Can I take your rose to Fatima?

We're signing up Rally Captains to participate in our 2008 Public Square Rosary campaign!

And I promise to take a rose to Our Lady of Fatima for you if you will become a rally captain and lead a rally on October 11, 2008, the Saturday closest to October 13.

Please call 866-584-6012 or write to reritchie@juno.com to become a captain.

Last year, we took 2,200 roses to Fatima to honor Our Lady and for  We also took a large banner with the names of all 2,179 rally captains that had signed up by the time of our departure for Portugal.

We purchased the roses in Madrid, Spain and drove them 384 miles to Fatima on Friday afternoon, October 12, before the evening candlelight rosary procession. We set up a huge display of roses as close as we could to the chapel of the apparitions and unfurled the banner along with large posters proclaiming what was being offered to Our Lady.

In a matter of minutes, a very large crowd of pilgrims gathered around the small crew that was setting up the display and began asking questions.

Explanations were given as boxes upon boxes of roses were unpacked and set up. Everyone wanted to be part of what was happening and tried to help place roses and hold the signs or banner. One might have observed that the ambience was a little disordered, however, it was definitely a fruit of enthusiasm and most certainly blessed by grace.

As soon as everything was in place, members of America Needs Fatima took pictures of the completed display. This action seemed to trigger an even larger group to crowd around to be in the picture or ask for a rose. Later, two of the posters and many of the roses were left on display in the sanctuary.

We proudly took our large banner with the Rally Captain names to the candlelight procession so that in some way these 2.179 Catholic leaders would be represented in the procession.

Thus, on this special day, all the Rally Captains were remembered by name and a rose. It was most definitely an honor for all of us to participate in offering Our Lady this small token of our gratitude for all that she does for us.

It was also an opportunity to thank her for the abundant graces that so many received at the Public Square Rosary Rallies and to ask her for yet more graces in the days to come.