Leaning On Our Friends, the Saints

I take pride in being a millennial. I worked in elder care in the early years of my career and there were a lot of people who had plenty to say about my generation. Those on the outside called us lazy and entitled, but here on the inside, I could see how hard we were all working and how deeply we we're all aware that we are not owed anything. Being a millennial's millennial, you can imagine my delight when St. Carlo Acutis was canonized!

Now, I've always understood the concept of the intercession of the saints. It's very easily explained, especially in the southeastern United States, where asking a friend you bump into at the grocery store to pray for you or a loved one is as common as being at the grocery store. What I didn't grasp fully was how powerful those intercessory prayers could be.

In the Fall of 2025, my family was coming off of some major changes: my husband transitioned out of teaching and, after nine months at his promising government job, was included in the mass layoffs of a new administration. When we got the news, we immediately thanked God for the opportunities that job had provided and asked that a new job would come quickly. Through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, my husband had a new job only two and a half weeks later! It was a true miracle.

The Hingley Family, Easter 2026

After we came down from that stress, I began asking St. Carlo to pray that the Holy Spirit would continue to guide me the way God would have me go. I am a homeschooling mother of six children, a business owner, and I volunteer at my church in the music ministry and with administrative tasks. I knew that I had skills that could be of use to Him, but I wanted to make sure I was using them as I should.

In December, while at a friend's (who follows The Sisterhood of the Traveling Relics of Saint Gianna on Instagram), I was told about Jennifer's "all-call" for help with the website. I reached out and we scheduled our first meeting for December 29th - my birthday!

I was so awestruck to learn about all this organization does and how Jennifer was also praying for St. Carlo Acutis's intercession. It became clear in that moment that this was not coincidence—this was the fruit of intercessory prayer, working on both sides to bring us together in God’s timing. I was so amazed to realize that the intercession of the saints is not distant or abstract—it is real, active, and something we can rely on when we entrust our intentions to them and remain open to God’s will. When we ask the saints to pray for us, they do. And when they do, God moves—often in ways far greater than we could have planned for ourselves.

Lord, please bless all those who serve as your hands through The Sisterhood of the Traveling Relics of Saint Gianna. Please guide all those who come in contact with their work in the way you would have them go. Amen. St. Carlo Acutis, pray for us. St. Gianna Molla, pray for us.