St. Francisco Solano
Francisco Solano was born in Spain in 1549. When he was 20, he joined the Franciscans. He was assigned to be an itinerant preacher to the surrounding towns. After the death of his father, he returned to his native town and took care of his mother. In 1589, he sailed with a group of Franciscans and other people to South America. Their boat was destroyed by a rock off the coast of Peru and most of the people abandoned the ship leaving the slaves on it. Francisco stayed to help the slaves and they were rescued after three days. When he arrived in South America, he preached the Gospel to the natives in Argentina and Paraguay for 20 years. He also protected them from oppression. Francisco visited the sick and played the violin for them. He also had the gift of tongues and the gift of healing. Eventually he was appointed as the guardian of the Franciscans in Peru. He tried to convince the Spanish to treat the natives better by calling them to live the Gospel. He died in Lima in 1610.