From Stlucy
Saint Catherine of Siena (March 25, 1347 - April 29, 1380) was a Tertiary (a lay affiliate) of the Dominican Order, and a scholastic philosopher and theologian. She was born into a prosperous urban family, her parents being Giacomo di Benincasa, a cloth-dyer, and Lapa Piagenti, a daughter of a local poet.
Catherine's body is currently interred in Rome, in the basilica Santa Maria sopra Minerva near the Pantheon. Her head and right thumb are in Siena, and her foot in Venice. Saint Catherine is the patron saint of fire prevention and Italy. Her great learning earned her the title Doctor of the Church, and she used her wisdom to challenge the authorities on matters she was passionate about. Her ability to engage important issues with Popes was a highly unusual and controversial role for regular women of her time.