Sisters of the Holy Family of Helmet

The Religious Sisters of the Holy Family of Helmet (French: Religieuses de la Sainte-Famille d'Helmet) are a congregation of women founded in Tielt, Belgium, to provide education to young women in most need. They were founded by three sisters, Rosalie, Henriette and Mélanie Van Biervliet in 1856. The members of the congregation use the post-nominal initials of R.S.F. after their names.

History

The sisters were born at the start of the 19th century to Pierre-Francois Van Biervliet and his wife, Marie-Jeanne, residents of Izegem in the Flanders region of the country. The couple had ten children, of which five died in childhood, soon after which both parents died. In 1829, their four surviving daughters, under the leadership of Rosalie (1804-1893), the oldest, decided to open a boarding school in order to support themselves, which they called College Sainte-Marie. They were determined that the school should give the students a solid Christian formation and to serve the needs of the community.<ref name=CB /^[1]

Three of the four sisters eventually felt called to carry out this commitment living as Religious Sisters.

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