Testimony 1 [Editor's Note: This testimony will be translated into English bit by bit as I find time.] Testemunho Pessoal: Personal testimony My sister, Amanda, while in her second pregnancy, had some problems with doctors. In November of 2011, my mother called me very worried, as she had high blood pressure, very swollen, with many personal concerns. She asked me to pray which I did. In December, I went to spend the holidays in Itabuna and she continued very worried, agitated, she had no trust in her doctor, and every day she was more and more nervous. On one certain night, her son woke up at daybreak crying very much because he had dreamed that she had died, and asked to sleep with her. He spent the entire night holding her hand and asking her not to leave him. The next day she told me of his dream and my heart filled with anguish, and I started to call on God's Mercy. I began to wonder if there was some saint with this mission, but I couldn't remember anyone, so I appealed to our Lady of a Good Delivery, beginning a novena as there was nobody better than the one who gave birth to the Son of God to intercede for one more mother and I started to fast. [Minha irmã, Amanda, estava na segunda gravidez, teve alguns problemas com médicos, em Novembro de 2011 minha mãe me liga muito preocupada, pois ela estava com pressão alta, muito inchada, com muitas preocupações pessoais, pediu que eu rezasse, assim fiz eu. Em dezembro fui passar férias em Itabuna e ela sempre muito preocupada, agitada, o medico não passava confiança e cada dia ela ficava mais nervosa. Em uma determinada noite, o filho dela acordou de madrugada chorando muito, porque tinha sonhado que ela morria, e pediu para dormir com ela, ele passou a noite toda segurando a mão dela e pedindo para ela não o deixar. No outro dia, ela me comentou o sonho dele e o meu coração se encheu de angustia, e comecei aclamar a misericórdia de Deus. Comecei a pensar se tinha algum santo com esta missão, mas não consegui lembrar de nenhum, então me apeguei com N. Senhora do Bom Parto, iniciando uma novena, ninguém melhor do que Aquela que deu a luz ao Filho de Deus para interceder por mais uma mãe e fiz um jejum.] At this time I made the vocational road of the Shalom Community, and every year we are called to become acquainted with the life of a saint. Inside a basket little pieces of paper are placed with the name of a saint of the Church. When I took the paper with Saint Gianna's name, I stopped, I looked, when Quele Oliveira, a friend and a community sister came to tell me whom she had picked. She asked me who would be my saint that year, I said I didn't know and I said the name, Saint Gianna Beretta Molla. When I stopped speaking, a brother, Sergio Cruz, told me that he had seen an emotional documentary about her, because she was an Italian physician who had died because of problems with her pregnancy and that between her life and the life of the child, she had chosen the life of her daughter. I was sorry at that moment, the emotion was so great that you can't imagine, I shared with them the whole situation, praising and thanking God for such mercy, God always surprises us. [Neste tempo eu fazia o caminho vocacional da Comunidade Shalom, e todos os anos somos chamados a conhecer a vida de um santo, dentro de uma cesta é colocado em pequenos papeis o nome de cada santo da Igreja, quando peguei o papel tinha escrito Santa Gianna, eu parei, olhei, quando Quele Oliveira, amiga e irmã da comunidade veio me dizer quem ela tinha tirado e me perguntou quem seria o meu santo naquele ano, eu disse que não conhecia e citei o nome, Santa Gianna Beretta, quando eu terminei de falar, um irmão, Sergio Cruz, me disse que “tinha assistido um documentário sobre ela emocionante, porque ela era uma médica italiana que faleceu por problemas na gravidez e que entre a vida dela e a da criança” ela tinha escolhido pela vida de sua filha.Eu me arrepiei na mesma hora, a emoção foi tão grande que vocês nem imaginam, partilhei com eles toda a situação, louvando e agradecendo a Deus por tamanha misericórdia, Deus sempre nos surpreende.] As I had already started the novena with our Lady of a Good Delivery, I continued it, and I asked the intercession of Saint Gianna for that whole situation, that at a certain hour she place the right doctors to accompany the delivery, that she anoint them with wisdom to know what to do, as she knew both sides, as mother and as a doctor. [Como já tinha iniciado a novena com N. Senhora do Bom Parto, eu dei continuidade, e pedi a intercessão de Santa Gianna sob toda aquela situação, que na hora certa ela colocasse os médicos certos para acompanhar o parto, que ela ungisse com sabedoria para que eles soubessem o que fazer, pois ela conhecia os dois lados, tanto como mãe, como quanto médica.] The delivery was set for January 30th [2012]. O parto foi marcado para o dia 30 de Janeiro. I was serving at Acamps (?) at the end of the week of Day 20. When I was at prayer, I said to God, "Lord, I don't want to put conditions on praying this novena this weekend, but I trust in You. You are the Lord of life and of death. I hand over the life of my sister and of my whole family". Before finishing this prayer, the Lord placed in my heart this thought: " Take care of my people and I will take care of yours" My heart filled with such a great peace, that the only thing I could do was to thank God and serve Him. I finished cleaning up my things and I continued to Acamps (?). Eu fui servi no Acamp’s no fim de semana do dia 20, quando estava em oração disse para Deus: “Senhor eu não foi vou ter condições de rezar a novena esse fim de semana, mas eu confio em Vós. Tu és o Senhor da vida e da morte, te entrego a vida de minha irmã e de toda a minha família.” Antes de terminar minha oração, o Senhor colocou no meu coração: “Cuide dos meus que eu cuido dos seus”. O meu coração se encheu de uma paz tão grande, que a única coisa eu pude fazer foi agradecer a Deus e servi-Lo, terminei de arrumar minhas coisas e segui para o Acamp’s.] [TRANSLATION TO CONTINUE HERE!] No final da noite do sábado para o domingo, minha mãe me liga para dizer que minha irmã estava entrando para a sala de parto, na hora eu rezei uma Ave Maria, clamei á Jesus a presença de N. Senhora e de Santa Gianna, e fui fechar o caixa do dia. Rsrsrs... No início minha mãe me liga para dizer que Lunna tinha acabado de nascer e que as duas estavam bem. Meu coração so conseguia louvar e bendizer a Deus. No domingo quando cheguei em Salvador, liguei para minha mãe para saber como elas estavam e minha me disse assim: “minha filha sua irmã viveu um milagre.” Eu perguntei: Como assim?”. Ela disse: “Sua irma teve um sangramento pela manhã e Beto (esposo de Amanda) me ligou sem saber o que fazer, eu mandei ele levá-la para o médico e eu fui encontrá-los. Ela foi atendida por uma médica que fez os exames iniciais e nos pediu autorização para realizar o parto, como Amanda tava com o parto cesárea agendado para o dia 30 de Janeiro, ela pediu a médica que entrasse em contato com o seu médico; a médica atendeu o seu pedido e disse: “caso eu não consiga falar com seu ele, você mim autoriza a realizar o seu parto?”. Amanda disse que sim. Minutos depois a médica retorna, pois oi celular do médico estava dando caixa e assim foi autorizada a realização da cesariana. Quando a médica abriu a barriga de Amanda a criança já tinha defecado há mais ou menos dois dias e não sabia como elas estavam vivas, mas que provavelmente mais um dia elas morreriam de infecção generalizada. De acordo com relatos de Amanda foi o maior corre-corre para retirar a criança, levá-la para verificar se tinha engolido o líquido e se algum órgão de Amanda teria sido afetado, mas nada foi atingido, nem em Amanda, nem em Lunna. Quando a médica limpo Amanda, fechou, ela trouxe a menina e disse a ela, você viveu um milagre e contou o que tinha acontecido.” Eu comecei a chorar, pois a fidelidade de Deus é impressionante..” Cuide dos meus que eu cuido dos teus!”. Louvado seja Nosso Senhor Jesus Cristo! Minha irmã é Protestante quando eu contei para minha mãe e eu disse: “Amanda não é chamada a acreditar, mas eu sou chamada a testemunha” e minha mãe acolheu. No dia seguinte fiquei ansiosa por conhecer mais da vida de Santa Gianna e descobri que no dia 22 de Janeiro de 1937 a irmã mais velha de Santa Gianna, Amália, tinha falecido. Em Deus nada é coincidência tudo é providência para Honra e Glória do Senhor. Assim, em fevereiro fui conhecer minha sobrinha e tive a oportunidade de testemunhar para minha irmã o que tinha acontecido e com os olhos cheios de lágrimas ela me disse: “Agora eu sei o porquê diante da gravidade do problema, foi um parto tão tranqüilo. Agora eu entendo porque o anestesista ficava o tempo todo me questionando e a sua surpresa quando eu dizia que não estava sentindo nada, hoje eu sei o motivo do comentário da médica quando me disse que eu tinha vivido um milagre!”. Meu coração parecia que ia sair pela boca de tanta alegria e louvor a Deus, com a mesma emoção hoje testemunho para vocês os meus dois milagre Amanda Mary e Lunna que fez 9 meses. Obs: Os dois filhos de minha irma, Icaro e Lunna. Jesus muito obrigada!!! N. Senhora rogai por nós que recorremos a Vós! Santa Gianna intercedei por nós! Amém!!! Amém!!! Amém!!! [Beautiful photo attached] By: Priscilla, BRAZIL, October 30, 2012

Testimony 2 BABY WITH OMPHALOCELE - Gianna Elizabeth M.... Medical Pro-Life issues in the abstract are one thing, but when they become real and personal they are more than traumatic. It is always good to remember that the medical community does not have the last say in life issues. Following is a story that show the tremendous power and love of God when we turn to Him in prayer. GIANNA ELIZABETH M----: Dan M---- turned 21 the day before his wedding to Kaite P. in January 2010. Before they celebrated their first anniversary they were expecting their first child. "“I remember getting out of work early",’ Kaite recalled, ‘"waving excitedly to everyone as I left to go to our first ultrasound appointment". Dan met me at the doctor’s office; we both were full of smiles. The test seemed to be going fine, when suddenly the technician announced that she wanted to run the images by the doctor. Having worked as a medical assistant I knew that I often used the same line to keep a patient calm when something appeared wrong. Immediately I looked at Dan and said ‘I think something’'s wrong.’ Dan assured me not to worry, but I wasn'’t convinced. It seemed like an eternity before the door finally re-opened and a doctor appeared. After scrutinizing the images he turned to us and began, "‘I wish we were meeting under better circumstances.’" At that moment time stood still. He then explained to us that our baby had an OMPHALOCELE. I remember being so confused as he explained that the baby'’s stomach, liver, intestines and spleen were growing in a sac OUTSIDE OF ITS BODY. I remember not feeling anything but shock. I could hear the nervousness in Dan'’s voice as he asked different questions. Finally he asked the doctor if the baby would live, and the doctor replied, "‘in some cases the baby will survive and we won'’t know much until the baby progresses." "Some couples might decide that they can'’t go through the pregnancy and might consider termination and I just want to give you that option".’ I think before he could even finish that sentence I blurted out, "‘That'’s not even an option".’ He made some comment ‘that it has to be on record that I gave you the option.’ Before he took more images of the baby I excused myself. In the bathroom fighting back tears, my heart was racing and it felt hard to breathe and as I looked around wondering what to do and I remember hearing my mother-in-law’s voice saying, "‘say Hail Marys"’ and right there in the bathroom I prayed a Hail Mary after Hail Mary. I told Our Lady that I needed her help and asked her to be with me. The tears ceased at that moment and I walked bravely back into the room. For the remainder of the visit I just kept saying Hail Marys. I have never felt Our Lady as close as I did that horrific day. There were many tears that night, but Dan and I found comfort in prayer and after we entered our apartment we hit the floor on our knees and began to pray. It was a very difficult thing to say that you wanted whatever God’'s Will was, but to actually feel that and believe it was a totally different story. In my mind I wanted to surrender to God, but in my heart I didn'’t want my baby to die. We immediately started a novena to Saint Gerard, storming Heaven for a miracle. We could never have imagined then how many people were praying for our little girl. People from around the whole world, people we didn'’t even know. Each day was a little bit easier and little did I realize, God’'s grace was moving within us. After reading the story of Saint Gianna Molla we decided to name our little girl after her. Saint Gianna gave me so much comfort and I often would close my eyes and ask for her help to total surrender to God’'s will as she did. This was a huge turning point for me. Thanks to all the prayers, things began to look better even before she was born. The doctors ruled out chromosomal abnormality and then the large hole in her heart that they predicted would require surgery disappeared and the enlarged kidney began to look normal. I remember people talking to me with a sad look in their eyes, wondering how we could go through something like this, remarking that they could have never done it. I would respond that God knew what He was doing and that we were honored that He felt we were strong enough to go through such a difficult thing and if Jesus decided to take her after we baptized her, then we felt had done our duty as parents. That thought that we would have a little saint in Heaven gave us such peace. On March 31, 2011 we drove into Boston. The day had finally come for Gianna’'s birthday! We said the last prayers of our novena and headed to the hospital for a scheduled C-section. We prayed a rosary on our way that everything would go smoothly and that we would be resigned to whatever God willed. Dan and I both remember feeling such peace that day and said it was the grace of God Who was watching over us. Gianna was born at 2:09 p.m. and Dan was able to baptize her before they took her off to the NICU at Boston Children'’s Hospital. One of the NICU nurses recently told us that when she saw Gianna that first night she went home and said, "‘That Omphalocele is going to burst by tomorrow, guaranteed".’ It didn'’t. She was so stable that they took her breathing tube out after the first day and although her condition was still precarious she was in our arms shortly after. They had originally told me I wouldn'’t be able to hold her for a month. She stayed in the NICU for a couple of weeks. When they transferred her to a regular room we stayed with her the next four weeks. Finally at six weeks we took her home. Dan and I would do daily dressing changes to keep the Omphalocele clean and intact, trying to reduce it’s size. If this worked, the first plan was for Gianna to have her final surgery when she was a year old. Unfortunately this method wasn'’t working and complications would soon begin if it kept growing so we decided to go with the second option, which was a series of surgeries to push everything back into her body. On August 8 we were admitted back to Children'’s Hospital in Boston. Gianna spent several weeks in the ICU intubated and paralyzed as they began the procedure. In three weeks a second surgery brought her closer to the goal. For the next three months, Dan and I stayed with her in Boston. The Devil would try at times to make us weary and lose hope, but prayers helped us not to get discouraged. We discovered that the hospital had a chapel where the Blessed Sacrament is reposed and we would pray our rosary there almost every night. During the day I would make frequent visits to Our Lord and would receive strength and reassurance from Him. On September 29, 2011, Gianna was scheduled for her final surgery. We felt that same inner peace the day of Gianna'’s surgery as we had the day she was born. Her surgery went beautifully and I will never forget the smiling faces of her two surgeons as they came to greet us. They hugged us and said, "‘This is the best way to end our week!"’ Gianna fought a couple of infections after her surgery and had some breathing issues at night that required oxygen. But we were sent home on November 4, 2011, with a normal baby, oxygen for nighttime, a feeding tube, and a schedule to wean her off her narcotics. A month later Gianna was breathing and eating on her own and off all medications. ‘Gianna is a normal baby,’ the surgeon told me at her last visit, ‘treat her like a normal baby.’ She is progressing quickly and making up for lost time. She sits, rolls and crawls on the floor, babbles, laughs and smiles, and will grow up just like any other little girl. The odds of being born with a giant Omphalocele are 1 in 10,000. Nine of ten patients who die from Omphalocele die either from major cardiac or chromosomal disease. Gianna is a miracle. Never underestimate the power of prayer and faith. Gianna is living proof that God answers prayer and He has the final say. Taking her life for my convenience was never an ‘option’.” Option Selected:- I grant the Society of St Gianna the permission to edit and post my intercession By: Kaitlin M., Hudson, NEW HAMPSHIRE, February 17, 2012

