St. John Francis Regis

St. John Francis Regis (31 January 1597 – 31 December 1640) was born at Fontcouverte in southern France and entered the Society of Jesus, being ordained a priest in 1631. He gave himself to missionary labor among the neglected rural poor and lapsed Catholics of the mountainous Vivarais and Velay regions, tramping through cold and snow to preach, catechize, and hear confessions in remote villages, and drawing crowds back to the sacraments through his plain, fervent words.

He was especially known for his charity to the destitute — organizing food and aid during hard winters — and for his efforts to rescue women from prostitution and to protect orphans, founding refuges and confraternities to sustain this work. Worn out by his exertions, he died at forty-three while on a winter mission. Renowned as the "Apostle of the Vivarais," he was canonized by Pope Clement XII in 1737; the American city and university of Regis bear his name.