Stories of Impact

For 80 years, Holy Cross Family Ministries has been committed to improving families’ lives and our world through spiritual growth by expanding engaging prayer and faith-filled opportunities. Inspired by Venerable Patrick Peyton’s zeal for family prayer, especially the Rosary, we seek to impact the lives of every individual we serve, no matter where they are in their faith journey. Guided by the Catholic tradition and liturgical calendar, we strive to provide experiences that utilize prayer as a tool to build happy, holy, and healthy families.

The following stories provide a glimpse into Holy Cross Family Ministries’ impact as a direct result of your generosity. These stories, and thousands of others not featured here, show the importance of giving families opportunities that unleash the power and promise of family prayer.

Children’s Rosary Ministry in Uganda

Our Ministry Center in Uganda serves thousands of children and their families through Rosary rallies, days of prayer, marriage enrichment programs, retreats for students, and more. Their children’s ministry is thriving with young hearts eager to learn and bring home the stories of Jesus and Father Peyton’s message of “The family that prays together stays together.” By learning to pray the Rosary, children in Uganda experience the joy and comfort of the Rosary as a foundation for a strong spiritual life.

Your generosity helped more than 30 children learn how to pray the Rosary at a recent prayer event in Uganda.

Advent Family Day at the Museum of Family Prayer

Our second annual Advent Family Day at the Museum of Family Prayer on December 11, 2021, drew over 100 joyous family members for a day of prayer, crafting Christmas Creches, and exploration of the Museum.

Parents, children, and grandparents gathered together to join in on the fun activity, and refreshments were served. A lovely older couple, whose grandchild could not make it, decided to come by themselves and painted their own set. Families of all ages came to the Museum, many for the first time, and it was wonderful to see the joy on their faces.

While the paint was drying, families were more than happy to visit the Family Room or take a tour of the Museum with Father

Leo Polselli, C.S.C., Chaplain of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary Chapel. It was truly a family event. One family was there for several hours because their youngest daughter was determined to finish all eleven blocks by herself!

This Advent event was a wonderful way for families to prepare for the Birth of the Savior who wants to live in our hearts and our families. Seeing families spending time together while celebrating the life of Christ, was a lovely tribute to Venerable Patrick Peyton and his ongoing ministry through the Museum of Family Prayer.

Thanks to you, 100 family members gathered for a day of prayer and Advent crafts at the Museum of Family Prayer.beth Lutaaya.

Cultivating the Next Generation of Catholics

Your partnership with Holy Cross Family Ministries advances our ability to deepen the spirituality of families and enable the next generation of Catholics to flourish in the faith. The Father Peyton Center in North Easton, Massachusetts is taking the lead to reengage Catholic families and their children through educational and interactive opportunities and inspiring faith experiences that are free and accessible.

Such programs include our Confirmation retreats for students. Upon arriving, students are welcomed to the Father Peyton Center by the staff and chaplain, Father Leo Polselli, C.S.C. Students receive a tour of the Museum of Family Prayer with instruction about the universal nature of prayer and in particular Catholic prayer. During the second half of the program, Mass is celebrated in the chapel, which is in the museum wing of the ministry. It is an instructional Mass with appropriate explanations of the rites, the different parts of the Mass.

“Father Leo was wonderful throughout the whole day! Anytime he spoke, he did not lecture or talk down about what is not happening with regard to families and prayer. His focus was on how easy it was to pray. How it could be fit into our lifestyle (i.e. praying while he is on the treadmill vs. watching a tv program). He “humanized” prayer…He also spoke about how prayer can just be a conversation in your head with God. I think these points were HUGE for our kids today. As we know, some of them are not attending Mass even if they have the desire to. Prayer in any of these forms can give them that connection to God until they can independently seek more. I thought this was such a positive and uplifting message. It certainly had an impact on me.” Jenn, DRE at St. Ann’s in Raynham, MA

October Rosary Festival

Fall in New England means crisp, sunny days and outdoor experiences. For the team at the Museum of Family Prayer, fall also means celebrating the month of the Rosary with our annual October Rosary Festival. Located in North Easton, Massachusetts, the Museum of Family Prayer welcomed local families for a true Catholic fall tradition involving a candlelight procession and family prayer, followed by cider and donuts.