Testimony 3 TEN YEARS OF MARRIAGE AND TEN YEARS OF INFERTILITY: The Story of Don & Heather Welch and their son, Dalton Patrick After ten years of marriage and ten years of infertility, my husband Don and I were tired and brokenhearted. Though it was certainly a decade of great trial, our faith remained firm and I devoted my time, talent and treasure to my church, even going to work for the Diocese of Wichita Office of Communications in 2003. The following year of 2004 marked the first-ever reunion of the Handmaids of Mary, a high-school group of young women facilitated by the Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary who taught in the diocese, and of which I had belonged during my time at Bishop Carroll Catholic High School. I was on the planning committee for the event and we had much to plan -- including a visit from the Society of St. Gianna and Jim Buffler, who we lovingly referred to as "Giannaman". I was unsure how effective I would be as a volunteer for the event, because five days before I had had sinus surgery and was still in great pain. One of my roles was to ensure transportation for Jim during his time in Wichita by chauffeuring him to scheduled appearances. I recall my hands shaking as I helped to load the relics in my fast, red car (later, Jim would remark that St. Gianna, too, liked driving fast, which I was tickled to hear) before and after each presentation. I remember thinking that I could not ride around chauffeuring the relics of a great saint, and not be blessed somehow! Jim and I made small talk during our drives, but I never mentioned my current trials. Somehow, it just came up. Jim asked me if I had children and I answered simply, "No, and we have not been able to have them for ten years." The day of the Handmaid reunion was beautiful and sunny and we had a wonderful time celebrating with Mass and cake and many, many laughs! When it came time for veneration of the relics I quietly sat in the corner, praying and observing. Some women cried, others smiled and still others furrowed their brows with eyes tightly shut in deep thought and meditation. When it was my turn I immediately put the glove to my wedding band because Jim had mentioned it as a way to ask intercession for my marriage. I prayed simply. Then, not even thinking really, I lowered the glove to my belly. I felt a great warmth. I state it simply as fact. I can't say how hot it was or how long the warmth lasted, and I have never dwelt upon this aspect. It is simply a truth that I did indeed feel a warm glove through my dress. That was it. I thought nothing more of it, and I did not touch the glove again during Jim's visit. One of our evening stops was a presentation at St. Peter Parish in Schulte, just to the south of Wichita. As my beloved parish of eight years, I was anxious for Jim to meet my friends whom I had made sure knew about the presentation. Three of us, Kristie Z., Christie P., and I stayed until the rest of the group had heard Jim speak and venerated the relics. Kristie then led the three of us in prayer. We made a circle, held hands and talked to St. Gianna like she was our mother. I'm not the touchy-feely type, so I remember the moment distinctly because I was quickly crying. The funny thing was I never once prayed for myself in that circle. I wanted so badly for the prayers of my two dear friends to be heard. Five weeks later I went to my family doctor after I had a few dizzy spells and was feeling ill. When he told me I was pregnant my mouth hit the floor. There was no other explanation in my book. St. Gianna had interceded for us! (Incidentally, Kristie too, became pregnant shortly thereafter. The other Christie, a beautiful woman full of love for God, still waits for a child. She is much, much stronger than I and I felt guilty for some time because I truly believe she should have been the one to receive that specific answered prayer. Our loving God really does work in mysterious ways!) [Chapter 14, Miracles Still Happen, by Jim Buffler. Available in the store on our website] By: Heather Welch, Wichita, KANSAS, 2004

Testimony 4 BIRTH OF GIANNA CLARE!!! I must tell you, with great excitement, about the wonderful intercession of St. Gianna in our family. While I was pregnant with our first child, my husband and I had decided to name our child Gianna, if we had a girl, because we have always felt very close to her. My pregnancy progressed normally up until the 29th week, when I developed sudden and severe pre-eclampsia. I was put on bedrest at home, but because I was quickly developing HELP syndrome I was put in the hospital. At exactly 31 weeks gestation, 9 weeks premature, I was put on a monitor in the hospital to check on the baby, once every 8 hours. I had a sonogram in 3D that showed that little Gianna was doing ok and they expected to try bedrest for a few more weeks. When I was on the fetal heart monitor, that afternoon, baby Gianna's heart rate started dropping below 80 beats per minute. This was a dire emergency and a miracle that her distress was caught by the infrequent monitoring. My doctors were very concerned about my kidneys and liver and did not think anything was wrong with our daughter. After a sonogram confirmed that little Gianna was dying, I was rushed into an 4 minute emergency C Section. My doctor stopped my husband in the hall and told him he was not sure that either of us would be ok--he didn't know what was wrong. While I was being rushed into surgery, I begged St. Gianna to intercede for us and I pleaded for the strength to give up my life for her if that is what it took for my little girl to live. The NICU staff was waiting to resuscitate her, and the priest who anointed me was waiting outside to baptise her, but with St. Gianna's help that wasn't necessary. Gianna Clare made her dramatic entrance into the world on Feb.24th, 2006. She was a feisty, 3-pound miracle. After my husband and I cried for the joy of listening to her cry for the first time, she was whisked off to the NICU and I was still fully awake and alert as they finished the C section. The whole room gave a collective gasp as the doctor delivered my placenta. It was completely riddled with blood clots and infarcs or dead spots. They have no explanation as to how little Gianna received any oxygen in the womb or why she was not a miscarriage or stillborn. We were also told not to expect too much from her, because of the lack of oxygen and her 5 week NICU stay. I am happy to report that our little firecracker is a completely normal, bright, 5 year old who will happily skip off to kindergarten next month. She enjoys T-ball, learning Spanish, and swimming. She has a big heart and is especially close to Our Lord and Our Blessed Mother. Her first word, at 8 months of age, was "Jesus". We know that God has a special plan for our little Gianna and that Saint Gianna continues to intercede for us. When Gianna was 2 weeks old I had a pulmonary embolism, when a large clot broke off and traveled to my lung. I was told that only 30% of patients survive the initial blood clot. I was in the ICU for a week, while Gianna was in the NICU at the hospital across the street! I was later diagnosed with 4 clotting disorders and I will take blood thinners for the rest of my life. St. Gianna also helped Gianna's little brothers, Joey and Dominic, to make less dramatic entries into the world. With the help of wonderful, specialized, medical care and injectable blood thinners, we continue to have tumultous times with my health. (I had TIA's or small strokes after Joey was born) but through it all our marriage and our witness to the truths of our faith have strengthened. We are constantly reminded of God's great and infinite mercy when we look into Gianna's beautiful brown eyes. We are very aware of the fragility of life and we enjoy everyday of the new life we have been granted through the intercession of St. Gianna! By: Jenny R., Peoria, ILLINOIS, August 1, 2011

Testimony 5 DIFFICULT PREGNANCY - RELICS -- VISION OF A WOMAN I attended a church service in Rockaway, New Jersey on January 22, 2011 where St. Gianna's relics were. I was six months pregnant at the time and my baby was given the diagnosis of severe fetal hydrocephalus (fluid in the brain). My husband and I were told to prepare for the worst for our baby; that he may severe neurological issues and medical problems. We were told that many parents in our situation terminate their pregnancy, but that was not an option for me. We sat through the service and listened to all of the miracles where St. Gianna had interceded. When it was time to go up and touch her relics, we did. Nothing significant occurred, but I rubbed one of the cards on my belly praying that we would be given a miracle for our little baby. After the service, my family walked out when I noticed that we were missing my 3 year old son's winter hat, which I knew he was wearing when we walked in as it was freezing out. My husband went back into the church to get his hat, but it was nowhere to be found. We happened to be the last ones out of the church too, so we know no one could have taken it. While my husband was inside, he was greeted by a few members of the society, who were cleaning up. He explained our situation and the members asked if they could pray with us. My husband came out and got us and we all (myself, my son, and my mother) went back inside where we all prayed in a circle. I touched St. Gianna's gloves to my stomach and we held the cards as a family while we prayed. We then left the church. A few hours later, my husband and I stopped at the mall to pick up a few quick items. I went to use the ladies room and when I was standing at the sink washing my hands, I could sense that someone was watching me. I looked over and standing there was a woman, who I had never seen before. The woman just stared at me for a few seconds. She then smiled at me and I smiled back. It was a smile like I had never had before...just a warm, genuine smile. I then left the ladies room and walked down the hallway to where my husband was waiting for me. The lady came out of the bathroom and proceeded to walk behind us, a distance back. My husband did not recognize her either. Then, as we turned around again to see her, she just disappeared. It was very strange and to this day I believe that this lady was significant to St. Gianna. Almost as if it was St. Gianna telling me that everything was going to be ok with my unborn child. The months passed and we prepared ourselves for all of the what ifs that could come with our baby. I had to have a c-section because the fluid continued to increase in my son's head and the doctors told me that his head would be too big to deliver normally. We prepared for our son to have surgery the day after he was born to have a shunt placed in his brain to drain the fluid and that he would be in the NICU of the hospital for quite some time. All research we did and all of the doctors told us to be prepared for neurological issues. On April 12, 2011, I gave birth to my son Austin. He came into this world healthy and strong. His head was only slightly bigger than it should have been. The doctors examined him and determined that there was no need to rush and do surgery on him. We were told by several doctors that Austin was "not what they expected him to be". He thrived and graduated from the NICU two days after birth and was released from the hospital on the third day with me. He came home and has continued to be healthy and happy. He did end up needing a shunt which he got when he was four weeks old, but again, has continued to do amazing. We have been told by all of his doctors that there does not appear to be any neurological issues and that there is no reason to believe that he will be anything by a normal child. I truly believe that St. Gianna had a hand in the miracle of my son. He has beat all of the odds so far and continues to amaze and bless us everyday!!! You can read all about my St. Gianna experience and see pictures of Austin on my blog: www.miracleinweyville.blogspot.com (St. Gianna experience is described in more detail in the January 23, 2011 posting). By: Kelly W., Unionville, NEW JERSEY, May 24, 2011

