|
 Adelaide
Cini was born in 1839. She was hardly 18 years old
when she went to knock at the door of the convent of
St. Catherine in Valletta. The pious Sister Guzeppa
Baldacchino who met her at the barred familiar
window was impressed to see this thin weak daughter
of the wealthy pasta factory owner of Hamrun in
front of her asking to be accepted as a postulant
nun. Later Sister Guzeppa was convinced of
Adelaide’s religious background, but as the young
girl was then under a psychological strain following
a marriage proposition to which her parents
objected; the good Sister could only consider her
request with sympathy. She advised her to return to
her home and wait for God to show her the real
nature of her vocation.
Young Adelaide may not have understood the message
but she certainly remembered it some time later when
by accident she came across a young Sicilian
prostitute who was becoming known for her activities
among the more affluent sectors of society. Her
efforts to befriend her were successful and Adelaide
soon persuaded her to live with her at her parent’s
home.
Adelaide’s strange friendship proved providential.
The Sicilian redeemed herself in no time and this
miraculous change urged the enterprising Adelaide to
start on a new missionary movement among the
numerous abandoned girls from the poorer classes of
the Maltese society. With the financial help of John
Aspen and his wife Angelica she opened the first
home for unmarried mothers.
After the death of her father, she turned his pasta
factory into a conservatory for the more needy
girls.
Adelaide died on 28 March 1885. |
