Bernadette was born into a poor family and lived in simplicity. Her father, François Soubirous, was a miller who later went bankrupt. Bernadette's mother, Louise Casterot, was a washerwoman. Bernadette suffered from asthma and several other health problems since childhood. When she was 14 years old, Bernadette experienced an apparition of the Virgin Mary in the Massabielle Cave. In the apparition, the Virgin Mary asked Bernadette to pray and build a chapel in the cave. This apparition of the Virgin Mary became famous and attracted many people to Lourdes. After the apparition, Bernadette became famous and was rejected by society because of her vision. She then entered a convent and became a nun in the Congregation of the Sisters of Charity. She lived in simplicity and devotion to God in the convent. She died at the age of 35 from tuberculosis. Bernadette's body remains intact and fresh in a glass coffin in the convent. Saint Bernadette was canonized as a saint by the Catholic Church in 1933. She is the patroness of the town of Lourdes, people ridiculed for their piety, and poverty.