A Special Band of
BELIEVERS Many lifelong relationships have had their start at the Miraculous Medal Shrine in Philadelphia. So, it is no wonder that friendships and faith communities have found a home at The Shrine, where connections through Mary’s Miraculous Medal intercession are not just any relationships—they’re sacred bonds. Five Marian devotees—Pat Sharkey, Rita Dougherty, Angela McGowan, Pat Salomone, and Joe Coll—have bonded as a community through their shared devotion to our Blessed Mother and the intercession of the Miraculous Medal. This affable group shares their Shrine stories and experiences, which bear witness to the belief that the Virgin Mary is lighting their way. Each has her and his own Miraculous Medal anchor for spiritual support and emotional comfort. Pat Sharkey is a strong and consistent supporter, devotee, and promoter of the Shrine and the Miraculous Medal, and the unofficial organizer of this band of believers. She has been coming to the Shrine since 1959 and is imbued with the belief that the Virgin Mary is guiding her and her fellow devotees. It has become her personal mission to strengthen and share Mary’s Miraculous Medal with as many people as she can. “We built a community [of devotees] by inviting people to the 40 | MIRACULOUS MEDAL MESSAGE
Shrine and gathering friends,” says initiation symbolized what Pat. “Love of Mary brings people would become the advent of her to the Shrine and unites us.” devotion at the Shrine. Rita agrees. “The Shrine is a very peaceful, serene place; I come every opportunity I can,” states Rita, whose first experience was attending a Novena at the Shrine as a teenager with her thenboyfriend. “My faith has always been at the core of who I am, and coming to the Shrine perpetuates my devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary.”
Their devotion to the Miraculous Medal led to a bond of kindred spirits, a union they all cherish. Rita also recalls how the Miraculous Medal was a familial rite of adulthood; she and her 11 siblings received gold Miraculous Medals at age 21. This religious
It was Angela McGowan’s husband, John, who first introduced her to the Shrine through his close association with the Vincentians. Growing up in the surrounding neighborhood, John was an altar server for Immaculate Conception parish, a Vincentian-run faith community, and regularly attended Shrine Novenas and services. She laughs as she recalls her husband once saying that local boys came to the Shrine to meet a “nice, Catholic girl.” Years since her husband’s passing, Angela continues to visit the Shrine as a connection, albeit a spiritual bond, to her husband and a fulfillment of her prayer life. Pat Salomone has frequented the Shrine since childhood. Living only a few blocks from the Chelten Avenue site, both her parents regularly attended services and Novenas, and her father served as an usher. Upon graduation from Little Flower High School, Pat worked parttime in the administrative office,