Photo Caption: Families gathered for a candlelight Rosary procession during the October Rosary Festival at the Museum of Family Prayer in North Easton, Massachusetts. Elizabeth Lutaaya.

128 Family Counselors Trained in India

In 2017, when we first began our basic course in family counseling skills at the Father Peyton Family Institute in India, we couldn’t imagine that we would begin our tenth cycle of the basic counseling course in 2022. During the past five years, we have had 128 participants go through this course successfully.

They are taught the techniques in counseling, steps, and skills for family therapy and other therapies which help in one’s understanding of self and others. This tenth group consisted of 12 participants, also known as “the 12 apostles” by Father Arul Raj Gali, C.S.C., Director of the Father Peyton Family Institute.

Topics covered during the course that the participants found most helpful included emotional and behavioral health, personality types, improving self-esteem, the role of

assertiveness, and developing relational potentials in the family.

Activities, exercises, group discussions, practice sessions, case studies, and personal therapy of six sessions each were part of the course. During personal therapy, the participants were allowed to share their personal struggles and this in itself brought healing to many, for which they were very grateful.

Initially, most of our participants took up this course intending to help others, but they ended up helping themselves. Self-awareness and self-acceptance were the core learning leading to self-growth. We are grateful to the Father Peyton Family Institute and Father Arul for making this course possible and pray that we will reach out and serve others through this ministry.

Members of the tenth cycle of family counseling course participants.

Help Me to Study Campaign

Due to the pandemic, schools in Peru, like many around the world, temporarily closed and students transitioned to remote learning. With in-person classrooms no longer an option, this proved to be a new problem for families who did not have the resources to buy a laptop or tablet and did not have internet in their homes. Because of the generosity of friends like you who support the Father Peyton Family Institute in Peru (INFAM), the INFAM team was able to step in and initiate the “Help Me to Study” campaign. Since the start of the school year, INFAM provided computers and internet access to more than 200 families for their children to attend virtual classes from their homes.

TOP: Mother and daughter pose for a picture with Father Aníbal Niño Loarte, C.S.C., Director of the Father Peyton Family Institute in Peru (INFAM) BOTTOM: Family in Peru receives a computer from INFAM through the Help Me to Study campaign.

Family Theater Productions Celebrates 75 Years

Family Theater Productions, a family-and faith-based media production company in Hollywood, California, commemorated its 75th-anniversary celebration at the Historic Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel on April 27, 2022.

“Anything that lasts 75 years, I think is an achievement, and Father Peyton’s humble beginnings rooted in prayer sets an incredible example of faith and trust in God,” said Father David Guffey, C.S.C., National Director of Family Theater Productions. “The 75th anniversary is also a tribute to the ways that Hollywood and entertainment have changed. We started in print, then went to radio, then television and film, and now social media, video, and apps. Faith and family have been a part of this history in exciting ways. There’s a lot to celebrate and look forward to as we commemorate the founding this year.”

Family Theater Productions was founded by Father Patrick Peyton, C.S.C. in 1947. Father Peyton dedicated his life to using mass media to spread devotion to the Blessed Mother through the Rosary and encouraging family prayer. His first nationwide broadcast was Mother’s Day 1945 and it featured Bing Crosby. Father Peyton would later work with Lucille Ball, Bing Crosby, Loretta Young, Rose Kennedy and so many other celebrities who collaborated with him and Family Theater Productions to produce compelling and award-winning content. Family Theater Productions also worked behind the scenes on a pastoral level in Hollywood these past 75 years, acting as the vetting organization for scripts that involved Catholic or faith matters and in personal matters of discernment.

“Family Theater Productions has walked with many in the film industry who were discerning the will of God in their lives,” said Father Guffey. “Some stayed in the industry and others left and used their talents elsewhere. It’s a part of the work we have done that is truly hidden from the world but that only God understands and has placed us in these positions to support people who need it.”

Headquartered on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, Family Theater Productions strives to create media that inspires, entertains, and informs. Its latest productions include the award-winning documentaries PRAY: THE STORY OF PATRICK PEYTON and THE HOUSE THAT ROB BUILT.

