April 12 marks the memorial day of the blessed elder Matrona of the Barefoot from St. Petersburg, known in schema as Maria.

The fate of this revered righteous woman is connected to the history of the Sorrowful Church from the early 20th century. In 1911, a funeral service for Matrona of the Barefoot, a well-known wanderer and prophetess, was held in this church. She was buried in the churchyard.

Matrona was born around 1814 in the village of Vanino in the Kostroma province to the peasant family of Shcherbinins. Little is known about her childhood. After marrying a Kostroma merchant, Yegor Myl'nikov, she faced hardships. During the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878, her husband was drafted into the army and died. Matrona accompanied him to the front as a nurse, showing compassion and giving her wages to poor soldiers.

After her husband's death, Matrona decided to dedicate her life to God. Returning to Kostroma, she sold her possessions, gave money to the poor, and set out to wander, taking a vow of foolishness for Christ's sake. For 33 years, she walked barefoot, even in winter, and wore white summer clothing.

She visited holy places in Russia, making four barefoot pilgrimages to Jerusalem, where she took the schema name Maria, keeping this hidden from others. The last 30 years of Matrona's life were spent in St. Petersburg, first on the Petersburg side, and then for 16 years near the chapel of the icon of the Mother of God "Joy of All Who Sorrow" at the Glass Factory. The people of St. Petersburg remembered her in white robes, with a staff and barefoot.

Matrona helped people with her prayers, warned them of misfortunes, and revealed God's Providence. High-ranking individuals sought her out before going to dangerous places. The elder blessed them with an icon and holy water, and they remained unharmed. Sometimes she refused to pray for someone's health, accurately predicting the day of the sick person's death.

Matrona began preparing for her death in 1909, regularly receiving communion and confession. In March 1911, she felt unwell and rarely left her home. At the end of the month, the elder said: "I will leave you with the water and ice." She passed away on March 30, 1911, when the ice began to break on the Neva. Her funeral coincided with Palm Sunday.

The royal family held Matrona in high esteem. Empress Elizabeth Feodorovna, upon learning of her passing, wept for a long time and sent a wreath to her grave. The blessed one was buried in the chapel yard, where the miraculous icon of the Mother of God "Joy of All Who Sorrow" was located.

During the Soviet era, the church was destroyed, and Matrona's grave was lost. In the 1990s, the chapel became a church, part of the Zelenetsky Holy Trinity Monastery. In 1997, Matrona's grave was found and restored, and now memorial services are held there on Sundays. Believers can once again come to the elder for prayerful help, and Matrona does not reject anyone, helping all who turn to her.