Sister Clare Theresa Crockett
Also known as Sr Clare Crockett
Life
Clare Theresa Crockett was born on 14 November 1982 in Derry, Northern Ireland, during the Troubles. As a teenager she pursued acting and television presenting, building a career that promised fame, money and a life far from the Catholic faith of her childhood.
In Holy Week 2000, on what she thought was a free trip to Spain, she found herself on a pilgrimage organised by the Servant Sisters of the Home of the Mother. During the veneration of the Cross on Good Friday she experienced a profound conversion, later saying she felt Christ ask her not to throw her life away. She entered the Servant Sisters of the Home of the Mother in 2001, taking the name Sister Clare Maria of the Trinity and the Heart of Mary.
Her religious life took her to Spain, the United States and Ecuador, where she served as a teacher, hospital chaplain, vocations director and missionary. Loved for her exuberant joy, sense of humour and music, she voiced Lucy in the EWTN children's series Hi Lucy and recorded songs that became popular among young Catholics.
On 16 April 2016, while teaching guitar to postulants in Playa Prieta, Ecuador, a magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck. The convent collapsed, killing Sister Clare and five of her young students. Her body was returned to Derry and buried in Derry City Cemetery.
Her cause for beatification was officially opened in the Diocese of Alcalá de Henares, Spain, with the appointment of postulator Sister Kristen Gardner in 2023. She was formally declared Servant of God in 2024. Devotion to her has spread rapidly through the documentary All or Nothing and her published letters and homilies.
Patronage
- young people discerning vocations
- actresses and performers
- Ireland
- earthquake victims
- joyful conversion
Suggested prayer
Heavenly Father, for Your glory, that of Your Beloved Son, that of the Holy Spirit, and that of Our Blessed Mother, we ask that You grant us the grace... (mention your request)... as a sign that the life of our sister Clare Theresa Crockett has been pleasing to You on this earth and that she is now rejoicing with You in Heaven. We ask this through Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Sources
Questions & answers
Who was Clare Crockett?
Northern Irish former actress turned religious sister with the Servant Sisters of the Home of the Mother, killed in the 2016 Ecuador earthquake aged 33.
When did Clare Crockett die?
Clare Crockett was born on 14 November 1982 and died on 16 April 2016.
Is Clare Crockett a saint?
Not yet. Clare Crockett is a Servant of God: a cause for beatification and canonisation has been formally opened. This is the first official stage on the path to sainthood.
How can I pray for the beatification of Clare Crockett?
Pray the prayer on this page, from the cause's official prayer card, asking God for the grace you need through the intercession of Clare Crockett. It is approved for private devotion.
