Minnie Vautrin
Minnie was an Illinois missionary who in 1937-1938, as Acting President of Ginling College for Women in Nanking China, protected as many as 10,000 women and children during the Rape of Nanking. For her willingness to set aside her personal safety to protect the lives of the powerless, some in Nanking revered Minnie Vautrin as the Goddess of Mercy or Living Goddess.Minnie Vautrin was born and raised in Secor, Illinois, northwest of Bloomington.She trained as a teacher in Champaign at the University of Illinois, where she became involved in missionary activities. In 1912, at age 26, Vautrin joined the Foreign Christian Missionary Society and set off for China. Upon her arrival, she was moved by the pervasive illiteracy among Chinese women and devoted her life to promote women's education and help the poor in her community. Suffering from psychological trauma from the events, Vautrin returned to the United States in 1940 for medical treatment. A year later, believing herself a failure, she ended her life.