Testimony 6 BRAIN SURGERY - 11 YEAR OLD GIRL Hello! We are parishioners at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Gainesville, VA. In October of 2010, one of your people came to our parish for veneration of St. Gianna's relics and we wanted to share with you what our family experienced. Our now 11 year old daughter, Ashley, was diagnosed with a malformation of the brain in January 2009. (Chiari 1 Malformation) At the time, her symptoms were not debilitating so she was monitored by Dr. Ben Carson at Johns Hopkins Hospital. By the beginning of October 2010, her symptoms were becoming more severe and occurring more often so we called for an appointment with Dr. Carson hoping to change medicine to keep her pain manageable. A few days before the appointment, our family was blessed to hold the gloves St. Gianna wore and we even put the gloves on Ashley's head. At the appointment, Dr. Carson strongly recommended surgery to relieve the pressure in her brain. We always knew this was a possibility, but were not prepared to hear it at that time. When we left the appointment, Ashley said, "I guess St. Gianna wants Dr. Carson to cure me instead." We were told to call and schedule the surgery and were given the date of December 8th, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. We know that was not a coincidence! We prayed, said a novena to St. Gianna and waited. On December 7th we met with Dr. Carson and he explained to us the procedure letting us know Ashley's condition was quite pronounced and he would not only have to shave part of the skull, but would actually have to go into the brain. (This is not always required and we were hoping he wouldn't have to do this since it is very risky, but he is the best so we trusted and prayed.) We attended the vigil Mass that night as a family. Ashley was so brave the day of surgery. She did not take any drugs to help calm her and she even walked into the operating room and hopped onto the operating table by herself! After 3 hours and 50 minutes, Dr. Carson came to talk with us in the waiting room. He told us he didn't have to do the riskiest part because the first part produced better results than he expected. He was genuinely surprised even though he has been doing this type of surgery for over 30 years! Of course, we knew it was the intercession of St. Gianna and the Blessed Mother! Ashley was in the hospital for 5 days and recovery was difficult. She was on lots of medicine and was taking them quite regularly. Even when we came home, things were still tough and we were concerned. She couldn't sit up for very long and still had trouble walking on her own. We kept praying and 2 days later it was if she just had a stiff neck and that's it! She took pain medication once that day and sat up for almost the entire day. She walked to the bathroom on her own and was just fine! Ashley has been symptom free since her surgery and Dr. Carson doesn't expect that to change. She now has no restrictions and can do all that any 11 year old can do. Thank you God, our Blessed Mother and Saint Gianna! God Bless, Maria and David Cackett By: Maria and David Cackett, Gainesville, VIRGINIA, May 22, 2011

Testimony 7 ADOPTION [Editor's Note: The relics of Saint Gianna visited Manassas, Virginia] Hi everyone, As you may know we are going to adopt a little girl. We will be going to get her after she is born in October or November, in El Salvador. Because she is such a blessing in our hearts already, and we are eagerly waiting for her to come by knitting hats and blankets and already loving, and by giving her a name. We are going to name her Gianna Francisca after Saint Gianna. We were starting to feel like the day was not going to be anytime soon that our adopted baby would come, but when we prayed over the relics of Saint Gianna something happened, my husband named her that night during prayer ( he didn't even want to think about a name yet , b/c he didn't want us to get our hopes up ), so as I said that night during family prayer, he named our child to be. I cried, I felt like he and I were so moved by God's love and His Holy Spirit. We spoke with El Salvador last night and little Gianna is in her mother's womb, right now. I ask that I could have your prayers for her sake. That her mother takes good care of her body while she is carrying Gianna, and that we have a safe trip to go get her and carry her home. I know that this is an adoption, but I feel as if I myself am carrying her, I already have a deep love for my Gianna even though she isn't here. So please pray that everything goes according to plan and that we can bring her home and to L.C. soon [homeschooling moms]. Thanks and God Bless- also if anyone wants to give away baby items I would like them, I have nothing anymore- my last child is about to be seven. Thanks for Your Prayers, By: Mary C., Dumfries, VIRGINIA, March 27, 2011

Testimony 8 PREGNANCY AFTER 13 YEARS! I am so happy to announce that after 15 years of marriage and 13 years of trying to conceive, we have been blessed with a pregnancy. I am about three months pregnant now and I want to thank Saint Gianna and our Heavenly Father for this wonderful blessing. I have PCOS and was told that it would be very hard, even impossible, for me to conceive a child. But with much faith and prayers, we have proven so many "specialists" wrong. My husband and I traveled from Southeastern NORTH CAROLINA to Warminster, PA in November 2010 to visit Saint Gianna's Shrine and I truly believe that that trip was a blessed trip and is why after many years of sadness and wanting a child we are now awaiting our first little angel. Thank you, Saint Gianna. By: Erica V., Pink Hill, NORTH CAROLINA, March 21, 2011

Testimony 9 INFERTILITY Testimony for graces received through intercession by St. Gianna Beretta Molla After our daughter was born, we took for granted the fact that her conception happened rather quickly. We thought it would be easy to conceive again and did not give much thought to things like secondary infertility. By the time our daughter's first birthday arrived we knew it was the right time for us to have a second child. Little did we know the journey we were about to take. It would be eight months before we were able to conceive again and, though a little weary from concern; we were elated that God had blessed us with a pregnancy. Soon afterward (at about 7 weeks) we lost our baby, suffering a miscarriage. The loss of this baby was an emotional time that we pray no one will ever have to endure. For the next eighteen months we prayed for hope, guidance and another miracle. We had many discussions around whether or not we should seek infertility help. In the spring of 2010, after much thought and prayer, we made an appointment with a fertility doctor. The appointment was still a few weeks away and I had faith that God would bless us somehow before that appointment. In May of 2010 my mother asked me to accompany her to the St. Gianna Shrine in Warminster. She knew of St. Gianna’s intercession for those with trouble conceiving and suggested I come with her to venerate the gloves. We visited the shrine on the evening that St. Gianna’s son, Pierluigi, was visiting from Italy. After the Mass I went to the gloves. As I knelt in front of the gloves I was so overcome with emotion that I could only nod when the woman presenting them asked me if I was praying for something special. She then asked if it was pregnancy I was praying for and I responded yes. She told me to take a holy card that had been touched to the gloves and place it on my belly everyday and say the prayer. She also told me to make sure I come back and tell the shrine when I am pregnant, because St. Gianna almost always has favorable responses to those asking for a baby. I left with a new feeling of hope. Every day I prayed and placed the card on my belly. Five weeks later I found out I was pregnant. My husband and I eagerly cancelled our appointment with the fertility doctors. I am now 26 weeks pregnant and so far have had a healthy, wonderful pregnancy. There is no doubt that St. Gianna’s intercession is the reason for this child. By: Donna N., Perkasie, PENNSYLVANIA, November 23, 2010

Testimony 10 TREMENDOUS BLESSINGS AND PROFOUND GRATITUDE! I have written an earlier testimony regarding being 15 weeks pregnant with twin girls and being diagnosed with Stage II invasive breast cancer. [My husband and I had tried to have children for 12 years. We prayed to St. Gianna and visited the shrine, and I laid her glove on my stomach. We then found out that I was pregnant with twins!!] With the intercession of St. Gianna, I was able to successfully complete 3 rounds of chemotherapy with the babies inside of me. The twin girls, Giavanna and Gillian, were born in June 2008 HEALTHY and happy! This was all due to the intercessions of St. Gianna. Also, Gillian did not pass 4 hearing tests in her left ear. We brought her to the St. Gianna shrine in Warminster, PA, and I placed a glove on Gillian's left ear. Three days later, Gilli received a clean bill of health with her hearing. Truly a miracle! This past summer (May of 2010), I had a pounding headache. I went to the emergency room and found out through a CAT scan that I had blood on the brain. I had suffered a stroke, and a brain hemorrhage as a result of the blood clot in my brain. This all happened as a result of the anti-cancer drug that I was prescribed. As I laid in the emergency room and the doctor was explaining that I would need to be immediately transferred to the ICU in a Philadelphia neurological hospital, I felt the presence of St. Gianna. I kept asking her to intercede for me so I would continue to be alive for my twin girls. The doctor informed my husband that I would probably not survive due to these health complications. Throughout the entire experience, I felt St. Gianna with me. As I was in the ICU, many skilled doctors came in to review my chart and give me various "tests" to assess how much the stroke affected my body and abilities. One doctor commented that what he read in the chart was not congruent with the patient he saw. I was able to complete all the tasks he asked me to do. The doctor said that it was "divine intervention" that had SAVED ME from dying from this stroke and brain hemorrhage. I believe it to be from St. Gianna remaining by my side throughout it all and interceding for me. I love St. Gianna with all my heart. Thank you, St. Gianna, for allowing me to still enjoy each and every day with a renewed spirit, and for allowing me to BE WITH MY CHILDREN as their mother. I love you!! Document Available :- My daugher Gillian\'s failed hearing tests and then her positive test! Also, my CAT scan from my stroke/brainhemorrhage/blood clot in brain Option Selected:- I grant the Society of St Gianna the permission to edit and post my intercession By: Jeanie T., Oaks, PENNSYLVANIA, October 20, 2010

Testimony 11 BONE MARROW TRANSPLANT CANCELLED! March 21, 2010: Please intercede for my son S who has been treated for Aplastic Anemia through a bone marrow transplant, but now is starting to falter. Please do not let his bone marrow fail again and direct his doctors to treat him with divine direction. [prayer cards touched to the gloves of St Gianna were sent to him right away] March 29, 2010: Just wanted to let you know we received our prayer cards on Saturday, March 27, 2010. I told my son the life story of Saint Gianna Beretta Molla. That she loved children so much that she still prays for them now that she is in heaven. I gave him one of the cards and told him to read the prayer on the back. Last Friday [March 19th], the doctors were firm that he would need another bone marrow transplant, but wanted to consult with the bone marrow transplant team and the head of the bone marrow transplants at Johns Hopkins Hospital. After he had blood work today [March 29th], we got a call from his doctor and said that they do not want to do a bone marrow transplant at this time and that they need to watch and wait as it appears that what is going on is HIS BODY IS MAKING ITS OWN CELLS NOW. We have many more months of waiting, praying and concern, but I feel that many people in heaven and earth are helping and praying for my son. [emphasis and dates added by editor] By: S., Evans, NY March 29, 2010

Testimony 12 CAN A BABY BE BORN AT 22 WEEKS? STORY OF BABY GIANNA! Email received Oct. 19, 2009: "I would like to inquire about whom I can contact about having a St Gianna relic visit my cousin in the hospital. She is 22 weeks pregnant and her water broke over the weekend and the baby will need to be delivered soon." [visit of relics to hospital on Oct. 20 and Oct. 25, 2009] Oct. 26, 2009: "I wanted to update you on Desiree and Baby Gianna. Gianna was born by emergency c-section last night. She weighs 1 lb. So far it seems she is doing well. Desiree is doing well too. Gianna has a long road ahead of her so we just continue to pray that she will gain the strength she needs to remain healthy. I attached a picture for you. Feel free to pass this along to anyone else you had praying for them and please continue to pray!" Jan. 6, 2010: Gianna is doing well. She is 3 lbs 1 oz now. So, she more than tripled her weight since birth! She is breathing on her own most of the time with some oxygen assistance when needed. She is eating well and they recently moved her to a larger bed and started putting real clothes on her. Desiree and Anthony are doing well too. They visit her every day and have high hopes with each day as she gets stronger and stronger. Feb. 6, 2010: "I just wanted to share the latest on baby Gianna with you. She is now 5 lbs and they just removed her feeding tube yesterday. She is eating well and her parents expect her to be home within the next couple of weeks!" By: Gina M. of Philadelphia, PA [compiled by Joe Cunningham]

Testimony 13 PREGNANCY On October 11,2009, a day before my birthday, my husband and I went to the Shrine of our Lady of Guadalupe in Lacrosse Wisconsin. This is where I saw the big picture of Saint Gianna and learned about her life. Right away I asked her to intercede for me to have a child although I had a doubt then because my husband did not have a biological child from his previous marriage and the doctors told him that he has a fertility problem. But I still asked Saint Gianna for a miracle. I touched her gloves that were venerated there... Now, I am almost 9 weeks pregnant. Thank you so much Saint Gianna... thank you so much my God... [Editor's note: There is a large painting of St Gianna, 14' x 5' inside the church at the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Also, there is a pair of gloves of St Gianna obtained by Cardinal Raymond Burke, the founder of that Shrine] By: Cynthia T. of Madison, Wisconsin Feb. 3, 2010

Testimony 14 SPINA BIFIDA - GONE! Baby Rousseau born with spina bifida healed miraculously. Thank you St. Gianna for your prayers. By: Paulette K of Ontario, CANADA Jan. 24, 2010

Testimony 15 BABY'S CHEST TUMOR GONE! In August of 2007, my then-seventeen-month old daughter, Constance, was diagnosed with a very rare mass or tumor in her chest cavity that was said to be very resistant to treatment. The doctors informed my husband and me that we would be dealing with the growth for many years to come and maybe into Constance's adulthood. A married couple from the Saint Gianna Society visited our home in the Fall of that year and laid Gianna's glove on my sick daughter's chest while we prayed together. Our whole family felt great peace and comfort after the visit and continued with doctor's visits, scans and medication for Constance. I am so happy to say that in this Fall, just two years later, Constance had a normal chest x-ray and was dismissed for services by her specialist. My husband and I strongly believe that God intervened for us with the help of Saint Gianna and with all the prayers and support we received from our community of faith. By: Maria H. of Doylestown, PA Jan. 4, 2010

