Francisco Tomás was born on June 24, 1864, into a devout peasant family. His parents, James and Jeronima, earned their living on a small farm in the rural village of Alpandeire in south-west Spain. The eldest son of four children, he worked hard alongside his family to turn the rocky soil into fertile ground.

Father Bill Kraus, O.F.M. Cap., 70, was elected Provincial Vicar for the St. Conrad Province during the April 22-26 Province Chapter meeting in Victoria, Kan. Father Bill, pastor of Our Lady of the Angels Parish in San Antonio, Texas, also served as a counselor on the last Provincial Council.

At the April 22-26 chapter meeting of St. Conrad Province held at St. Fidelis Friary in Victoria, Kan., Capuchin Brother Mark Schenk, 61, made history when he became the first lay friar elected to serve as Provincial Minister.

Born to a wealthy family, St. Francis of Assisi gave up riches and in his radical conversion to Christian life was called Il Poverello, “the little poor man.” He was also known as “the joyful troubadour of the Lord.”

Countless people have been inspired by the courageous example of St. Maximilian Kolbe, a Conventual Franciscan who volunteered to die in place of a stranger in the German death camp at Auschwitz. St. Maximilian's amazing story has been told and retold, but few have ever heard the story of Blessed Anizet Koplin.