Our History
It is hard to pin-point the exact beginning of Children of Mary - for we know that the Lord works in mysterious ways and that He uses all of the intimate details of our lives to bring us to the present moment and, ultimately, to fulfill His Divine Plan. But, one date that stands out as an important "beginning" is August 25, 1989—when our Mother Foundress moved to the land in Newark, OH, responding to the call of the Lord to "go, sell all you have and come follow Me."
She lived the next eleven years in silence and solitude in a primitive hermitage with neither electricity nor running water. Her days consisted of prayer and hard manual labor. Her spiritual director at the time suggested that she may have the vocation of a hermit, so she began meeting with the Bishop of Columbus, who, at that time, was Bishop Griffin, and his delegate to discern this way of life. Bishop Griffin visited the hermitage and believed that Mother had an authentic calling.
As part of her discernment, she was asked to make a year of novitiate with a religious community. She spent one year with the Visitation Nuns. During that time, on October 16—the Feast of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque (to whom Jesus revealed the Thirst of His Sacred Heart for love in the Most Blessed Sacrament), Mother experienced in prayer before Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament a confirmation for the founding and charism of our Community.
On January 3, 2002 Mother had an audience with His Holiness, St. John Paul II. Later, he communicated to her through the Chancery Office that he was praying for her and her intentions.
On January 17, 2002, Mother made her first private vows before Bishop Griffin in our Chapel in Newark, OH. He gave her the name Sister Margaret Mary.
Msgr. Frank Lane
(Mother's spiritual director),
Msgr. Paul Enke, Msgr. Ed Trenor, Fr. Benedict Joseph, O.P., Fr. Tim Hayes, and Fr. Don Franks were present.