Rose of Lima
Rose of Lima (born Isabel Flores de Oliva; 20 April 1586 - 24 August 1617) was a member of the Third Order of Saint Dominic in Lima, Peru, who became known for her life of severe penance and her private care of the city's poor. Rose of Lima was born into a noble family and is the patron saint of embroidery, gardening, and flower cultivation. Among the most important historical figures in Peru, she was the first person born in the Americas to be declared a saint by the Catholic Church. She was a lay member of the Dominican Order.
Rose of Lima is a co-patroness of the Philippines, along with Pudentiana; both saints were demoted to second-class patronage in September 1942 by Pope Pius XII, but Rose remains Peru's and Latin America's primary patroness. Her image appears on Peru's highest denomination banknote.
The Fiesta de Santa Rosa in Dixon, New Mexico, and the Sint Rosa Festival in Sittard, Limburg, Netherlands, both take place on the last weekend of August. On July 25, 2016, the Catholic king in exile, King Kigeli V of Rwanda, established a barony of Saint Rose of Lima in the Royal House of Rwanda. The largest parish dedicated to Saint Rose is located in Maywood, California.
