By Callie Ewing, BA ’03 MH ’22

Sts. Louis and Zélie Martin, canonized in 2015, were a French Roman Catholic couple and parents to five daughters, most notably St. Thérèse of Lisieux, patroness of the missions and Doctor of the Church. 

"We lived only for them," St. Zélie Martin once wrote of her children. "They were all our happiness."

Like the Martins, the UD parents who established the Sts. Louis and Zélie Martin Scholarship believe deeply in the happiness engendered by one’s children and by nurturing a faithful family life. They are grateful for the education their two alumni children received at the University of Dallas and the unique place UD holds in Catholic higher education today, and they have a particular appreciation for the Rome Program. Fully aware of the financial burden of giving multiple children access to UD’s excellent Catholic education, they have designated this scholarship specifically for the second, third or subsequent child in a family to attend the university.

“There are a lot of great legacy families at UD,” they said. “We want those legacies to continue and new ones to be formed by new families coming to UD and the next generation of UD students and families. We especially want to help form faithful Catholic families.”

Though their family does not have a specific devotion to the Martins, they appreciate the example of a faithful Catholic family provided by Sts. Louis and Zélie along with their five surviving daughters, all of whom entered into religious life. Though the Martins suffered tragedy in the loss of four of their nine children, their faith did not waiver.

“They're an example of a holy family living out their faith, and that's what we want to encourage with this scholarship,” said the donors.

To learn more about establishing a scholarship at UD, please contact Assistant Director of Development Sarah Sokora at sdsokora@udallas.edu or 972-721-5131.