6, 1908. In 1964, the Holy Cross School was consolidated with five other parish schools to form the Holy Spirit School. The Sisters of St. Casimir continued to staff the school until 1973. In 1995, Holy Cross Parish merged with four other ethnic parishes in Mount Carmel to form Divine Redeemer Parish.
The Sisters of Saint Casimir chose Chicago, with its large Lithuanian population, as the site for their Motherhouse. As the numbers continued to grow, they responded to requests for Sisters from parishes throughout the United States, and they moved to Chicago in 1911. As a response to the influenza epidemic in 1918, Mother Maria began preparing Sisters for the ministry of health care in addition to education.
After 33 years of serving God’s people and watching her Congregation grow, Mother Maria Kaupas died on April 17, 1940. Since that time, her life has been carefully studied through witnesses interviews and depositions. In 1986, the Congregation for the Causes of Saints in Rome declared Mother Maria “Servant of God,” and on July 1, 2010, she was declared “Venerable,” which is one step closer to being named “Blessed” and ultimately “Saint.”
The Life of Mother Maria Kaupas
JANUARY 6, 1880 – Casimira Kaupas, daughter of Anufras Kaupas and Antanina
Glebauskas, the fifth of eleven children, is born in Lithuania in the village of Gudeliai.
MAY 6, 1896 – Anthony Kaupas, Casimira’s oldest brother, is ordained a priest in the
Scranton Diocese. In the autumn, he writes to their parents asking that Casimira be
allowed to come to the U.S. to work as his housekeeper.
MAY 1, 1897 – Casimira leaves home, arriving at her brother’s rectory in Scranton on
June 13.
SEPT. 5, 1901 – Casimira leaves for Lithuania, with the intention of remaining there.
1902 – She decides she wants to become a teaching religious to help Lithuanians in
America. In the spring, she makes a pilgrimage to the Shrine of Our Lady of Vilnius, and
on Oct. 27, arrives at boarding school in Ingerbohl, Switzerland.
1905 – Father Anthony Staniukynas, pastor of Holy Cross Church in Mount Carmel,
accepts responsibility for helping to form a congregation of women religious. Bishop
Shanahan of the Diocese of Harrisburg agrees to sponsor the congregation.
OCT. 25, 1905 – The first three members of the congregation, including Casimira, arrive
at the novitiate of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (IHM) Sisters in Scranton.
APRIL 29, 1907 – The congregation of the Sisters of Saint Casimir, is founded in
Scranton. The first three sisters profess their vows on Aug. 30. They are: Casimira
Kaupas, Sister Maria; Judith Dvaranauskas, Sister Immaculata; and Antanina
Unguraitis, Sister Concepta.
OCT. 7, 1907 – The sisters arrive in Mount Carmel.
JAN. 6, 1908 – Holy Cross School opens.
Feb. 28, 1911 – The sisters assume residence at a new motherhouse in Chicago.
AUG. 24, 1913 – Maria Kaupas is elected first general superior for the Sisters of Saint
Casimir, a position to which she wins re-election in 1916, 1922, 1928 and 1934.
1920 – A foundation of the Sisters of St. Casimir is established in Lithuania.
1928 – SSC’s mission extends to health with the opening of Holy Cross Hospital in
Chicago.
1932 – Villa Joseph Marie opens in Holland, PA.
1937 – SSC’s mission extends to non-Lithuanian parishes.
A Short Video on Her Life
“always more, always better, always with love.”
Mother Maria Kaupas
Mother Maria Kaupas Center 