This month, I want to dedicate my column to all children, especially the little ones among us who suffer from protracted and painful illnesses. This one is just for you.

It’s not often that the Church recognizes the special sanctity of young children. But the Church was so moved by the witness of one little French girl that they made her a venerable, one recognized for having practiced the virtues to a heroic degree. Her name is Anne de Guigné.

Born in 1911, Anne grew up in a castle that overlooked a beautiful lake in southeastern France. Her parents were well-educated, and their faith was the center of family life. Anne, the eldest of four siblings, was strong willed, creative and precocious. For example, when she was very little, she fell seriously ill, and when the doctor tried to examine her, she threw a fit. She declared, “Take your hat and go!” This kind of behavior was not uncommon in her early life, earning her the playful title, “the little tyrant.”

But Anne’s young heart began to soften when she was made the godmother of her younger sister. She understood that she was to help her sister, and all her younger siblings, get to heaven. She took this role seriously, earning her a new nickname, “the apostle of the nursery.”

Another turning point came when Anne’s father was killed in WWI. As Anne watched her mother suffer, Anne decided she would do all she could to help her, and one of the best things she could do was to be obedient. Anne didn’t obey simply to avoid any possible punishment for disobedience. Anne obeyed because she didn’t want to grieve those she loved.

Her thoughts would often turn to the Eucharist and the best ways she could make the heart of Jesus happy. Her obedience became a gift she could give, like a present she could wrap up and give to the Lord. On the day of her first Communion, she placed this note on the altar: “My Jesus, I love You, and to please You, I resolve to obey You always.”

Anne was constantly encouraging her siblings, not only to be good, but to be generous and to make little sacrifices, like giving up dessert, on behalf of others. She loved to pray for the conversion of sinners and took on “cases” like a spiritual doctor. She would often ask the religious sisters at her school to give her “a big sinner to take care of.”

Beginning at about 8 years old, Anne suffered from chronic headaches later diagnosed as meningitis. When her headaches grew severe a few years later, she was bedridden with terrible pain. Her lungs deteriorated so much that she would suffer bouts of near suffocation that would last for hours. But all the while, she remained at peace and offered her suffering for “dear sinners.” Not long after receiving the last rites, Anne’s mother bent over her and whispered, “You have been brave, darling. This will comfort the heart of our Lord and win over some of your sinners.” Anne replied, “Oh Mother, I’m so glad. If it does that, I will bear lots more.”

Anne died Jan. 14, 1922, at the age of 10.

Pray with me, my young friends: Venerable Anne, it is hard to be ill and in pain. But help me to wrap up my suffering like a gift and give it to Jesus, like you did, for the conversion of sinners. Please pray for me and ask Jesus to heal me and to help me and my family to grow in love for one another and for the Lord. We ask this through the powerful, holy name of Jesus.

Kelly Stanchina is the award-winning author of 12 books, including “Love Like A Saint,” where you can read more about Venerable Anne De Guigné. Visit Kelly Stanchina’s website at LizK.org.