Blessed Chiara Badano

Chiara was born on Oct 29, 1971 in the small village of Sassello in Northern Italy.

She had no brothers or sisters and her parents Ruggero and Maria Theresa loved her very much.

Chiara always said her prayers. Sometimes she said them alone and other times with her parents and friends. She also loved to go to Mass.

Sometimes Chiara could be naughty too….

One time she saw a big juicy apple on her neighbour’s apple tree and without asking for permission, she took it for herself. Her mother made her go back and say sorry. She was very nervous but her neighbour ended up giving her a whole box of apples.

Another time her mother asked her to clear the table and Chiara said “No, I don’t want to!”

Have you ever said something like this to your parents?

Chiara went off to her room but she knew that Jesus would want her to help her mother so she went back and did her job quietly, without any more fuss.

In 1981 when Chiara was 9 years old, she got to know the Focolare Catholic movement. She made lots of new friends in this group. She found out more about God and tried to love other people just as Jesus loved them.

Chiara liked to sing, dance, play tennis and skate. She loved the mountains and the sea. She wanted to become an air hostess when she was older so she could visit beautiful places

In 1988 Chiara failed an important exam and she was very disappointed but she offered her disappointment to God and united it with Jesus’ own suffering on the cross

One day when Chiara was 17, she felt a very bad pain in her back when playing a game of tennis. The pain got worse. Doctors soon discovered poor Chiara had bone cancer. Chiara had to go to hospital very often in severe pain.

Because Jesus was her closest friend, she always remembered how much pain He went through and because she wanted to be like Him, she never complained. She prayed to Him always.

When she was in hospital Chiara felt very sorry for other patients who were ill. She would often climb out of her bed and sit with them and comfort them.

She spent several months in agony, preparing to meet with Jesus. She knew she didn’t have much longer on earth to live. She said to her mother “ When you are getting me ready (for my funeral) you have to keep saying to yourself, Chiara is now seeing Jesus.”

She asked that the cornea of her eyes be given to two young people so that they would not go blind. Chiara always wanted to help other people anyway she could.

Chiara died on Oct 7, 1990. Her last words to her parents were “Be happy because I’m happy.”

Chiara is now Blessed Chiara Badano (the step before becoming a Saint). She was beatified on 25th September 2010. Her feast day is celebrated on 29th October. She is blessed because of the good life she led and as a result of a miracle that happened through her prayers.

A little boy was dying of meningitis and his family prayed to Chiara to ask God to heal him. The little boy was cured.

Because Chiara is now in heaven you can pray to her if you would like her to help you with something.