St. Maximillan Kolbe

In memory of Maximilian Kolbe SP3RN our Patron Saint

January 8, 1894 – August 14, 1941 · Martyr of Charity

Patron Saint of Amateur Radio & Those Suffering from Addiction

St. Maximilian Kolbe was a Polish Franciscan friar, priest, and visionary who believed that the tools of modern communication could be instruments of love and healing. In 1938, he founded and operated Radio Niepokalanów — a radio station licensed as SP3RN — making him the first and only canonized saint known to have held an amateur radio license.

★ Patron Saint of Amateur Radio Operators

★ Patron Saint of Drug Addicts & Those Suffering from Addiction

★ Declared Patron by Pope John Paul II · Canonized October 10, 1982

A Hero’s Sacrifice

When the Nazis imprisoned him at Auschwitz (prisoner #16670), Fr. Kolbe volunteered to take the place of a fellow prisoner — a husband and father — who had been condemned to die by starvation. He led the men in prayer through weeks of suffering and died August 14, 1941. His act of selfless love mirrors the spirit at the heart of recovery: choosing life, community, and sacrifice for others.

Why He Inspires Radios in Recovery

Fr. Kolbe used radio not merely as technology, but as a means of building community, spreading hope, and reaching the most vulnerable. His dual patronage — of amateur radio and of those struggling with addiction — makes him the perfect spiritual model for Radios in Recovery: a man who believed that connection, communication, and compassion can transform lives.

“Love one another and you will be happy. It’s as simple and as difficult as that.”

— St. Maximilian Maria Kolbe, SP3RN