As told by Katie Suire, Dayton's Mother 

On April 26, 2010, I was driving home from work when my husband Charlie called, screaming, “Randy ran over Dayton! Meet us at the Eunice hospital,” then hung up. I prayed the whole way, hoping he didn’t mean ran over.

When I called back, 18-year-old Randy, a family friend, answered and said in a broken voice that Charlie couldn’t talk as he was giving Dayton CPR. I arrived first and saw Charlie leap from the truck with our 5-year-old in his arms, covered in blood. I knew it was bad.

Eunice hospital found a skull fracture and immediately life-flighted him to OLOL for neurosurgery. At first things seemed stable, just the fracture, no swelling, and our friends and family poured in to support us. Two close friends even stopped at Servant of God Charlene Richard’s grave on their way, praying for her intercession and bringing us a prayer cloth that we placed near Dayton’s head.

The next day, Dayton’s eye suddenly dilated. A CT confirmed our worst fear: a massive stroke and dangerous brain swelling. Within days, surgeons removed part of his skull to relieve pressure. When the pressure reached a nearly fatal level, we agreed to a second surgery to remove the brain tissue destroyed by the stroke. Doctors told us there was only a 3% chance he’d ever walk or talk again. We prayed constantly, the Charlene cloth on his bed throughout every procedure.

After weeks in a medically induced coma, Dayton finally woke up. His right side was paralyzed, but after inpatient rehab he slowly gained strength. By his birthday in September, he was not just walking, he was running with his brother. He was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy, but he was alive, and we were grateful.

While many cerebral palsy diagnoses happen at birth, CP can also be caused by a traumatic brain injury. Dayton’s formal diagnosis is Right Hemiparesis Cerebral Palsy.

Looking back, I see God’s hand in everything. The Eunice nurse who insisted on sending us to OLOL, the neurosurgeon—Dr. Landreneau, a fellow Eunice native—who took us under his wing, and the constant prayers from the staff. The Charlene Richard prayer cloth never left Dayton’s side.

These days, 21-year-old Dayton Suire of Zachary is studying computer science at ITI Technical College and is a parishioner at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church. This simple, beautiful life is nothing short of a miracle that his family attributes to the “Little Cajun Saint.”

Years later, when a friend from back home was hospitalized at OLOL with life-threatening bacterial meningitis, we brought her the same prayer cloth. Her husband placed it near her head, and she recovered within weeks. Our families have been devoted supporters of Charlene Richard’s cause for sainthood ever since.

Who Is Charlene Richard, The Little Cajun Saint?

by Jen Gennaro and Fr. Taylor Reynolds JCL

Charlene Richard was born in rural Acadia Parish in 1947 and passed away just 12 years later from a sudden, aggressive form of leukemia that claimed her life within 16 days of her diagnosis.

By all accounts, she was a normal child–or, as her brother John Dale puts it, “an extraordinary ordinary girl,” raised in a Catholic family and community. But when she was given the news of her terminal illness by Fr. Joseph Brennan, Charlene surprised everyone by accepting her fate with cheerfulness and acceptance. Already cognizant of the Catholic doctrine of redemptive suffering–the offering up of suffering for the redemption of sins–she prompted Fr. Brennan daily to give her intentions, saying “Father, who am I to suffer for today?”

Her unwavering faith and joy in the face of imminent death quickly began to inspire those around her. In the weeks before her passing, Charlene prayed for religious conversion or physical healing of others, and there are testimonies of miracles that occurred as a result of Charlene’s prayers in that short time frame.

After her death in 1959, locals continued to testify of the miracles attributed to Charlene’s prayers. Printed information such as booklets and prayer cards began to circulate; the list of testimonies continued to grow and does to this day. There are even signed testimonies from attending physicians over the years, attesting to medical miracles they’ve witnessed.

Her fame began to spread far beyond Cajun territory, and people from all over began visiting her gravesite and experiencing miracles of their own, accredited to her intercession.

In 1989, the 30th anniversary of her death, more than 5,000 people showed up for her anniversary mass.

 In 2020, the long process for possible canonization–the process of becoming a Saint–of Charlene Richard began, and she was given the title “Servant of God.” Fr. Taylor Reynolds, JCL, a priest of the Diocese of Alexandria, stepped into the role of Episcopal Delegate in 2023. He’d known Charlene’s story since high school, but it wasn’t until after completing his studies in Rome—where he providentially took a course on the canonization process—that he was approached about the position.

As Episcopal Delegate, Fr. Reynolds interviews witnesses, examines places connected to the candidate’s life and devotion, and helps compile the documents that demonstrate the Servant of God’s heroic faith, example, reputation for holiness, and intercessory power.

In 2024, a team went to Rome to present testimonies and investigations into Charlene’s life to the Vatican, where they are currently under review.