Testimony 16 (addition to "cancer-free" below) Welcome to the World: Nicholas Augustine C. Born Thursday, Dec. 17th at 12:05 p.m., 6 lbs. 12 oz., 19.5" Everyone is healthy, and very happy! By: D. & T. of Delaware Dec. 21, 2009

Testimony 17 PREGNANCY AFTER 3 YEARS OF WAITING - Philippines After 3 yrs of infertility and praying to Saint Gianna, I now ask for a healthy pregnancy. I am being tested for immunological problems that lead to miscarriage. Thank you, Saint Gianna, for your intercession in giving me a miracle baby according to my OB. Hope my baby will survive and I will be able to carry him or her to full term without too many complications By: Rose S., Country of Philippines Dec. 16, 2009

Testimony 18 CANCER, CANCER-FREE! THEN, CONCEPTION! My husband (D) had a rare sinus cancer, and you came to our home in NJ with much inspiration, and hope in St. Gianna. I am happy to say that D is coming up on 2 years now, Cancer FREE!! We are so blessed... so much so that we are expecting our 6th child on Christmas Eve! D was supposed to be sterile after his cancer treatments... but miracles continue to happen in our lives for sure... God is ever present. I hope all is well with you and your family... and that your inspiring ways continue to make people aware of the incredible Saint Gianna! Have a Blessed Christmas! Faith to you! T & D S, D, A, I, A... and the new baby yet to be born! By: T & D of Delaware Dec. 10, 2009

Testimony 19 LUMP IN UTERUS IS GONE! On Monday, November 23, after having pre-surgical studies done to undergo a hysteroscopy, as I have had already three months of bleeding and the doctors having seen a lump in my uterus, my work day continued. I went into a church, and without knowing who Saint Gianna was, I left an intention in a notebook, asking her for my health, my children and my marriage…then, I took a leaflet located next to the notebook and I sat down to read it. It was a brief biography of the Saint. When I read that she had had an illness in the uterus, I was moved and felt that God had made me enter there, for her to keep me company in these difficult moments. Afterwards, I went to the office and I bought her medal and the novena, which I started that same day. I commented about this episode that same day with my brother-in-law, a priest, and my husband. . On Wednesday, the 25th, the day scheduled for the surgical intervention, I went to the doctor’s because they were going to do the last transvaginal echogram. The doctor was present, and they saw that the size of the endometrius had diminished very much in size, that they had almost missed it and that the lump was not visible any longer. Today, Sunday, as I am writing to you, I am continuing with the novena and yesterday I went to Mass on the 28th in honor of Saint Gianna whom I met this week and who is going to accompany me and my family, the rest of my life. THANK YOU, Saint Gianna, for your intercession, and for the grace received. I hope you will find someone to translate this text. its easier for me to write in Spanish. thank you. [Editor’s Note: the 28th refers to the 28th of April, Saint Gianna’s Feastday]. (Translated by Joe Cunningham, President Emeritus, Society of Saint Gianna Beretta Molla) El lunes 23 de noviembre, despues de haberme hecho los estudios pre quirurjicos para someterme a una histeroscopia, ya que habia tenido tres meses de metrorragias y veian un bulto en mi utero, continue mi dia laboral. Pase por una iglesia , y sin saber quien era Sta Juana, deje una intencion en un cuaderno , pidiendo por mi salud, y mis hijos y mi matrimonio..... luego tome una hojita de al lado del cuaderno. y me sente a leerla, era una breve biografia. Cuando lei que ella habia tenido una enfermedad en el utero, me conmovi y senti que Dios me habia hecho entrar alli, para tener una compania en estos momentos dificiles . . En ese momento fui a la secretaria y compre su medallita y la novena, que ese mismo dia comence.Al momento una gran serenidad me acompaño. Le comente este episodio ese mismo dia a mi cuñado, sacerdote y a mi marido. y al otro dia a mi hija. el miercoles 25 , dia previo a la intervencion, fui al medico porque me iban a hacer una ultima ecografia TV transvaginal El medico estaba presente, y vieron que habia disminuido mucho el tamaño del endometrio , que casi no habian perdidas y que no se veia mas el bulto.. Hoy domingo les escribo, continuo con la novena y ayer fui a la misa del 28 en honor a Sta. Juana, a quien conoci esta semana y se que me va a acompañar a mi y a mi familia , el resto de mi vida. GRACIAS Santa Juana, por tu intercesion, y por la gracia concedida. By: Gabriela D. of the Country of ARGENTINA, Nov. 29, 2009

Testimony 20 ESTRANGEMENT IN FAMILY, THEN RECONCILIATION! I was totally bereft. My relationship with my daughter and her husband had deteriorated to the point where we didn't speak and I could not go to their home. They would not let me see the grandchildren with whom I had been very close. I have been away from the Catholic Church for 35 years but had read an article about St. Gianna. I felt forgotten by God ...forgotten by all, but because St. Gianna is the patron saint of families, and she had been a mother and knew the love of a mother's heart,...I prayed to her to intercede on my behalf and to heal all of our hearts. I wasn't sure any reparation was possible but asked St. Gianna to go to my daughter's heart and love her and cleanse her and then to do the same with my heart...and then I wept. Within the week my daughter and I were speaking on the phone and within two weeks I was welcome in their home, sharing meals and loving them and my grandchildren. I have no doubt it was St. Gianna's intercession that restored harmony and love to my family. I am eternally grateful! By: Carol B., State of Arizona, November 6, 2009

Testimony 21 INFERTILE 5 YEARS - 41 YEARS OLD Thank you St. Gianna for your intercession and miracle. My husband and I have been trying to conceive for over 5 years and within months of visiting your shrine and praying we were able to conceive. I am now 5 1/2 months pregnant at 41 years old and the baby is healthy and I have had no problems with the pregnancy. We want to thank you for all your help and support. By: by Angela N., Belleville, NJ, Nov. 3, 2009

Testimony 22 POLYCYSTIC OVARIAN SYNDROME (PCOS) [Editor's Note: Noelle has a history of PCOS and still has this health problem. It is well known that PCOS can affect a woman's menstrual cycle and deter her ability to bear children. As much as 12% of American women of childbearing age struggle with infertility. The ovum must be able to travel through the fallopian tubes without impediment, and ovulation may not be occurring due to PCOS]. "I went to fertility doctors for five years and didn't get pregnant. Then we heard of St. Gianna and I held her gloves. Next thing I knew, I got pregnant -- naturally! The doctors were stunned. My pregnancy was expected to end in miscarriage, but I came and venerated the gloves, placing them on my belly each week [ at the Shrine] and had a wonderful pregnancy and a very healthy baby." On Sunday, Sept. 20, 2009, 9-month old Gracyn visited the Shrine with her parents and both grandmothers. By: by Noelle and Matthew N. September 2009

Testimony 23 THREE MISCARRIAGES - THEN, THREE CHILDREN! Thank you St. Gianna for answering my prayers. After the birth of my son in 1997 my husband and I tried to have another child however, I was unsuccessful at carrying another baby to term and ended up having 3 miscarriages. For two years I prayed to St. Gianna to bless me with another child and on February 24, 2003, St. Gianna blessed me with a beautiful little girl. I have been blessed two more times and am now a very blessed mother of 4 children. My daughter had to pick a saint to represent in the annual Saints' parade at her grade school and upon telling her the story of how I prayed that Saint Gianna would send her to me and her father, she chose to represent St. Gianna at her parade. We also plan on visiting The Shrine of St. Gianna located at Nativity of Our Lord Parish in Warminster. Many years ago, I was a Confirmation sponsor for my cousin at this very parish! Thank you again St. Gianna for blessing me with four wonderful children! By: Jenifer N., West Chester, PA October 9, 2009

Testimony 24 PREGNANCY - GLOVE - WARMTH I was trying to conceive my first child. I prayed to Saint Gianna and I also held her glove . I felt a warm sensation over my entire abdomen when I did. I have a healthy son who will turn 2 soon. By: Diana W., Swedesboro, NJ October 8, 2009

Testimony 25 INFERTILITY - "GOD-INCIDENCES" OF DATES My niece Tricia and her husband Mark had their baby, Anna Mary Collins, baptized on October 4th, 2009. Tricia had been married to Mark since 1998 and had not been able to conceive. I used to feel bad for them. I thought to myself, "Here we are praying for all kinds of people to conceive, why can't we pray for them too." I did tell them in the past that we would pray for them, but I did not make a big deal out of it. Here is the interesting part: The baby Anna Mary was born on Saint Gianna's feastday April 28th and baptized on her birthday October 4th. Tricia and Mark were married on May 16th, the canonization date of Saint Gianna (but in 1998, not 2004). For a present, I gave them a small medal of St Gianna which they pinned to the baby's dress. One lady got the shivers when we were discussing the dates and "coincidences". What do you think? (The family photo is in our "Photos" section on this website). By: Joe Cunningham, President Emeritus, Society of Saint Gianna

Testimony 26 ADOPTION – DOWNS SYNDROME 8/4/09, [after trip to Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe, LaCrosse, Wisconsin to meet with the son of St Gianna, Mr. Pierluigi Molla] We just want to deeply thank you for the opportunity to actually touch and smell St. Gianna's black leather gloves while we were attending the special reception for Gianna babies at the Our Lady of Guadeloupe Shrine in LaCrosse, WI on Aug. 2. It moved us beyond words. I felt a desire to share with you a bit more of our story. Feel free to share it with Pierluigi and the family. I sent it to Sister but I did not have a chance to ask her if she was able to share it with him. Gianna is our soon-to-be-adopted daughter. She is 10 months old and we have been with her since birth. As you will read in the article, it is a wonderful situation with an open adoption that was brought together very divinely with the help of Archbishop Dolan. Gianna is named after St. Gianna because we are very pro-life and Archbishop actually introduced her to us when we asked him if he would pray for our fertility. I looked her up, read her book and was in love with her. Mia is after the birthmother's grandmother, and Rose is after St. Therese, my favorite saint. So her name means Gianna (meaning God is gracious), Mia (my), Rose. I love it! Unfortunately our adoption process has not gone very smoothly with our agency and it is taking a while for a letter to be drafted to be sent to the courts, but we cannot wait until we can call her our daughter! She is a true blessing sent directly to us from God. I believe that we haven't gotten pregnant yet because God was waiting for us to say yes to adoption so he could give us Gianna. Not only is she a blessing in and of herself, but she is special with the gift of Down Syndrome. 85-95% of Down syndrome babies are aborted these days. We really have a desire to get our story out to awaken the true blessing of adoption and down syndrome and the reality of abortion. How could anyone imagine having aborted a gorgeous little baby like her, now that you have meet her, you understand how showing her to the world, it could change hearts. We were featured in our local Archdiocese paper in December 2008 that went out to all of Milwaukee Journal/Sentennial newspaper subscribers as a special Advent insert. (I have attached a copy.) Here is also a link to another article written about us in the New York Times http://www.nypost.com/seven/03022009/news/regionalnews/super_dolan_turned_us_into_a_family_157605.htm . We have also just been in a news story in Stevens Point, WI when our Gianna was the youngest to ever win a gold medal in the Special Olympics. Here is a link to that article:http://www.wsaw.com/sports/headlines/47074622.html We are inspired by our daughter to get the word out about adoption, abortion and down syndrome. 90% of downs babies are aborted these days. When we decided to adopt, after 4 years of trying for our own child, we were approached within weeks and asked if we would be willing to adopt a down syndrome baby. It was God's providence who brought Gianna's birth mom and us together. Her birthmother's ultrasound doctor actually suggested abortion to her even though she had "no termination" on her chart. It breaks my heart that she might have not had the chance to grace this world with her gorgeous eyes if her mother hadn't been strong and believed in that chance at life for her little one. You see, the birth mom has 5 boys, one of them has severe cerebral palsy that requires 24 hour care. She felt that she would not have the time to give to another special needs child and thought that maybe she was carrying her for someone else. Indeed she was! We share an open adoption and it is working wonderfully. Gianna will grow up to know her 5 brothers, and we have gained a marvelous family. We were in the hospital when Gianna was first born for one week and have also surpassed an amazing open heart surgery from which she recovered from in 5 days with hardly any medication for pain. We are ready for wherever God will take us next. She is an inspiration. My desire is to show that sweet little face to the world, as she isn't ready to give up the fight for DS. Thank you so much Mr. Cunningham for spreading the word about this glorious Saint. She will inspire many at a time this country needs it. And thank you from the bottom of our hearts for being there and asking us about our story and giving us that tremendous opportunity to venerate St. Gianna's gloves. What an amazing day. By: Charles, Deb and Gianna Nevsimal, Kewaskum, Wisconsin. 8/4/09

Testimony 27 INFERTILITY - PREGNANCY Thank you St. Gianna for making my dreams come true to be a mother. I have struggled with fertility and upon learning of the Shrine, I came up several times. The day before one of my treatments, I laid the gloves on my stomach 3 times. A few weeks later I found out I was pregnant with triplets. I did lose the one at 9 weeks but the other 2 were going strong. Every trip to the ER during my pregnancy, I had your card with me each time, and even in the delivery/ operating room when I delivered my babies 10 weeks early. My daughter Gianna was born at 2lbs 11 oz and my son Matthew at 3lbs 11 oz. I was told to expect a lot of bad days but every day has been a good one and I was finally able to bring them home after a month. Thank you again for my miracle babies and for making my dreams come true! By: Nicole, Philadelphia, PA. July 18, 2009

