Blessed Paola Montaldi

Born in 1443, Paola Montaldi grew up in the noble family palace, on the hills of Volta Mantovana, until adolescence, when she chose a cloistered life in the Poor Clare monastery of S. Lucia in Mantua. She dedicated her life to prayer and caring for the poor and the sick. She was recognized as blessed by Pope Pius IX in 1866. Her urn with her incorrupt body rests in the sumptuous chapel of the Blessed Virgin of the Rosary, inside the parish church of Santa Maria Maddalena. In the last weekend of September in Volta Mantovana the Blessed Paola Festival is celebrated, including religious rituals, typical gastronomy and music.