Founded in France in the early 1840s by Jeanne Jugan, Little Sisters of the Poor (LSP) is a Roman Catholic order of women dedicated exclusively to caring for the elderly poor. The order brought chapters to the United States beginning in 1868 in Brooklyn, Cincinnati, and New Orleans.
In 1868, Reverend Augustine Bessonies, vicar general of the Indiana Roman Catholic diocese and pastor of in Indianapolis, invited the Little Sisters of the Poor (LSP) to establish a home in his parish. In 1873 the LSP came to Indianapolis. Bessonies rented two small houses for the LSP, and six elderly boarders quickly arrived. Soon thereafter the LSP built Saint Augustine Home at 500 E. Vermont Street. One biography of Bessonies stated that the order “started in poverty” but by the early 20th century was “doing well.”
By 1967, the Vermont Street property was obsolete. The LSP built a new home on West 86th Street. In 2020, Saint Augustine Home cared for nearly 100 elderly residents and employed 100 full-and part-time staff members. More than 300 volunteers also served the organization through the Association of Jeanne Jugan and Saint Augustine Guild. As of 2020, the home was funded through donations of money, food, clothing, time, and equipment.
Internationally, the LSP has locations in 31 countries as of 2020. With 234 houses around the world, it continued to be one of the largest women’s religious organizations in the Catholic Church, with 234 houses around the world. Twenty-seven homes were in North America. All were funded through donations, endowments, and bequests. Jenne Jugan, who died in 1879, was declared a saint in 2009 by Pope Benedict XVI.
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