Testimony 28 PREGNANCY - AGE 38 Hello! I just wish I could reach out and tell the world my gift that was only made possible by praying to St. Gianna . I have been to fertility clinics for 6 yrs and an adoption that just failed in Jan. 2009. I turned 38 in Feb. and in April I found myself to be pregnant, I have been blessed, my prayers were answered. My daughter will be born in November. with the name GIANNA . THIS IS AFTER A COMPLETE YEAR WITH NO FERTILITY HELP. A year before, we had 3 embryos placed in me and absolutely nothing happened. My husband and I have someone to thank now. I had a Mass card that was touched by her glove and I had her medal over my heart, We are married 6 1/2 yrs . Everyone gave up on our one dream to be parents THANK YOU ST GIANNA we love you................ [Editor's Note: re. IN VITRO FERTILIZATION: See this link for further advice in conformity to our Church's teachings: http://www.ncbcenter.org/FrTad_MSOOB_6.asp ] By: anonymous. July 15, 2009

Testimony 29 UTERINE FIBROIDS - PREGNANCY I have a very wonderful story with St. Gianna and would be happy to share it. Two years ago my husband and I conceived our first baby. I chose the name Gianna for a girl. At that time I didn't even know that a St. Gianna existed. I just liked the name. Unfortunately, that pregnancy ended in a miscarriage. Last spring we found out we were pregnant again. We were told by the doctors that that pregnancy too would result in a miscarriage. I was so upset and I didn't even know how to handle my emotions. I just prayed for God to help me through it and to make me strong. It was a couple weeks before Easter and I was on a Catholic website searching for Easter gifts. To my surprise, I stumbled across St. Gianna! I couldn't believe my eyes. After reading about her and finding out that she helps mothers with troubled pregnancies, I knew that God had answered my prayers and sent me a special angel to help me through my troubled time. I then found out that the St. Gianna shrine was about an hour away from my house. I visited the very next weekend with my mother. Unfortunately, that pregnancy could not be saved but I had a new found strength through St. Gianna. Last summer I started to see a specialist and he informed me that I had a very large fibroid on my uterus that could be preventing me from carrying a baby full term. I remembered St. Gianna and the uterine fibroid that she had. I again, found great strength in her as I went through surgery to have it removed. I pray to St. Gianna daily and have been since she was sent to me. I found out this weekend that I am pregnant again. It is very, very early in my pregnancy so I am not out of the woods yet. I will be visiting the shrine again this weekend and will continue to pray to St. Gianna for this pregnancy to last. I calculated my due date on the internet and to my surprise it said April 28th, St. Gianna's feast day!!!! By: Kim & Steve C. of New Castle, Delaware, Aug. 20, 2007

Testimony 30 Cure of Maronite Rite Deacon On August 7, 2007, a busload of pilgrims from Syracuse, New York arrived at the Shrine of St Gianna. With the 40 pilgrims was their priest, Father Amedeo Guida, and Rev. Mr. Paul Salamy, a deacon of the Maronite rite. Seven years ago, Deacon Salamy's wife died. In her end table he found a holy card of then Blessed Gianna. When the chance to accompany the pilgrims to the new Shrine of St Gianna was presented to him, Deacon Salamy wanted to come. The deacon had been suffering from a medical condition whereby doctors found a nodule growing on his thyroid. While at the Shrine, the deacon gave a powerful homily during the Mass about the intercession of saints, especially that of St Gianna. The pilgrims were told that theirs was officially the first bus of pilgrims to come to the shrine, but that more and more were anticipated. After the Mass, Deacon Salamy was blessed with the gloves of St Gianna and he became very emotional. The pilgrims departed the church with an excitement that something special had happened to them. When Deacon Salamy returned to continue his medical treatment, he underwent more tests to determine the size of the nodule. His doctor explained that the nodule was GONE! The first scan showed a nodule, but the second scan showed none. The doctor had no medical explanation, but the deacon spoke of God's intervention through His Saint Gianna. Deacon Salamy has requested 500 more holy cards as he intends to give homilies about St Gianna and his cure at the three neighboring Italian parishes. Nativity of Our Lord Church in Warminster, PA is blessed to be the only place other than St Gianna's hometown in Italy to have a shrine to her. May Jesus Christ be praised! By: Deacon Salamy as told to Joe Cunningham

Testimony 31 EXPLANATION OF SECOND MIRACLE OF SAINT GIANNA 28 April 2008 Prepare to be amazed! The 2nd miracle of St. Gianna Molla — Fr. John Zuhlsdorf In mid November 1999 a Brazilian woman named Elisabete Comparini Arcolino discovered she was pregnant for the fourth time. An echogram on 30 Nov. showed that the developing child was within a small sac only .8 cm in length and 2.3 cm in diameter. The doctor said that it was doubtful that with such a beginning for the gestation that child would come to term. On 9 December an echo showed the embryo a 1.0 cm in length but also a huge increase in coagulation of blood (blood loss), measuring 5.2 x 3.5 cm. On 19 Dec they found the beating heart of the child, but also a deterioration of the placenta in the lower region of the uterus. A pessimistic prognosis was given. The doctor following the case, Dr. Nadia Bicego Vieitez de Almeida, who had handled Elisabete’s previous pregnancies, said that with the great loss of blood Elisebete would probably spontaneously abort or they would have to do the procedure sooner or later. Contrary to expectations, the child’s heart kept beating and the pregnancy continued. On 11 February 2000 Elisabete realized there was a serious problem and went to the hospital. The echo showed that the gestational sack’s membrane had broken at 16 weeks of gestation and, while the fetus was alive, there was now a total absence of amniotic fluid. The radiologist testified that there was no amniotic liquid to protect the child from exposure to the outside world and from the external pressure of the uterus itself. This meant that both the child and mother were in serious danger of infection, etc. Dr. Bicego recommended termination of the pregnancy. Elisabete was put on a regime of super hydration, 4 l. of phleboclysis (intravenous injection of an isotonic solution of dextrose or other substances) per day. On 15 Feb a new echo showed that there was no significant increase in the volume of amniotic fluid and the volume was insufficient to bring the pregnancy to term. At this point, 15 Feb, the prognosis for the child was precisely zero. Two studies, one in Sao Paolo and one in San Francisco had looked at viability of pregnancies with a ruptured membrane at between 22-26 weeks, many more weeks after the case of Elisabete and her child. In the studies in every case examined every fetus was spontaneously aborted within 60 days of the rupture. In virtually all cases, a fetus of 16 weeks would abort with a few days. Dr. Bicega and other doctors told Elisabete that they had to do an abortion to save her life, and gave her some time to make the decision. But Elisabete, as she testified, knew in her heart that she could not do that and that she must try to bring the child to term. When the doctor came for the decision, Elisabete’s husband Carlos Cesar requested that a priest come. He called the parish priest of San Sebastiano, Fr. Ovidio José Alves di Andrade. Dr. Bicega said she would return again in 15 minutes with the documents for their signature approving the abortion. Present at the time Dr. Bicega came was a friend of Elisabete, named Isabel, who heard the exchange about the abortion. Isabel went to the hospital chapel to pray to Mary to help bring some clarity to the situation. There Isabel spent some time in prayer. When she was finished and got up to leave, she saw pass by the door the diocesan Bishop Diogenes Silva Matthes who had come to the hospital to visit another person. Bp. Silva had been celebrant of the wedding of Elisabete and Carlos Cesar at San Sebastiano where they worked as catechists. Isabel told the bishop what was going on and he went to Elisabete’s room and there learned the whole story. The bishop said, “Betinha, we will pray and God will help us” and he asked Dr. Bicega to wait a while longer. Then the bishop left. Shortly after the bishop left Fr. Ovidio arrived. He began to give Elisabete the sacrament of anointing. At that point the bishop returned. He had brought with him a biography of Bl. Gianna Beretta Molla. He said to Elisabete: “Do what Blessed Gianna did, and, if necessary, give your life for the child. I was praying at home and I said to the Blessed in prayer, ‘Now has arrived the opportunity for you to be canonized. Intercede before the Lord for the grace of a miracle and save the life of this little child.” Elisabete had known about Bl. Gianna and how she died and how the first miracle for her cause was for a woman who had terrible complications from a caesarian section. After knowing about Bl. Gianna, Elisabete herself, in her third pregnancy and after two previous caesarian sections, had decided to give birth normally despite the problems that entailed. At that time the same Bishop Silva had given her a holy card of Bl. Gianna. Elisabete was terribly afraid but she asked Bl. Gianna for help and gave birth to a child weighing over 5kg. Therefore, this time, reinforced by past experience and the help of Bl. Gianna and the same bishop, Elisabete told Dr. Bicega she would try to carry the child to term, so long at the child’s heart continued to beat. Various doctors at the hospital expressed their opinion that this was madness. However, Dr. Bicega later testified about that time: “But I, I don’t know if it was by intuition, through my own lack of courage, or if I was drawn by Elisabete’s faith which seemed to have no limit, decided to wait and see what happened.” Elisabete would later testify that for her: “Jesus’ greatest miracle was to change the doctor’s heart. She had been unmovable in her determination to perform abortions, but one day she said to me, ‘Your faith had made me think a great deal. Even I have faith now and so let’s wait for the death of the fetus”. Elisabete left the hospital and went to the home of Carlos Cesar’s aunt, Janete Arcolino, who was a nurse. Dr. Bicego lent them the sonar machine so that they could monitor the heart beat of the child and told them to check her temperature and blood pressure every six hours. They continued the super hydration treatments and eventually began a cortisone treatment to prevent problems with the child’s lungs. In the meantime, Fr. Ovidio testified later, the whole community was continuing to invoke Bl. Gianna, continuously asking for a miracle. The parish had been very pro-life and every month there was special blessing for women who were with child. Also involved in the prayers to Bl. Gianna was a community of Carmelite sisters who in turn had communicated the request to other convents in Brazil. For her part, Elisabete had a very hard time of things. Despite her faith in God and her past experience, there were times when she was terribly afraid she was going to die with her child. She felt herself sometimes quite abandoned by God and alone. She was worried about what would happen with her other three children if she died. Dr. Bicega followed the pregnancy closely and noted that during the whole time there was no accumulation of amniotic fluid. If Elisabete gained any, as soon as she would move to get up to go to the bathroom, she would again lose it all. When they had reached the 32nd week and when the baby weighed 1.80k, they decided for a caesarian section delivery, effected on 31 May 2000. The newborn daughter, Gianna, was in good shape with the exception of the left foot which was twisted, probably because of compression with the uterus. The problems did not cease there. They found that Elisabete had a wound within a uterine muscle to which the placenta had adhered, thus remaining in place. She had a serious hemorrhage and her lungs collapsed and wound up in intensive care for three days. As part of her treatment Dr. Bicega wanted to interdict her cycle with a kind of false menopause, which would result also in Elisabete not being able to lactate, but Elisabete said she did want to do that. The newborn was sent home on 17 June weighing 1.960kg. Later a surgical operation and therapy corrected the twisted foot. In July 2001 a pediatrician Dr. Maria Engracia Ribeiro examined the child completely and found her to be perfectly normal and healthy, intelligent and lively, with the strong personality. Another check on 17 January 2002 found no problems in any of the child’s development, with no immune or respiratory problems and was, for her age, in perfect health. The case of the asserted miracle was studied by the “Consulta Medica” of the Congregation for Causes of Saints on 10 April 2003 who determined that despite the severe prognosis for the fetus and the mother as the result of the total loss of amniotic fluid at the 16th week, and despite medical treatment inadequate for such a grave situation, the positive outcome of the pregnancy and health of mother and child were unexplainable in medical terms. The decree super miraculo was promulgated by the Congregation in the presence of Pope John Paul II on 20 December 2003. Since Gianna Beretta Molla had been beatified on 24 April 1994, her canonization was celebrated on 16 May 2004. By: Fr. John Zuhlsdorf explains SECOND MIRACLE

Testimony 32 ANOTHER BABY GIANNA! Through your prayers and the intercession of St. Gianna, I delivered a healthy baby girl named Gianna Maria in December 2008, and also for answered prayers to help a sister-in-law to conceive a baby, she is now expecting! By: Dede from State of Oregon, July 7, 2009

