Margaret, Friend of Orphans - Paperback

by Mary Lou Widmer (Author)

A biography of Margaret Haughery, the beloved woman who went from a life of poverty to one of philanthropy and became known as the "Angel" of New Orleans.

Margaret Haughery gave everything she ever had to the orphans and the poor. Despite being unable either to read or write, she possessed an incredible business acumen, which allowed her to donate--including what she bequeathed in her will--more than $500,000 throughout her life.

What is perhaps even more astounding is that Margaret lost everyone she ever loved, yet she was still able to give so much love. As a child in the Maryland area, this Irish immigrant lost her parents and her baby sister when they died in a fever epidemic. She was separated from her brother in the aftermath, and he very well may have perished in the epidemic as well. Then, when she was a young wife and mother in New Orleans, her husband died of consumption. Soon afterward, her newborn daughter died in her sleep.

Determined to not succumb to self-pity and depression, Margaret, strengthened by her Roman Catholic faith, dedicated the rest of her life to helping the orphans and the poor. Helping to support an orphanage, she first started a dairy to provide milk for the children. Then she went on to earn a small fortune from running a local bakery. This financial success allowed her to donate enormous monetary sums to charity. Still, her fiscal generosity was eclipsed by her spiritual gifts.

This docunovel has dialogue added to enliven the text.

Back Jacket

Margaret Haughery lost everyone she ever loved, but dedicated her life to the service of others. Unable either to read or write, this Irish immigrant nevertheless possessed an extraordinary business acumen that was only surpassed by her generosity. An orphan herself, Margaret Haughery donated everything she earned-- an estimated half-million dollars-- to the orphans and the poor.

In nineteenth-century New Orleans, Margaret Haughery proved that one person can make a difference, that with faith, anything is possible. Strengthened by her Roman Catholic faith, she overcame tremendous personal tragedy to live an extremely humble, generous, and rewarding life of service to others.

Author Biography

As a child, Mary Lou Widmer was entertained by the Sunday night vaudeville-style shows at City Park. She whiled away the summers blithely stringing clover necklaces and feasting on nickel snowballs that turned her tongue different colors. Her deep sense of family was fostered by the fact that her parents, brother, and both sets of grandparents lived in various parts of the same two-story double. Maybe that's why she favors Hallmark-type family stories; although she grew up during the Depression, Widmer has sweet memories of a simple childhood in her native New Orleans. Her popular historical series began as her reminiscences in print so that others might relive their own memories of New Orleans at that time. Widmer graduated from Loyola University and then became a high-school teacher of English, journalism, and history. She also has served as the president of the South Louisiana Chapter of Romance Writers and has written several articles featured in New Orleans publications. She is a certified descendant of settlers in the area prior to the Louisiana Purchase and is a member of the Louisiana Colonials and the Daughters of 1812. She considers Rosamunde Pilcher her favorite author and enjoys reading suspense, historical novels, and family-based stories. Widmer, a mother of two and a grandmother of four, resides in Kenner, Louisiana. Mary Lou Widmer has an extensive writing background, including New Orleans in the Twenties, New Orleans in the Thirties, New Orleans in the Forties, New Orleans in the Fifties, New Orleans in the Sixties, and Margaret, Friend of Orphans.