Gianna Beretta Molla was born in the town of Magenta in Italy on October 4, 1922. She was born the tenth out of thirteen children, four of whom did not make it to adulthood. Gianna saw life as a marvelous gift. She nurtured a strong faith and conviction in the necessity and effectiveness of prayer. Gianna earned degrees in medicine and surgery from the University of Pavia in 1949 and opened a medical clinic in Mesero, Italy in 1950. She specialized in pediatrics at the University of Milan in 1952 and devoted special attention to mothers, babies, the elderly, and the poor.

By the late 1950s, Gianna and her husband, Pietro, had three children: Pierluigi, Mariolina and Laura. She met the demands of mother, wife, and doctor with simplicity, balance,and a passion for life. In 1961, physicians diagnosed a serious fibroma in the uterus that required surgery. The surgeon suggested that Gianna undergo an abortion in order to save her own life. However, Gianna was ready to give her life in order to save that of her child: “If you must decide between me and the child, do not hesitate. Choose the child – I insist on it. Save the baby.”

On April 21, 1962, her daughter, Gianna Emanuela, was born. Despite all efforts and treatments, on the morning of April 28, after repeatedly exclaiming, “Jesus, I love you. Jesus, I love you,” the mother died. She was 39 years old. Her husband described Gianna's life as “a perennial action of faith and charity; it was a non-stop search for the will of God for every decision and for every work, with prayer and meditation, Holy Mass and the Eucharist.”

On April 24, 1994, Pope John Paul II beatified Gianna Beretta Molla at St. Peter's Square in Rome, saying  that her witness was a “hymn to life.” He would later declare her a saint on May 16, 2004 – the last canonization of his pontificate.

St. Gianna Beretta Molla is the patron saint of Salt + Light Media. She was selected by Fr. Thomas Rosica, CSB, who saw in St. Gianna a powerful role model for the Church and the world today.
Like many saints, Gianna's story entails heroic sacrifice. She provides to us a strong example of the values and virtues of Christ and his ultimate sacrifice for us. St. Gianna continues to remind the Church and the world of the necessity of a consistent ethic of life, from the first to final  moments of human life, and every moment in-between. Let us ask St. Gianna to give us the courage to choose life, and to be the “salt of the earth” and the “light of the world” (Matthew 5:13-14).