Digital Marian Helper Magazine Spring 2021

On that Saturday in 2019, Michael’s prayer was simple: “Help me to find someone who will help me raise the children.” Three months prior, Michael’s beloved wife, Lilian, had died suddenly from a blood clot in her lung. Only 40 years old, Lilian left behind their daughter, Caroline “Callie” Grace, and two sons, Jacob Michael and Luke Joseph. The children were 17, 11, and 10-months old at the time. She went by “Lil” or “Lilian,” and St. Joseph often holds the lily flower in works of sacred art to symbolize his purity. Lilian had been a student at St. Joseph’s Col- lege in West Hartford, Connecticut, when the two first met. These details did not go unnoticed by Michael. Lilian had been an answer to a previous prayer he had made to St. Joseph. Yes, 20 years prior, Michael was 27 and eagerly hoping to meet a woman and raise a family, but things weren’t looking promising. One weekend, he decided to hand it all over to St. Joseph, so he hopped into his car and drove the eight hours from his home in Connecticut to the largest shrine in the world dedicated to the Patron of the Universal Church: St. Joseph’s Oratory in Montreal, Canada. “I figured St. Joseph, out of all the men in history, was chosen to be the foster father in God’s Holy Family on earth, so he would help me find a family,” Michael said. He spent the weekend in the cavern- ous, heavenly oratory, attending Mass, praying the Rosary, reading Scripture, and beseeching St. Joseph for a wife. “I knew when I was driving back home that God was going to do something after that effort,” he said. He was correct. Six months later, a co-worker of his introduced him to Lilian. Who knew St. Joseph’s role in Heaven included romantic matchmaker? On their first date, they went to see the movie “Pearl Harbor.” They fell in love. On the night of their rehearsal dinner, before they wed, everything added up: her name, the college she attended. “I put two and two together,” said Michael. “Saint Joseph had set this up.” They gave birth to their three beautiful children. Michael was working in sales and marketing for a medi- cal company. Lilian was a special education teacher at a nearby elementary school. They were raising their children Catholic. They attended Mass each week. But on May 19, 2019, their world came crashing down. That morning, Lilian had said she wasn’t feel- ing well. She had decided to take it easy and stay in bed. Their oldest, Callie, spent most of the day with her until she had to go to the high school for a meeting. Then their middle child, Jacob, would keep her company. For old times sake, they were watching “Pearl Harbor,” in fact. Then, from downstairs, Michael heard Jacob shout, “Dad, get up here!” When Michael arrived in the bedroom, he saw Lilian gasping for air. By the time the paramedics arrived, her breathing had returned to normal. But on the way to the ambulance, she collapsed. After a half hour of trying, the paramedics were unable to revive her. Michael and his children were left distraught. He joined a widower group. He worried about his children. He worried about paying the bills. He was angry with God, but that anger eventually dissipated as he came to accept that Lilian was with Jesus. “What better place could she be?” he thought. “I became grateful for her life and the time God gave us with her,” Michael said. He found consolation in the fact that Lilian had died on a Sunday, our Lord’s Day. He would later note that the two feast days on the Church calendar dedicated to St. Joseph are March 19 and May 1. “So her dying on May 19 was like a blessed combo,” Michael said with a laugh. “She died in the month of one of St. Joseph’s feasts and on the day of one of his other feasts, in the month of Mary. The Holy Family surrounded her passing.” Still, following Lily’s death, Michael was in a state of depression. That’s when a good friend of his summoned the courage to say what may have seemed unspeakable at the time: “You need to start dating again.” “What?” Michael responded. “You need to be happy for your children,” his friend “I figured St. Joseph, out of all the men in history, was chosen to be the foster father in God’s Holy Family on earth, so he would help me find a family.” — Michael Klinger M arian H elper • S pring 2021 • marian . org 21