One of New Orleans’ venerable figures, Henriette Delille, was a woman of color who experienced a religious transformation in her twenties, leading her to be an influential member of the community. She, along with a group of Christian women, joined together to nurse the sick, care for the poor and instruct the ignorant. This group was the start of the Sisters of the Holy Family, officially formed in 1842.

The sisters served all members of the community, including slaves, children and adults. They eventually took in elderly women and therefore opened America’s first Catholic home for the elderly of its kind, as recorded in the National Register. This establishment is now the Lafon Nursing Facility of the Holy Family.

Through the efforts of the late Archbishop Philip Hannan, the canonization process of Henriette Delille was granted by Saint John Paul II in 1988. It is the hope of the Sisters of the Holy Family and the local religious community to one day see Henriette Delille be granted sainthood.  

The Sisters of the Holy Family order has missions in other parts of the country and the world, but New Orleans has always been the order’s home. The order still serves many ministries throughout the New Orleans area, including the management of Delille Inn and St. John Berchmans’ Manor

“I believe in God. I hope in God. I love. I want to live and die for God.” Mother Henriette Delille

The staff and residents at Delille Inn and St. John Berchmans’ Manor recently dedicated two portraits of the Venerable Henriette Delille. Rev. Howard Byrd blessed the memorial and several Sisters of the Holy Family shared the history of Henriette and the progress of her canonization.