The daughter of an Italian saint is set to visit Western New York this weekend. Dr. Gianna Emanuela Molla, the daughter of St. Gianna Beretta Molla, will be in town from Thursday until Sunday. She will make numerous visits to local churches during her stay. A mass in her honor will be held at Buffalo’s St. Joseph Cathedral at 10:30 a.m. Sunday.

St. Gianna Beretta Molla was an Italian pediatrician. When she was pregnant with Dr. Molla, her fourth child, in 1962, she refused an abortion, a full hysterectomy or removal of the fibroma, aware of fatal consequences. St. Gianna died on April 28, 1962 at age 39, a week after Dr. Molla was born. She was canonized as a saint in 2004. She is the patron saint of mothers, physicians and unborn children.