First native saint of the Canary Islands, founder of hospitals and schools in Guatemala, canonised in 2002.
Pedro de San José de Betancur was born on 19 March 1626 in Vilaflor, Tenerife, into a humble shepherding family. From an early age he felt a missionary calling, and in 1650 he sailed for America with the desire to reach Mexico. Without the means to pay the full fare, he was left in Havana, where he had to work as a labourer until he had saved enough to continue. He finally arrived in Guatemala City in 1651, exhausted and impoverished.
In Guatemala, Pedro joined the Franciscan Order and devoted his life to the most disadvantaged: the sick, the poor, immigrants and the helpless. He founded the Hospital de Belén (1663), which cared for the poorest patients, and also opened a school for underprivileged children and a shelter for migrants. He created his own religious congregation — the Bethlehemites — to continue his work. His apostolic method combined prayer, manual work and direct service to the poorest.
He died on 25 April 1667 in Guatemala. John Paul II beatified him in 1980 during his visit to Guatemala and canonised him on 30 July 2002, making him the first saint born in the Canary Islands. He is the patron of Guatemala and of migrants. His figure symbolises solidarity made action, faith embodied in service to the most vulnerable.