The Pilgrimage adventure is off to a great start

This will be the 2nd biggest chain of Catholic pilgrimage sites in my life and it began very much like the first- at a graveyard.

On the last day of August in 2025, I visited the grave in Florida of Gina Montalto, the 14 year old from a devout Catholic family. Gina was murdered, along with 16 other people in one of the most sensless and horrific crimes to ever take place in America.

My journey of pilgrimage began with the question "Where is God in the middle of something like this?' What followed was an incredible September that took me through almost 20 destinations in Florida, Portugal, Spain and France.

It has only expanded since then- Illinois, Wisconsin, Vermont, Maine, Rhode Island, Texas and Oklahoma have all been visited for the first time. Tomorrow I add Colorado and New Mexico.

In July, I added Canada. Monday, I add Mexico.

This trip, like the one that started it all, began in a graveyard.

For the 6th consecutive day, I prayed in a cemetary to give the gift of a plenary Indulgence to someone who had meaning in my life and is now gone. I started off looking for an answer in a cemetary. Now I know He is the answer and I was in a cemetary seeking Him.

In that incredible trip last year, I encountered many Saints. Bernadette was one. I encountered her at Lourdes and again at Nevers.

The Repose of Saint Bernadette in Nevers, France

Today, at a church in Springfield, Virginia, bearing her name, I was blessed to make a big encounter with her again, as this incredible journey moves forward.