When she was nineteen, after the death of her mother, Maria moved to Turin and befriended a noblewoman who gave her assistance. Maria taught catechism to the woman's children, in addition to the other children in the city. She also had a habit of visiting the sick and poor. One day a construction worker had an accident while building a convent, and Maria, who was walking nearby, helped him and gave him money so that he could recover from his injury. The sisters of the convent took notice of Maria for this act of charity and desired that she join their community. Maria accepted their invitation and was later appointed superior of this new community of Capuchin Franciscan sisters. She had a desire to serve in the overseas missions, and in 1892 left Italy and crossed the Atlantic Ocean to South America. She made this journey seven times in her work of founding Catholic missions in Uruguay and Argentina.