Testimony 33 CHEMOTHERAPY AND SURGERY WHILE PREGNANT/HEARING TEST I have 2 testimonies: First, while I was 15 weeks pregnant with my twins, I dropped something down my shirt and found a lump in my right breast. After going to two ob/gyns, they told me it was "nothing" and "normal". However, deep down I knew that it wasn't, so I pressed the issue and got the necessary tests, and it turned out to be invasive breast cancer. I had to undergo 3 chemotherapy treatments and one surgery with my twin girls still inside of me. I delivered my twins on June 4, 2008 (at 30 weeks) and they were PERFECT- a little small, but they even did not need any oxygen in the NICU!! I had visited the shrine to talk and ask St. Gianna before I got pregnant if she would interdcede for me, and I told her I would name a daughter after her. My one daughter's name is Giavanna, after St. Gianna. My second testimony has to do with my other daughter, Gilli. From her first hearing test, she did not pass in her left ear. For the next four, she still was not passing the tests. We went to see St. Gianna at the shrine and put the glove next to Gilli's left ear. Three days later, she got a clean bill of health and she could now hear out of that ear. St. Gianna has been there so much for me, and I cannot thank her enough. By: Jeanie, June 23, 2009

Testimony 34 ADDICTION TO COCAINE In January 2008 I began asking St. Gianna to intercede for my 42 year old daughter Angela who has been addicted to crack cocaine for 20+ years. We have also seen each other approx 3 times during that period. I asked St. Gianna\'s help because she is a mother and also a doctor and I believed she could help Angela come off the drugs and be reunited with her family. Today Angela is 7+ months drug free. She is in contact with her family almost daily. She is reading her Bible and other Christian books regarding the Eucharist and living a chaste life. She is also attending daily Mass. She tells anyone who would listen the wonders that God has done for her. Today I am having a Mass said in honour of St. Gianna for this great favour she obtained for us. By: grateful mother from Canada. June 9, 2009

Testimony 35 PREGNANT LADY WITH BLEEDING PROBLEM - PHILIPPINES "DEAR MOTHER ANGELICA, GREETINGS FROM THE PHILIPPINES! MY HUSBAND SENT AN EMAIL FOR ME TO YOU WHEN MY DAUGHTER WAS BORN SOME MONTHS AGO, AND LIKE HE SAID WE NAMED HER GIANNA ANGELICA. ...BLESSED GIANNA DID A "BIG" MIRACLE FOR ME PERSONALLY. I WAS WATCHING [MOTHER ANGELICA LIVE WITH HER GUEST JOSEPH W. CUNNINGHAM] WHEN I HAD ONE OF MY BLEEDING EPISODES WHILE PREGNANT WITH GIANNA. I BEGGED FOR HER TO HELP ME BRING MY BABY INTO THIS WORLD SAFELY AND PROMISED I WOULD NAME HER GIANNA...I NEVER HAD BLEEDING AFTER THAT DAY! MY DAUGHTER IS NOW ALMOST THREE MONTHS OLD AND IS MILD MANNERED, SHE SELDOM FUSSES. I ALSO NAMED HER AFTER YOU BECAUSE MY MOTHER AND I ARE AVID FANS... I ONLY ASK THAT YOU AND YOUR SISTERS WILL PRAY FOR ALL THE FAMILIES IN THE PHILIPPINES, WE ARE AS BELEAGUERED HERE AS ANY FAMILY IN THE U.S. GOD BLESS YOU AND YOUR EFFORTS." By: Sent by EWTN as result of TV program of October 13, 1999.

Testimony 36 TEENAGER WITH SUSPECTED LYMPHOMA GEORGE H., A CATHOLIC HIGH SCHOOL TEACHER, KNOWS A STUDENT, E.B., WHO EXCELS IN THREE SPORTS. RECENTLY, GEORGE MET THE BOY'S AUNT, A SISTER OF SAINT JOSEPH, WHO LOVES HER NEPHEW AND WHO TOLD GEORGE THAT THE BOY HAD BEEN DIAGNOSED WITH LYMPHOMA, A FATAL FORM OF CANCER. THE DOCTORS HAD SAID THAT THEY WERE 90% SURE OF THIS DIAGNOSIS. WHEN GEORGE MET THE RELIGIOUS SISTER, HE DID NOT HAVE A HOLY CARD OF BLESSED GIANNA WITH HIM. MUCH LATER IN THE DAY, A SATURDAY, GEORGE ATTENDED THE 5:00 PM MASS AND ENCOUNTERED THE NUN AGAIN. THIS TIME GEORGE WAS CARRYING THE HOLY CARDS. HE GAVE HER ONE AND TOLD HER THAT BLESSED GIANNA IS A POWERFUL INTERCESSOR. NOT LONG AFTERWARDS, THE DOCTORS BEGAN BACKING OFF THEIR DIAGNOSIS. E.B. HAS A RARE FUNGUS WHICH IS EASILY TREATABLE! GEORGE WAS VERY EXCITED TO RELATE THIS STORY OF THE FAVOR RECEIVED THROUGH THE INTERCESSION OF BLESSED GIANNA. By: George H. of Springfield, Montgomery County, PA. Feb. 9, 1999.

Testimony 37 DIAPHRAGM PUSHING BABY'S HEART AND LUNGS ANN, MICHAEL'S WIFE, WAS PREGNANT WITH TWIN SONS. DURING A ROUTINE ULTRA-SOUND EXAMINATION, THE DOCTORS FOUND A PROBLEM WITH THE HEART OF THE ONE, NICHOLAS. THE DIAPHRAGM HAD GROWN INTO THE CHEST AREA, AFFECTING THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE LUNGS. THE HEART WAS PUSHED TO ONE SIDE ALSO, THE OTHER TWIN, PAUL, SEEMED TO BE FINE. THE DOCTORS ADVISED A CAESARIAN SECTION AT THE EARLIEST POSSIBLE TIME AND IMMEDIATE SURGERY ON NICHOLAS. THE DOCTOR IS A RENOWN SURGEON WHO HAD TREATED THE BABY OF KAREN GARVER SANTORUM, THE WIFE OF [THEN] SENATOR RICK SANTORUM OF PENNSYLVANIA. THE CAESARIAN SECTION TOOK PLACE AROUND CHRISTMAS 1998. PAUL WAS BORN AND SEEMED OKAY. NICHOLAS HAD A SHUNTING OR DISPLACEMENT OF HIS HEART. MICHAEL, THE FATHER, HAD WRITTEN TO EVERY ACQUAINTANCE, BEGGING THEM TO PRAY A NOVENA TO BLESSED GIANNA. OUR SOCIETY LENT THE COUPLE A RELIC OF BLESSED GIANNA CONTAINED IN A LOCKET. AT THE CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL OF PHILADELPHIA WHERE THE CHILDREN WERE BORN, MICHAEL TAPED THE RELIC OF BLESSED GIANNA TO THE BED WHERE NICHOLAS LAY ALONG WITH THE HOLY CARDS. MICHAEL KEPT REPEATING, "GIANNA, SAVE MY SONS". THE PEDIATRICIAN ADVISED THE COUPLE THAT SHUNTING OF THE HEART IS A MAJOR PROBLEM--MOST BABIES DO NOT SURVIVE THE CONDITION. DURING THE FIRST NIGHT NICHOLAS ALMOST DIED SEVERAL TIMES. AFTER SEVERAL DAYS THE SURGERY TOOK PLACE. ONE OF THE THREE SERIOUS SCENARIOS INVOLVED DRAINING ALL THE BLOOD FROM NICHOLAS. THE SURGERY WAS A CLASSIC TEXTBOOK-TYPE SURGERY. THE FAMOUS DOCTOR WAS SO DELIGHTED THAT HE HUGGED THE CLOSEST NURSE NEARBY. NICHOLAS WAS EXPECTED TO REMAIN IN THE HOSPITAL FOR A MINIMUM OF 60 DAYS WITH A FOLLOW-UP VISIT AT SIX MONTHS. HE WAS GIVEN DOPAMINE WHICH SWELLED HIS BODY. HE WAS EXPECTED TO GET OFF THE DRUG IN A WEEK. CONTRARY TO ALL EXPECTATIONS, NICHOLAS CAME OFF THE DRUG IN ONE HOUR! DOCTORS COULD NOT BELIEVE THE RAPID RECOVERY HE WAS MAKING AND INVITED OTHER PARENTS WHOSE CHILDREN WERE FACING THE SAME CONDITION TO VISIT NICHOLAS. HE WAS DISCHARGED AFTER 15 DAYS WITHOUT RESTRICTIONS. ALTHOUGH THEY THOUGHT HE HAD 1 1/3 LUNGS, THEY ADVISED THAT NICHOLAS WOULD BE ABLE TO PARTICIPATE IN ALL ACTIVITIES. [but see below re lungs]. ALSO THERE IS A HIGH INCIDENCE OF DEAFNESS ASSOCIATED WITH THE CONDITION BUT NICHOLAS' HEARING WAS EXCELLENT. THE OTHER TWIN, PAUL, SEEMED FINE AT FIRST, BUT SOME TIME LATER HE WENT INTO RESPIRATORY ARREST AS HE DEVELOPED A HOLE IN HIS LUNG. THE HOLE HEALED ITSELF AND BOTH BOYS ARE NOW HOME WITH THEIR PARENTS AND FOUR OTHER SIBLINGS." Editor's Note: Subsequent x-rays indicated the presence of two fully-formed and operating lungs! By: Michael S. of Montgomeryville, Pennsylvania. Jan. 18, 1999

Testimony 38 VISION OF GIANNA BERETTA MOLLA "I AM WRITING TO SEND YOU MY BELATED THANKS FOR YOUR PRESENTATION ON BL. GIANNA, FOR MEETING WITH MY MOTHER AND FOR BRINGING GIANNA'S RELIC WITH YOU TO THE HANSENS' HOME. MY MOTHER DIED THE GRACE OF A HAPPY DEATH ON JUNE 5TH [1999] AT HOME. SHE WAS BLESSED WITH A VIATICUM MASS, ANOINTING AND MANY PRAYERS AND HYMNS HER FINAL WEEK. SHE HAD MORPHINE TO HELP WITH HER PAIN, YET SHE DID NOT COMPLAIN IN SPITE OF THE CANCER WHICH IN THE END HAD SPREAD THROUGH HER BODY. ONE NIGHT, WHILE STILL IN THE HOSPITAL, SHE GAZED AT THE CORNER OF HER ROOM WITH JOY ON HER FACE. WE ASKED HER IF SHE SAW HER ANGEL GUARDIAN, SHE DID NOT ANSWER. MINUTES LATER MOM SAID, "THE BLESSED MOTHER WAS JUST HERE". MANY SAID THE MORPHINE CAUSED HER THIS "VISION". I BELIEVE OUR LADY CAME TO COMFORT HER. MY FATHER AND EACH OF US CHILDREN TOOK BEDSIDE TURNS WITH HER, PRAYING WITH HER AND FOR HER (SHE DIDN'T SPEAK MUCH HER LAST WEEK). ONE EVENING I TOLD HER I WAS THERE TO PRAY. SHE SAID ANOTHER LADY CAME TO PRAY WITH HER TOO. WE BELIEVE IT WAS BLESSED GIANNA. MY FAMILY REGARDED BL. GIANNA AS HER DOCTOR AND HELPER IN HER FINAL DAYS ON EARTH. WE BELIEVE WE RECEIVED MANY GRACES FROM AND AFTER YOUR PRESENTATION. WE WILL CONTINUE TO PRAY TO BL. GIANNA AND PROMOTE HER CAUSE." By: Lynn K. of St Cloud, Minnesota. July 1, 1999

Testimony 39 ABORTION PREVENTION "For the past three weeks I have been praying to Blessed Gianna every day. I met a young woman through the Internet who is 19 and pregnant. Her boyfriend has been pushing her to have an abortion and she finally agreed to go along with it. Because Blessed Gianna counseled her patients against abortion and because she sacrificed her own life, rather that abort her baby, I figured that she would be a wonderful intercessor for me and my friend during this time. My friend wavered back and forth on her decision of whether or not to have an abortion for several weeks. I gave her information on fetal development, abortion procedures and abortion alternatives, but still she was afraid to oppose her boyfriend. At times I came close to despairing. Whenever I would be ready to admit defeat I would pray to Blessed Gianna that my friend would choose life and stand up to her boyfriend. Even in the darkest moments, I always felt aided and comforted by the angels and saints...particularly Blessed Gianna. I told her that if my friend chose life, I would tell everyone of Blessed Gianna's help. The strange thing is that I was unfamiliar with Blessed Gianna, until a notice about her web site came into my email-box the day I met my Internet friend! I don't know who sent it to me, but I'm so very glad that they did. My friend has decided to bring forth and raise her child. Her family now knows about her pregnancy and will be a source of great support to her. Our Lord used me as His instrument and graciously received the prayers of His servant, Blessed Gianna. If there is anything that I can do to further her canonization, please let me know. I would be delighted to receive a holy card of her image. " By: Jennifer N. of Canton, Michigan. April 10, 1999

