Venerable Servant of God, Mother Maria Kaupas was born Casimira Kaupas in Lithuania in 1880. She came to the United States in 1897 to serve as housekeeper to her older brother, Rev. Anthony Kaupas, who was serving as pastor of St. Joseph Lithuanian parish in Scranton, Pennsylvania (the campus now home to St. Thomas More Parish). During her stay in the United States she met sisters for the first time, and was attracted to an apostolic religious life. In 1907 she founded the order of the Sisters of St. Casimir, aspiring to educate immigrant Lituanian children while helping them retain their Catholic faith. The order moved to Chicago in 1911, where they remain to this day.

Mother Kaupas has been named "Servant of God" by the Sacred Congregation for the Causes of Saints, where her cause is under review for Beatification.

Having begun her religious life right here at our Parish -- and thanks to her tireless vocation of educating children with fidelity to the Catholic faith -- our Academy is named in her honor.