Josaphata Hordashevska, born Michaelina Hordashevska (20 November 1869 – 7 April 1919) an ethnic Ukrainian Greek-Catholic in the Austro-Hungarian Empire Religious Sister, was the first member and co-foundress of the Sisters Servants of Mary Immaculate. Biography Michaelina Hordashevska was born 20 November 1869 in Lviv, then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and now Ukraine, into a family who were members of the Ukrainian Catholic Church. At the age of 18, she considered consecrating her life to God in a contemplative monastery of the Basilian nuns, then the only Eastern-rite women's religious congregation. She attended a spiritual retreat which was preached by a Basilian monk, Jeremiah Lomnytskyj, whose spiritual guidance she sought. With his permission, Hordashevska took a private vow of chastity for one year. She was to renew this vow twice. At that time, Lomnytsky, seeing that there was a need of active religious sisters to meet the social needs of the poor and needy faithful of the church, had decided to establish a women's congregation which would follow an active life of service. He did so in conjunction with Cyril Sielecki, pastor of the village of Zhuzhelyany. Lomnytsky felt that Hordashevska would be an appropriate candidate to found such a congregation. Thus she was asked to be the foundress of such a group, rather than follow the monastic life she had been considering. When she agreed, she was sent in June 1892 to the Polish Roman Catholic Felician Sisters to experience the life of community which followed an active consecrated life. Hordashevska returned to Lviv two months later and, on 24 August 1892, took the religious habit of the new congregation and received the name Josaphata, in honor of the Ukrainian Catholic martyr, Josaphat Kuntsevych. She then went to Zhuzhelyany, and became the first Superior of the seven young women who had been recruited for the new institute, training them in the spirit and charism of the Sisters Servants: "Serve your people where the need is greatest". For the rest of her life, Hordashevska led the new congregation, through its growth and development. She oversaw the development of the various new ministries the Sisters entered. For this, she had to steer a new path for the sisters in the Eastern Church, sometimes being caught between the conflicting visions of Lomnytsky and Sielecki. By 1902 the congregation numbered 128 sisters, in 26 convents across the country. They were able to