Testimony 40 CONCERNS OF MISCARRYING BABY - PHILIPPINES "FOUR YEARS AGO, I WAS ON THE VERGE OF MISCARRYING MY BABY. I HAD HAD A PREVIOUS MISCARRIAGE AND MY HUSBAND AND I REALLY WANTED TO HAVE ANOTHER BABY. MY ELDEST SON, WHO WAS FOUR AT THE TIME, WAS ALSO FERVENTLY PRAYING FOR A BABY SISTER AND WE CERTAINLY DIDN'T WANT HIM TO BE DISAPPOINTED. I WAS BLEEDING AND CONFINED TO BED FOR MORE THAN A MONTH. THROUGHOUT MY CONFINEMENT AND PREGNANCY, I KEPT ON PRAYING TO BLESSED GIANNA WHO HAD BEEN NEWLY BEATIFIED THEN TO PROTECT MY UNBORN CHILD. IN FEBRUARY OF 1995, I GAVE BIRTH TO THE MOST BEAUTIFUL BABY GIRL WHOM WE NAMED MARIA GIANNA MARGARITA. NEEDLESS TO SAY, SHE WAS AN ANSWERED PRAYER AND A MIRACLE! I HAVE LONG WANTED TO SHARE THIS EXPERIENCE WITH THE APPROPRIATE AUTHORITIES FOR THE PURPOSE OF BLESSED GIANNA'S SANCTIFICATION. I HOPE THAT YOU CAN HELP ME FORWARD MY STORY BECAUSE I CERTAINLY WANT BLESSED GIANNA TO BE ST. GIANNA IN THE NEAR FUTURE." By: Ria S-L of the Country of Philippines. (from late 1990s)

