Gemma Galgani was born in Italy in the 19th century. Originally, the name "Gemma" was not the name her mother, Aurelia, had intended for her child. The devout woman wanted to give her daughter a saint’s name, so that her little girl would have a special saint in Heaven to watch over and help her.

But then, when the baby was born, the name Gemma was suggested by an uncle. Aurelia was hesitant. There was no saint Gemma. What about a patron saint for her little girl? The unsure mother brought the matter to the priest. What name should the baby receive in baptism?

In answer to the quandary, the priest, peaceful and inspired, likened the newborn child to a "gem of Paradise". "Gemma" is, as you might suppose, the Italian word for "gem". In this, Aurelia clearly saw God’s will, and her daughter was happily baptized Gemma Maria Umberta Pia Galgani.

Little did Aurelia know that her little Gemma would become the first saint in history to go by that name… thus paving the way for future Catholics who desired a patron Saint for their little "Gemma"s.