My daughter Juliette will be a senior in high school this fall. We talked the other day about her wonderful years at Villa Teresa Catholic School and how different it was from the other Catholic schools she’s attended. (Primarily different because it was run by the Carmelite Sisters of St. Therese. Many of the nuns taught at the school and our dear friend Sr. Veronica Higgins was both teacher and principal.)
Juliette attended Villa Teresa for six years, from pre-kindergarten through 4th grade. The sisters were a constant in our lives and we miss them very much, especially Sr. Susan, Sr. Veronica, Sr. Joseph Marie and Sr. Gertrude Marie.
Villa Teresa closed last year, and in November, we attended the convent’s estate sale. Unbelievably, we came away with a painting of St. Thérèse of Lisieux.
So, knowing how much the Carmelite nuns mean to our family, you can imagine how excited I was when I learned about Dolls from Heaven and a crowd-source funding campaign for an 18-inch St. Therese saint doll. She’s wonderful and even comes with a Carmelite habit and a book about her life.
We’ve spent so much money on dolls over the years, especially Lalaloopsy and American Girl dolls, that I love the idea of a doll that inspires my children to love and follow Jesus.
Although Juliette is too old to play with dolls, I would love to get her one of these as a keepsake. And, even though my younger daughter, Bridgette, 7, never really got to know the Carmelite nuns, her middle name, Josephina, was partly inspired by Sr. Joseph Marie, who took the name Joseph to symbolize the new life she’d entered into when she became a nun. So, I would love to get her one, too!
The Kiczek family founded Dolls From Heaven and plan to introduce a series of saint dolls including Saint John Paul II, Saint Bernadette, Saint Francis of Assisi, Joan of Arc, and many more. I think they’re a terrific idea. If we’re willing to spend hundreds of dollars on American Girl dolls that teach our daughters about history, why not a St. Therese saint doll that teaches our daughters to follow the teachings of Christ?
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