Anna Maria Fiorelli Lapini

Having become a widow, she settled in San Niccolò and began in 1844 to instruct poor girls free of charge. In 1846, joined by six companions at Villa Fantina, she took the habit of the Third Order of Saint Francis under the name of Sister Anna of the Holy Stigmata. On May 18, 1850, she founded the Poor Daughters of the Holy Stigmata of Saint Francis of Assisi (the Stigmatines). During the cholera epidemic of 1854, her dedication earned her the nickname "Mamma di Firenze". She pronounced her vows in 1855, received the provisional approval of Pius IX, and collaborated with Ludovico da Casoria for the education of young African girls.

After her death in 1860, her reputation for holiness endured. Her cause for beatification was officially introduced on January 23, 1918, under the pontificate of Benedict XV. On April 12, 2003, Pope John Paul II promulgated the decree recognizing the heroic nature of her virtues, conferring upon her the title of Venerable. The cause is ongoing, awaiting the recognition of a miracle.

Anna Maria Fiorelli Lapini currently holds the status of venerable. Her decree of venerability was promulgated on April 12, 2003, by Pope John Paul II. To this day, she is neither beatified nor canonized, as the cause remains pending the approval of a miracle by the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints.

Her spirituality is deeply Franciscan, centered on the love of Jesus Crucified and abandonment to Divine Providence. Afflicted with cancer, she died on April 15, 1860, at the convent of the Portico in Florence, where she rests. Her legacy continues through the Stigmatine Sisters, who have expanded internationally (Brazil, Spain, Ecuador, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Bolivia, Mozambique, and Albania).