Meet Parishioner Barb Maiolatesi: Finding Peace and Sharing Talents for Our Faith Community

St. Philip Neri’s Barb Maiolatesi One day this summer, if you have a moment, park in the back parking lot at St. Philip Neri, and then go up the tiny hill. You’ll find a quiet garden space maintained for our faith community.

“I love being there in the Prayer Garden, and I want people in the parish to enjoy it the way I do,” Barb Maiolatesi says. “If you’re going through some turmoil or even a happy event, go there and be thankful to God.”

Barb joined the parish only a few years ago when she moved to the area from Maryland, but she had been back and forth visiting her daughter.

“Now I’m two minutes from my daughter and two minutes from the church,” Barb says. “When I first got involved at the parish, I worked on the Italian Festival. I was looking for something creative to do.”

Then, during last year’s stewardship renewal, Barb said that she’d be interested in gardening. Before then, she hadn’t known about the Green Thumb Ministry.

“Through this ministry, people beautify the grounds and take care of the Rose Garden,” Barb says. “I had visited the Prayer Garden a few times, and I went one day and started weeding.”

Barb began familiarizing herself with the space and trying to understand what was already growing there and what could be added. It was also a meaningful outlet for her during the pandemic.

“It was good for me as a COVID project, since I was outside, and an outlet for me considering my joy of gardening,” Barb says. “I was also going through a hard time when my mother began staying in an assisted living facility. She taught me to garden, and now I’m giving my talent back.”

St. Philip Neri’s Barb Maiolatesi

The St. Philip Neri Prayer Garden began as an Eagle Scout project years ago. There are a few picnic tables and a pergola. It seems somewhat forgotten now, and Barb hopes that more community members will spend time there.

“It would be a good place for a Bible study,” Barb says. “Once I saw a person quietly working on their laptop. It’s very nice just to sit and spend a few moments there.”

Barb frequently attends daily Mass and also does many devotionals. A favorite quote for her comes from a devotional by Mother Teresa: “The fruit of silence is prayer, the fruit of prayer is faith, the fruit of faith is love, the fruit of love is service, and the fruit of service is peace.”

“The garden has done this for me in that it has given me a little silence, a little peace,” Barb says. “I feel like I’m helping my parish by beautifying the gardens, and while doing so I’m also able to pray in this pretty place.”

St. Philip Neri Prayer Garden

St. Philip Neri Prayer Garden