14 Marian Helper • Winter 2022-23 • Marian.org On a mission for Mum Gerard Young was on a mission. He had traveled more than 17,000 miles from his home in Australia to Stockbridge, Massachusetts, and he was carrying a letter for the Very Rev. Chris Alar, MIC. “My family back home is really thrilled, because I wasn’t even sure if it was possible to come and meet Fr. Chris,” Gerard said. “I actually planned to come anyway. I said, ‘I’ll just go and hope he’s there.’” Gerard was in luck. On Aug. 30, after an arduous day of travel — by air from California (his first stop in the U.S.) to NewYork, then a train to Albany, and a rental car for the drive to Stockbridge —Gerard arrived at the Marian Helpers Center at 4 p.m., weary but elated. And Fr. Chris just happened to be there. Now that the pandemic has subsided, pilgrims have been returning to Eden Hill in large numbers, seeking grace, inspiration, and serenity at the National Shrine of The Divine Mercy. In Gerard’s case, he came to fulfill a last request from his mother, Margaret, who died on July 25, age 83. Extended Catholic family Margaret and her husband, Peter, 84, raised nine children in the Hunter Valley, farm country about two hours north of Sydney, Australia. Married for 59 years after meeting at a Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) social, they have 24 grandchildren. Rather remarkable for this day and age, all of the Young children continue to practice their Catholic faith, as do their children. “We had family Rosary every night, the last act before bedtime,” Gerard recalled. “And of course we would go to church every week, and we had good Catholic schools. Gerard Young journeyed 17,000 miles from Australia to Eden Hill to see Fr. Chris Alar and deliver a message. World of Mercy: Australia By Dr. Joe McAleer
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