St. Drogo was born in 1105 to Flemish nobility and lived primarily in France. Orphaned as a teenager, he later went through extreme penances to atone for the personal guilt he felt towards the death of his mother, who died in childbirth. He became a pilgrim, travelling to Rome on more than one occasion. An extreme physical affliction drove him to live as a hermit. Cloistered in a solitary room attached to the church he frequented, he survived on barley, water and the Holy Eucharist. His feast day is April 16th, the same day as his death in 1186.
St. Drogo is known as the patron saint of those who are deemed “unsightly” or unattractive. Other attributes can include people suffering from deafness, dumbness, insanity, or extreme physical afflictions such as hernias or gall stones. He is also considered to be the patron saint of coffee, an obscure attribute.
