About the Saint Lucy Society

The Saint Lucy Society of Boston is a chartered non-profit, religious organization founded in 1921 by Italian women immigrants. The members of this organization are dedicated to perpetuating the memory and devotion of their patron, Saint Lucy by organizing the kick off to Saint Anthony’s Feast Weekend at the end of August.

In addition, the Saint Lucy Society donates thousands of dollars to charities, organizes food and clothing drives for worthy causes and is a vital part of the North End Community.

Prayer to Saint Lucy

Saint Lucy, your beautiful name signifies light. By the light of faith which God bestowed upon you, increase and preserve this light in my soul so that I may avoid evil, be zealous in the performance of good works, and abhor nothing so much as the blindness and the darkness of evil and of sin.

By your intercession with God, obtain for me perfect vision for my bodily eyes and the grace to use them for God's greater honor and glory and the salvation of all men.

Saint Lucy, virgin and martyr, hear my prayers and obtain my petitions. Amen.

Leadership

Executive Board Members

Darlene D'Elia

President

Janet Ruzzo

Vice President

Tia Bruno

Secretary

Nicole Leo

Treasurer

Shauna DeMarco

Trustee

Olivia Scimeca

Trustee

Feast Committee

Darlene D'Elia

Shauna DeMarco

Lois DiNunzio

Sylvia DiNunzio

Julia Russolillo

About Saint Lucy

Saint Lucy was a young virgin and martyr born into a modest family in Syracuse, Sicily. She came of age at the end of the 3rd century, in the time of the Roman Empire, when Christians hid their faith or suffered under the wrath of the Roman consuls.

Lucy blossomed into a very lovely young woman and began taking her faith in Christ very seriously. Her father died when she was a little girl and her mother Eutychia, was a very ill woman who suffered from uncontrollable bleeding. Fearing that Lucy would have no one when she was gone, her mother arranged a marriage for her with a young Roman nobleman of the town.

Lucy’s first concern being her mother, the young girl turned to her her faith, and found inspiration in Saint Agatha of Catania, who had had been martyred for her beliefs a few decades earlier. Accompanied by Lucy, Eutychia was persuaded to make a pilgrimage to the shrine in Catania, in hopes of a cure. While there, St. Agatha came to Lucy in a dream and told her that because of her faith her mother would be cured and that Lucy would be the glory of Syracuse, as she was of Catania.

Lucy devoted herself to prayer and reflection and as Saint Agatha had foretold her mother was miraculously cured of her illness. With Eutychia mother cured, Lucy persuaded her mother to allow her to take a vow of virginity and break off the impending marriage to the young nobleman. Young Lucy then distributed her worldly possessions among the poor and committed her life to Christ.

The rejected bridegroom was deeply angered and reported Lucy to the Roman Governor Paschasius. As punishment for her faith, the Romans attempted to force her into defilement at a brothel, but the guards who came to take her away were unable to move her, even after hitching her to a team of oxen. The guards then set to burn her alive and heaped bundles of wood around her but it wouldn't burn. Lucy bravely professed her faith in Christ and trusted her life to him.

With this bold act of defiance, the Romans grew angrier and made continued attempts of torture and persecution, but each time she survived unscathed and showed no signs weakness. "God has granted that I should bear these things in order to free the faithful from fear and suffering.” Her faith only grew stronger as the persecution continued, the most miraculous being the one she will forever be known for: the loss of her eyes and the subsequent return of her eyesight.

Lucy endured until finally on December 13, in the year 304, a sword was thrust into her throat. Lucy lived long enough to receive the Blessed Sacrament of Communion, she then surrendered her spirit to God "I am the Lord's poor servant, to him I offer all in sacrifice. I have nothing left to give except myself.”

The life of this holy woman has been praised and honored for centuries. Saint Lucy's Feast day is December 13. She is known as the protectress of eyesight. Throughout the world people honor Saint Lucy and ask her the favor of intercession with God to help them with their vision. In Sweden, St. Lucia’s Day marks the beginning of the Christmas celebration. On that day the eldest daughter of the family traditionally dresses in a white robe and wears as a crown an evergreen wreath studded with candles. She is honored throughout Italy, and many, especially Sicilians fast on the feast day of the Saint by abstaining from eating anything made of processed wheat. In the North End of Boston she is honored with an Italian Street Festival held in late August where you will hear the faithful pronounce “Viva Santa Lucia!”

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