My name is Sister Gabriele Maria Schmidt. I was born in Germany in 1952. I am a nurse by profession and have been working as a missionary in Northeastern Brazil since May 1974. On July 18, 1976, I became a Franciscan Sister of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary of the Angels. The congregation in which I live helps me to make my vocation a reality, to evaluate my actions, to live in reconciliation, acceptance, gratitude, and joy, and to be alert in seeing God's signs in the real world.

I feel called to follow the poor and humble Jesus Christ, who is incarnated among us. In the society I live in, I would like to bear witness to the love, tenderness, and mercy of God as I follow our charism that invites us to serve the poorest of the poor as our Founder Mother Maria Rose Flesch did. As a Franciscan Sister, I feel the challenge to treat God's creation as my sister, brother, and mother, and to treat each creature peaceably, as their sister. That is why I am committed to respect and preserve the environment as I value, protect, and maintain this gift of God. I feel called upon to live a sane alternative in opposition to the increasing constant destruction and exploitation of creation and especially of humankind.

We are an international congregation. Following the example of Mother Rose, whose heart embraced the world, I would like to keep my eyes and my heart open to the outrageous situation in our world, beyond the borders, beyond my own horizon, and beyond everyday things. I want to encounter the unfamiliar with courage and confidence, and to take new risks as I place my trust in God.

The source that gives me life and strength for my mission work is the contemplation of the Word of God made present in the Holy Scripture, in the Eucharist, in community, and especially in the poor. The mystery of the Cross and the Resurrection, and the certainty that Christ can be felt as a presence in our midst keeps giving me ever renewed joy and the will to remain true to my vocation and my mission. "Through God's mercy, I am what I am", (1 Cor. 15:10) is the motto that accompanies me on my journey.