Martin de Porres
1579 — 1639 · Feast day: November 3
A Dominican lay brother of mixed African, Spanish, and possibly indigenous descent who endured racial discrimination in colonial Lima. He served the city's poor and sick as barber, infirmarian, and almoner, and was credited with miraculous healings, bilocation, and an unusual rapport with animals. He is depicted with a broom, a symbol of his embrace of menial work as a form of prayer.