Dear Missionaries,

 Heartfelt greetings from our International Shrine in Waukesha!

Every morning we greet the Blessed Mother with original words and signs of love. This morning, we greet her in a special way as we prepare for the feast of the Assumption in the next nine days.

When we pray the Rosary these days, let us include in our prayers a number of our missionaries who are being affected by the manifold effects of the pandemic, that is, their health, the health of loved ones, loss of job, dealing with stressing circumstances, and even death.

Please also include in your prayers Thelma Balangue, a long time missionary from Arizona, who passed away this week. Sally LeRoy, our Arizona coordinator tells us: “Thelma was a true prayer warrior with the Pilgrim Mother in hand. She had her own group of people who accepted the MTA on their specific dates of the month to pray the Rosary. She had her home shrine dedicated, too. We even had a Mass celebrated in her home shrine some years ago, on the anniversary of John Pozzobon’s death day, June 27. We will bury Thelma on August 12 (Avondale, Arizona).

Like Thelma, we have many missionaries across the USA, who have given witness to the importance of prayer in their lives and have taught others how to give prayer its proper place. I encourage you to share those stories, here on our website and Facebook.

Wishing you rich blessings during this time of suffering for all,

Sr. M. Isabel