Mother Mary Sylvina Perska

In 1937, Sister Mary Sylvina Perska, a proficient educator and dedicated handmaid of the Church, left Buffalo and, along with three other pioneers, embarked on a new venture in Canada — starting a mission and social center from St. Stanislaus Parish in Toronto, Canada. From that day until her very last, she was the soul of the work of the Felician Sisters in the Canadian mission.

The needs of immigrants were many and the scope of the sisters' ministry broadened so that by Christmas 1937, the center in the convent on Richmond Street was inadequate in space and structure. Sister Sylvina scouted for property suitable for apostolic growth.

On June 10, 1938, the sisters established their mission on Augusta Avenue which remained the headquarters of Felician activity for the next 15 years as well as a pillar of Felician charity supporting the hub of Christian revival among Poles in Toronto.

Sister Sylvina was a true mother to the poor, and under her guidance, the community's work spread. She exerted a charismatic influence on the sisters and the townspeople, leaving a trail of indelible footprints linking the Felician missions along the Golden Crescent of Lake Ontario — from Oshawa to St. Catherines on the Niagara Peninsula.

In 1950, she opened the community's canonical novitiate in Oshawa, which was transferred to Port Credit, Ontario, in 1958, when a more suitable place became necessary for the purpose of establishing a Canadian future motherhouse of the community.

Sister Sylvina was appointed as the first provincial commissary in 1957. After a long and severe illness, Mother Sylvina's rich life of 66 years reached its end, and a great heart ceased to beat when she went home to her God on February 19, 1960.