“This celebration is also about looking ahead to the future, to our projects with collaborators, and our goals to reach more families while encouraging them in their prayer lives,” said Fr. Guffey. “We hope to continue to create content that will make people think, will make people hope, and will give people a little bit of beauty that will support their life."

The House That Rob Built wins an Emmy

THE HOUSE THAT ROB BUILT was awarded the Best Documentary in the Cultural/ Historical category at the Northwest Regional Emmy Awards Gala on June 4, 2022. The documentary tells the inspiring true story of one of the greatest coaches in college basketball history. At a time when women weren’t taken seriously as athletes, Rob Selvig took the reins of an unknown program at the University of Montana and, through passion and grit, inspired his players to greatness. This is a story of resilient women from small-town America who were given a chance, rose to excellence, and forged a path for generations to follow.

TOP(LEFT): Actress Diana Dorempz, co-host of FTP's Spanish-language series 'Lente Católico. TOP(RIGHT): (L-R) Steve and Cathy Crear, Paul Sczudo, Cathy Downes, Felicia Bradley, Monsignor Lloyd Torgerson, Felipe Sanchez. BOTTOM: Clarence Gilyard Jr. (center) and the rest of the cast perform a live radio play during the Family Theater Productions’ 75th Anniversary.

“There is an appointed time for everything, and a time for every affair under the heavens.” — Ecclesiastes 3:1

Celebrating Father Willy Raymond, C.S.C.

Father Willy Raymond, C.S.C., has led Holy Cross Family Ministries as president, for almost eight years with much zeal. He also served for 14 years as National Director of Family Theater Productions, a member ministry of HCFM. During Father Raymond’s tenure, the ministry opened seven new global ministry centers, three in India, two in Tanzania, one each in Haiti and Canada as well as the Museum of Family Prayer. Through all its ministries, Holy Cross Family Ministries promotes happy, healthy, and holy families from 27 Ministry Centers in 17 countries on 5 continents.

Recently, all the members of the Holy Cross Family Ministries team from around the world had an opportunity to gather virtually and in person with Father Willy to express their thanks for his guidance and leadership and to wish him well in his next endeavors. There were special presentations from team members, including the presentation by Elizabeth Ponce of a replica of a plaque that will be placed in the new welcoming area of the Museum of Family Prayer when construction is completed. The space will house the remains of Father Peyton for veneration by visitors. Father Pinto Paul, C.S.C., presented a mock-up of the new Peyton Prayer Guild for Children program book with the dedication to Father Willy honoring his support for this important project.

In addition, an event video with messages of thanks and blessings compiled from team members around the world was screened. These heartfelt messages left no doubt about Father Willy’s leadership efforts and his personal appreciation for his team.

“Each member of the Holy Cross Family Ministries team is important to me. Together we are One Body of Christ and serve to fulfill

Father Peyton’s vision that, ‘The Family That Prays Together Stays Together.’ Our work is vital to families to ensure they are faith-filled, strong, unified, and live lives of purpose, peace, and joy that can only come from God,” said Father Willy. “Each day I come to the office to serve with you, whether you work out of the Father Peyton Center in Easton, at home, in Hollywood, or at one of our 27 ministry centers around the world, I do so with great zeal. I hope that is evident to each of you and inspires you in the important role each of you plays in the ministry.”

It is apparent to everyone at Holy Cross Family Ministries and all our partners that Father Willy has made a difference and has well positioned the ministry for future growth. Father Willy, we are grateful for your service and wish you well in the years ahead.

TOP: Father Willy Raymond, C.S.C., and Father Pinto Paul, C.S.C., greet members of the Peyton Prayer Guild for Children in Fort Portal, Uganda. BOTTOM (LEFT): Father Willy Raymond, C.S.C., speaking with a family after Mass at the Our Lady of the Holy Rosary Chapel in the Museum of Family Prayer. BOTTOM (RIGHT): Elizabeth Ponce, Chief Digital and Information Technology Officer, presents Father Willy Raymond, C.S.C., with a replica plaque that will be placed in the new welcoming area of the Museum of Family Prayer.