“As soon as I am old enough, I shall be a Sister of Charity.”

Rosa Maria Segale was very young when she said these words to her father. She had been closely watching the Catholic nuns, or Sisters of Charity, while they cared for sick people and orphans near her home in Ohio. She wanted to be like them. About 150 years have passed since then. Now Rosa is not just remembered as a nun. Some people call her the Fastest Nun in the West. She might even become a saint in the Catholic Church!

Rosa became a nun at the age of 18. That was in 1868. She got a new name then—Sister Blandina. She prayed a secret prayer to God: “Please, send me to the West!”

A few years later, Sister Blandina’s prayer was answered. She traveled to Trinidad, Colorado. There, she lived as a missionary among the Ute tribe of Native Americans. She built a public school and taught there. Most of her students were older than she was. Some towered more than a foot above her head.

In order to live in the West, Sister Blandina had to act boldly. But she didn’t change things by using violence. She made peace. Sister Blandina used her influence to protect a man from getting hanged. She saved mineworkers from an evil plot to kill them. She even convinced the famous outlaw Billy the Kid not to kill four innocent doctors! Sister Blandina wrote about these adventures in a book called At the End of the Santa Fe Trail.

Later, Sister Blandina moved to Santa Fe. She started hospitals and schools there. She stuck up for the rights of Native Americans.

Many Catholics today want Sister Blandina to be considered a saint. Becoming a saint in the Catholic Church takes a long time. Is Blandina on her way?