Testimony 41 AN AMAZING PREGNANCY AND BIRTH! [Editor's note: This couple had been in contact with us by phone and by email. We truly thought this had been the miracle we had been waiting for. It was not the miracle that led to St Gianna's canonization, but we were ready to fully investigate and authenticate these events.] "I AM A VERY BLESSED WOMAN. I HAVE GIVEN BIRTH TO THREE BEAUTIFUL CHILDREN AND HAVE ONE ADOPTED SON. MY FIRST CHILD DIED FROM HYPOPLASTIC LEFT HEART SYNDROME. PRIOR TO TELLING OUR STORY IT IS IMPORTANT THAT CERTAIN MEDICAL FACTS ABOUT ME ARE UNDERSTOOD. I HAVE A MEDICAL CONDITION THAT DOES NOT MAKE IT EASY FOR ME TO BE PREGNANT. MOST DOCTORS WOULD SAY THAT I SHOULD NEVER GET PREGNANT. I HAVE A DIFFERENT VEIN SYSTEM THAN MOST PEOPLE AND MY UTERUS EXPANDING PUTS TOO MUCH PRESSURE ON THEM AND CAUSES ME TO GO INTO PRE-TERM LABOR. I ALSO GET BLOOD CLOTS WHENEVER MY ESTROGEN LEVELS ARE ELEVATED CAUSING ME TO NEED TO BE ON BLOOD THINNERS THROUGHOUT MY ENTIRE PREGNANCY. IF I WERE TO HAVE A C-SECTION, THEY WOULD HAVE TO CUT THROUGH MANY OF MY VEINS THAT SUPPORT MY DIFFERENT ORGANS CAUSING ME SEVERE RISK. SUNDAY, DEC. 10, 2000 TWO WEEKS BEFORE CHRISTMAS 2000 I FOUND OUT I WAS PREGNANT ON A SUNDAY. MONDAY, DEC. 11. MONDAY I WENT TO THE OB TO CONFIRM AND TOLD HIM I WAS HAVING TERRIBLE PAINS IN MY CHEST AND SIDES. BECAUSE OF THESE PAINS I SPENT MOST OF MY DAYS IN BED AND COULD NOT SLEEP WELL. MY OB SENT ME TO SEE AN INTERNIST TO ATTEMPT TO DETERMINE THE CAUSE OF THE CHEST AND SIDE PAIN. THE INTERNIST RAN SOME TESTS AND SAID IF THE PAIN DID NOT GET BETTER BY TUESDAY OR GOT WORSE TO GO TO THE EMERGENCY ROOM. TUESDAY DEC. 12. TUESDAY I WENT TO THE EMERGENCY ROOM AND WAS ADMITTED TO THE HOSPITAL WITH A BLOOD CLOT AT THE ENTRANCE TO MY LIVER. THE DR. IN THE EMERGENCY ROOM HAD RUN A BLOOD TEST TO VERIFY THAT I WAS PREGNANT. THE DR. SAID THAT THE HORMONE LEVEL THAT INDICATES HOW FAR ALONG AND HOW WELL YOUR BABY IS THRIVING WAS SO LOW THAT THE BABY WAS DEAD AND THAT I WOULD MISCARRY SOON. WEDNESDAY DEC. 13 - SATURDAY DEC. 16 IN THE HOSPITAL THE DOCTORS STARTED ME ON HEPARIN TO THIN THE CLOT. THEY WANTED TO DO A CAT SCAN OF MY CHEST DOWN TO MY PELVIS TO DETERMINE IF WHAT THEY WERE SEEING ON THE ULTRA-SOUND MACHINE WAS A NEW CLOT OR AN OLD ONE. MY OB AND I WANTED TO MAKE SURE THE BABY WASN'T ALIVE BEFORE WE DID THE TEST BECAUSE IT IS HIGH-POWERED RADIATION THAT WOULD BE PASSING DIRECTLY THROUGH THE BABY. OVER THE COURSE OF THE WEEK THE DRS. CHECKED MY HORMONE LEVEL. MY HORMONE LEVEL WENT FROM 300 TO 450 AND THEN DOWN TO 100 SUNDAY, DEC. 17 SUNDAY NIGHT I TALKED TO MY OB AND HE SAID THAT WITH A BLOOD HORMONE LEVEL COUNT OF 100 AND MY PREGNANCY BEING 4 WEEKS ALONG THAT THE BABY WAS DEAD. HE SAID I WOULD MISCARRY SOON AND THAT IT WAS SAFE TO DO THE CAT SCAN NOW. MONDAY DEC. 18 MONDAY I HAD THE CAT SCAN DONE FROM MY CHEST ALL THE WAY DOWN TO MY PELVIS. THE RESULTS CAME BACK THAT I HAD TWO BLOOD CLOTS AT THE ENTRANCE TO MY LIVER. ONE OF THE CLOTS WAS A NEW CLOT WHILE THE SECOND CLOT WAS DETERMINED TO BE AN OLD ONE. THEY ALSO SAW ON THE CAT SCAN THAT I HAD A MASS ON ONE OF MY OVARIES AND THEY SAID THAT I MAY HVE EXPERIENCED AN EPTOPIC PREGNANCY. THE DRS. SENT ME HOME ON FRAGMIN SHOTS, WHICH ARE BLOOD THINNERS AND SAID I WOULD MISCARRY SOON. DURING MY WEEK STAY AT THE HOSPITAL I SAID THE DIVINE MERCY CHAPLET AND CONTINUED IT THROUGH CHRISTMAS. MONDAY DEC. 18 I WAS DISCHARGED FROM THE HOSPITAL ON MONDAY. THURSDAY DEC. 21 FLEW TO RHODE ISLAND TO SPEND CHRISTMAS WITH MY HUSBAND'S FAMILY. TUESDAY DEC. 26 ONE NIGHT IN RHODE ISLAND I GOT SICK VERY SUDDENLY AND THEN STARTED CRAMPING. A COUPLE HOURS LATER I BEGAN TO BLEED LIGHTLY. THE CRAMPING CONTINUED THROUGHOUT THE NIGHT BUT THE BLEEDING STOPPED. THE FOLLOWING NIGHT I HAD BAD CRAMPING AGAIN BUT EXPERIENCED NO BLEEDING. THURSDAY DEC. 28 THE THURSDAY AFTER CHRISTMAS MY FAMILY AND I FLEW HOME. I CALLED MY OB TO INFORM HIM THAT I HAD NOT MISCARRIED. HE INSTRUCTED ME TO COME IN TOMORROW (FRI.) SO I COULD HAVE SOME BLOOD WORK DONE TO SEE WHERE THE HORMONE LEVEL WAS. HE SUSPECTED IT WOULD BE AT 50 OR LOWER AND THAT I WOULD MISCARRY ANY DAY. FRIDAY DEC. 29 I HAD THE BLOOD TEST DONE ON FRIDAY AND THAT WEEKEND WAS NEW YEAR'S EVE WEEKEND SO EVERYTHING WAS CLOSED ON MONDAY. JANUARY 2 TUESDAY MORNING I RECEIVED A CALL FROM MY OB. HE SAID THAT MY BLOOD TEST CAME BACK AND THE HORMONE LEVEL WAS UP TO 9,400. HE WANTED ME TO IMMEDIATELY GO TO ARLINGTON HOSPITAL TO HAVE A SONOGRAM DONE. WHEN THE DR. STARTED THE SONOGRAM IT WAS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL AND AMAZING SIGHT! A LITTLE HEARTBEAT! ACCORDING TO THE SONOGRAM I WAS 6 WEEKS ALONG AND MY BABY WAS ALIVE. EVEN AFTER A CAT SCAN. THE SONOGRAM DR. SAID MY SONOGRAM LOOKED FINE AND DIDN'T KNOW WHY MY BLOOD TEST WAS SO OFF. I TOOK MY SONOGRAM RESULTS TO MY OB RIGHT AFTER MY APPT. AND HE WAS BAFFLED. HE SAID THE NUMBERS DIDN'T ADD UP AND HE KEPT GOING OVER THE CALENDAR LOOKING AT THE DATES AND COUNTING THE WEEKS. HE SAID I COULDN'T HAVE MISCARRIED AND THEN GOT PREGNANT AGAIN BECAUSE THE SONOGRAM SAID I WAS 6 WEEKS AND THE HORMONE LEVEL WAS ON TARGET FOR 6 WEEKS. HE JUST COULDN'T BELIEVE IT. JANUARY 3 WEDNESDAY NIGHT I STARTED CRAMPING AND BLEEDING. I BLED MOST OF THE NIGHT. JANUARY 4 I CALLED MY OB IN THE MORNING AND HE HAD ME COME IN RIGHT AWAY TO BE CHECKED OUT AND HAVE A SONOGRAM DONE. THE SONOGRAM DOCTOR SAID THAT IT LOOKED LIKE THE BEGINNING OF A MISCARRIAGE AND THAT IN THE NEXT FEW DAYS TO A WEEK I WOULD MISCARRY. IT WAS AT THIS POINT I was told of Blessed Gianna AND MY HUSBAND AND I STARTED PRAYING TO HER. AS MORE AND MORE PEOPLE HEARD ABOUT MY PREGNANCY, THEY TOO STARTED PRAYING TO BLESSED GIANNA FOR MY BABY AND ME. HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE ALL OVER THE COUNTRY WERE PRAYING FOR US. IT WAS WHAT GAVE MY HUSBAND AND TWO OTHER CHILDREN STRENGTH. JANUARY 17 I EXPERIENCE CRAMPING AND BLEEDING DURING THE NIGHT. JANUARY 18 I CALLED MY OB IN THE MORNING AND HE INSTRUCTED ME AGAIN TO COME IN FOR ANOTHER SONOGRAM. THE SONOGRAM SHOWED THAT MY PLACENTA WAS ENLARGED AND HAD TUMORS ON IT. ALSO, THE PLACENTA HAD TORN AWAY FROM THE UTERUS AND THERE WERE MANY BLOOD CLOTS FOUND. THE DOCTORS SAID I WOULD DEFINITELY MISCARRY ANY DAY NOW B/C THE PLACENTA HAD ALMOST COMPLETELY DETACHED AND THE BABY COULD NOT LIVE LONG LIKE THAT. THE DOCTORS ALSO FELT THAT THE CONTINUOUS CRAMPING WOULD CAUSE ME TO MISCARRY. ALL OF THAT ASIDE, THE SACK THE BABY WAS GROWING IN WAS STILL MEASURING ONLY SIX WEEKS IN SIZE AND THE BABY WAS NOT MEASURING MUCH MORE THAN THAT EITHER. AT THIS POINT I WAS 8 WEEKS PREGNANT. THE PLACENTA TOOK UP MOST OF THE ROOM IN THE UTERUS AND THE BABY AND THE SACK WERE PUSHED OFF TO A CORNER. AS TIME WENT BY, I KEPT CRAMPING AND OCCASIONALLY BLEEDING, BUT I NEVER ACTUALLY MISCARRIED. EACH TIME AFTER I HAD A NIGHT OF HEAVY BLEEDING I CAME IN FOR A SONOGRAM TO SEE IF THE BABY WAS STILL ALIVE OR IF I HAD MISCARRIED. YOU COULD SEE ON THE SONOGRAM SCREEN THAT THERE WERE MANY LARGE BLOOD CLOTS BETWEEN THE UTERUS WALL AND THE PLACENTA WHERE THE TEAR HAD TAKEN PLACE. EACH TIME I HAD THE SONOGRAM THERE WERE FEWER AND FEWER BLOOD CLOTS. THE TUMORS REMAINED IN THE PLACENTA AND THE BABY'S SACK STILL MEASURED 6 TO 8 WEEKS IN SIZE AND THE BABY WAS NOT GROWING. ANOTHER MAJOR PROBLEM THAT THE SONOGRAM REVEALED WAS THE FACT THAT THERE WAS ONLY A SMALL AMOUNT OF AMNIOTIC FLUID IN THE SACK. THE DOCTORS COULD NOT EXPLAIN HOW THE BABY WAS STILL ALIVE FOR MANY REASONS. THE FIRST ONE BEING THAT THE AMOUNT OF THE PLACENTA THAT WAS ACTUALLY STILL ATTACHED WAS NOT ENOUGH TO FEED THE BABY. THE PLACENTA REMAINED ALMOST COMPLETELY SEPARATED FROM THE UTERUS FOR SEVERAL WEEKS. WE CONTINUED TO PRAY DAILY TO BLESSED GIANNA TO INTERCEDE AND SAVE OUR BABY'S LIFE. ON JANUARY 30TH I HAD ANOTHER SONOGRAM PERFORMED. THIS SONOGRAM REVEALED THAT THE PLACENTA HAD COMPLETELY REATTACHED ITSELF TO MY UTERUS. MY SONOGRAM DOCTOR AND MY OB WERE COMPLETELY AMAZED, CLAIMING THAT PLACENTAS DON'T JUST REATTACH. FEBRUARY 13 I WAS 13 WEEKS PREGNANT AND STILL HAD NOT MISCARRIED. IT HAD BEEN AN INCREDIBLY EMOTIONAL ROLLER COASTER RIDE UP TO THIS POINT. THE BABY WAS STILL MEASURING 8 WEEKS IN SIZE AND THE SACK MEASURED ONLY 6 WEEKS. THERE WERE ONLY SMALL POCKETS OF AMNIOTIC FLUID IN THE SACK AND MY PLACENTA STILL HAD TUMORS IN IT AND IT CONTINUED TO ENLARGE. MY OB AND THE SONOGRAM DOCTOR DECIDED THAT IT WOULD BE BEST FOR ME TO COME BACK IN 3 WEEKS BECAUSE IT WAS TOO MENTALLY STRESSFUL TO KEEP COMING IN FOR SONOGRAMS EVERY WEEK AND SEEING THE BABY ALIVE AND KNOWING IT WAS GOING TO DIE. MY OB SAT ME DOWN AND EXPLAINED THAT WHEN THE BABY DIED I WOULD HAVE TO COME TO THE HOSPITAL AND DELIVER THE BABY BECAUSE I WAS SO FAR ALONG. HE THEN SAID THAT HE WOULD HAVE TO DO SOME TESTS TO SEE IF I HAD CANCER IN MY UTERUS. IN THE END HE SAID THAT HE DID NOT KNOW WHY THE BABY HAD LIVED THIS LONG BUT THAT HE COULD NOT MEDICALLY EXPLAIN IT AND THAT IT WAS A MIRACLE IN ITSELF. HOWEVER, I HAD TO ACCEPT THE FACT THAT THIS BABY WAS GOING TO DIE. THOSE 3 WEEKS UNTIL MY NEXT SONOGRAM APPOINTMENT I THINK I HURT BLESSED GIANNA'S EAR. I PRAYED TO HER CONSTANTLY. I HAD SUCH GREAT FAITH THAT SHE WOULD INTERCEDE FOR ME. I JUST KEPT TELLING HER TO ASK JESUS TO SAVE MY BABY BUT ONLY IF IT WAS HIS WILL. AND IF IT WAS NOT HIS WILL, TO GIVE MY HUSBAND AND ME GRACES WE NEEDED TO GET THROUGH IT. MARCH 8 I WILL NEVER FORGET MY SONOGRAM ON MARCH 8TH. I WAS 16 WEEKS PREGNANT AND SO ANXIOUS TO SEE WHAT WAS HAPPENING WITH THE BABY. MY HUSBAND CAME WITH ME THAT DAY. WHEN THE SONOGRAM DOCTOR STARTED THE SONOGRAM YOU WOULD HAVE THOUGHT EVERYONE IN THE ROOM HAD SEEN A GHOST. THERE ON THE SCREEN WAS MY BABY MEASURING 16 WEEKS IN SIZE AND THE SACK THE BABY LIVES IN WAS MEASURING 14 WEEKS IN SIZE AND THERE WAS LOTS OF WATER. THE BABY WAS JUST MOVING AROUND LIKE THERE WERE NO WORRIES. WHAT A MIRACLE!!! WE ALL COULD NOT STOP CRYING AND LAUGHING WITH JOY. NEEDLESS TO SAY MY HUSBAND AND I WERE SO OVERWHELMED AND WERE JUST IN AWE THAT GOD HAD NOT ONLY LET US WITNESS THIS MIRACLE BUT PARTICIPATE IN IT. BLESSED GIANNA WAS WORKING OVERTIME. THE SONOGRAM DR. CALLED MY OB RIGHT AWAY AND TOLD HIM HE HAD TO COME ASAP. APRIL 13 ON GOOD FRIDAY I WAS ATTENDING STATIONS AND VENERATION OF THE CROSS AT SAINT AGNES WHEN MY WATER BROKE. I WAS ONLY 20 1/2 WEEKS PREGNANT AT THIS TIME. I IMMEDIATELY WAS TAKEN TO ARLINGTON HOSPITAL AND WAS ADMITTED. THE DOCTORS TOLD ME THAT AT 20 WEEKS, A BABY IS NOT VIABLE AND THAT I SHOULD GO HOME ON COMPLETE BED REST. THE THOUGHT WAS THAT THE BABY WOULD DIE AND THAT IF I SOMEHOW MADE IT TO 23 WEEKS THERE WAS A CHANCE FOR SURVIVAL. I CONTINUED TO PRAY CONSTANTLY TO BLESSED GIANNA TO INTERCEDE TO SAVE MY BABY. I CONTINUED TO GAIN STRENGTH FROM ALL THE PEOPLE WHO HAD BEEN TOLD OF BLESSED GIANNA AND WHO WERE ALSO PRAYING TO HER TO INTERCEDE ON OUR BEHALF. APRIL 23 WE MADE IT TO 23 WEEKS AND I WAS ADMITTED TO HOSPITAL FOR REMAINDER OF MY PREGNANCY. JUNE 6 MY DAUGHTER GIANNA WAS BORN AT 28 1/2 WEEKS WEIGHING 2 LBS AND 7 OZ. GIANNA WAS IMMEDIATELY VENTILATED AND SENT TO THE NEONATAL INTENSIVE CARE UNIT AT GEORGETOWN HOSPITAL. GIANNA WOULD SPEND THE NEXT 6 MONTHS OF HER LIFE IN GEORGETOWN HOSPITAL'S NICU. WHEN MY PLACENTA WAS SENT FOR TESTING THE RESULTS SAID IT WAS AN ANOMALY. THEY COULD NOT IDENTIFY THE TISSUE AND IT LOOKED NOTHING LIKE A REGULAR PLACENTA. AFTER GIANNA'S BIRTH AND SUBSEQUENT STRUGGLE TO SURVIVE, WE INCORPORATED A SMALL FOR OUR TWO 2 YEAR OLD BOYS TO SAY AFTER THEIR DINNER BLESSING. THE PRAYER WS SIMPLY, "BLESSED GIANNA, PLEASE ASK GOD TO MAKE OUR LITTLE SISTER ALL BETTER". THEY STILL SAY THIS PRAYER AT EVERY MEAL. ***AT THIS POINT, THERE WILL NOT BE MANY DATES MENTIONED BECAUSE ONCE GIANNA WAS BORN IT WAS AN HOUR-TO-HOUR, DAY-TO-DAY EXISTENCE.**** I FOUND OUT MONTHS AFTER GIANNA HAD BEEN IN THE HOSPITAL FROM READING HER MEDICAL CHARTS THAT GIANNA'S LIFE WAS VERY TOUCH AND GO THE FIRST FEW DAYS. I WAS NOT ABLE TO BE WITH HER THE FIRST DAY B/C I WAS STILL IN THE HOSPITAL, HOWEVER MY HUSBAND DID NOT LEAVE HER SIDE. DURING THE FIRST WEEK OF HER LIFE SOMETHING WAS JUST NOT RIGHT. THE DOCTORS SAID SOMETHING WAS NOT ADDING UP. THEY THOUGHT THAT SHE SHOULD BE ABLE TO COME OFF OF THE VENTILATOR BUT AT THE SAME TIME SHE WAS NOT SHOWING ALL THE SIGNS THAT IT WAS TIME. MY HUSBAND AND I KEPT ASKING THE DOCTORS TO CHECK OUT HER HEART BECAUSE OF OUR FIRST CHILD'S HEART DISEASE. WE WERE ALWAYS TOLD THAT THE ODDS WERE THAT WE WOULD HAVE ANOTHER CHILD SOMEDAY WITH SOME FORM OF HEART CONDITION. EVENTUALLY, THEY DECIDED TO DO AN ECHOCARDIOGRAM AND FOUND THAT SHE HAD A PROBLEM WITH HER HEART. IT IS CALLED COARCTATION OF THE AORTA. COARCTATION OF THE AORTA IS THE NARROWING OF THE AORTA. GIANNA'S AORTA BECAME NARROW AT THE LOWER HALF. A PERSON'S OXYGENATED BLOOD IS PUMPED THROUGH THE AORTA TO THE LOWER HALF OF THE BODY. WHEN THE AORTA BECOMES NARROW IT IS HARD TO PUMP THE SAME AMOUNT OF BLOOD TO THE LOWER HALF OF THE BOBY THROUGH SUCH A NARROW OPENING. THE RESULT IS VERY HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE IN THE UPPER HALF OF THE BODY AND VERY, VERY LOW BLOOD PRESSURE IN THE LOWER HALF OF THE BODY. ALSO, THE HEART IS NOT ABLE TO PUMP OUT EXCESS FLUID CAUSING HER TO NEED MEDICATION TO KEEP HER BODY FREE FROM EXTRA FLUID SO THAT SHE WOULD NOT GO INTO CARDIAC ARREST. WHEN THE DOCTORS LEARNED THAT GIANNA HAD A HEART CONDITION ALL THE MISSING PIECES FELL INTO PLACE. NOW THEY UNDERSTOOD WHY SHE WAS NOT DOING AS WELL AS SHE SHOULD BE DOING. SINCE HER HEART WAS SO FRAGILE, SHE NEEDED TO STAY ON THE VENTILATOR UNTIL SHE GAINED ENOUGH WEIGHT TO HAVE HER HEART OPERATED ON. BY STAYING ON THE VENTILATOR IT WOULD TAKE PRESSURE OFF OF HER HEART BECAUSE SHE WOULD NOT HAVE TO WORK SO HARD TO BREATHE. THE CARDIOLOGIST WANTED GIANNA TO WEIGH AT LEAST 4 LBS. BEFORE SHE WAS OPERATED ON TO REPAIR HER AORTA. HOWEVER, GIANNA HAD A VERY HARD TIME GAINING WEIGHT. SHE WAS BORN AT 2 LBS. 7 OZ. AND WAS NOT EVEN 4 LBS WHEN SHE WAS SENT IN JULY 2001 TO CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL IN PHILADELPHIA [CHOP] FOR AN EMERGENCY HEART SURGERY. THE 2 MONTHS LEADING UP TO HER EMERGENCY HEART SURGERY WERE VERY EVENTFUL. GIANNA KEPT EVERYONE ON THEIR TOES. SHE WAS SUCH A DETERMINED LITTLE GIRL THAT WHEN SHE WAS IN THE NICU IN HER INCUBATOR, SHE KEPT CLIMBING TO THE TOP OF THE INCUBATOR. THEY ALWAYS KEEP THE INCUBATORS AT A SLANT FOR THE BABIES FOR FEEDING PURPOSES. ONE DAY SHE CLIMBED ALL THE WAY TO THE TOP AND HER HEAD WAS DANGLING OVER THE EDGE ALL THE WHILE PULLING HER VENTILATOR TUBING WITH HER! THE NURSE WHO WAS TAKING CARE OF HER SAID, "THAT WAS IT!" SHE WAS NOT GOING TO BE RESPONSIBLE FOR GIANNA GETTING HURT SO THEY TOOK HER OUT AND PUT HER IN A BIG GIRL'S BED A MONTH OR TWO EARLY BECAUSE SHE WAS SO DETERMINED TO GET OUT. I THINK SHE JUST WANTED A BETTER VIEW OF ALL THE ACTION GOING ON. GIANNA HAD THE TYPICAL PROGRESSIONS AND REGRESSIONS THAT ARE COMMON WITH PREMATURE CHILDREN. THE MAIN THING THAT CAUSED GIANNA'S PROBLEMS WS THE FACT THAT IN ADDITION TO NORMAL PREEMIE STRUGGLES, SHE HAD TO DEAL WITH A HEART CONDITION THAT CONTRIBUTED TO SO MANY OTHER THINGS NOT WORKING AS THEY SHOULD. THE BATTLES WITH EXTREME HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE WERE CONSTANT. GIANNA WS ON ABOUT 16 DIFFERENT MEDICATIONS TO TRY AND MAINTAIN A FINE BALANCE. IN THE DAYS LEADING UP TO GIANNA EMERGENCY MEDIVAC TO PHILLY, HER BLOOK PRESSURE INCREASED TO A POINT WHERE MEDICATION WAS UNABLE TO CONTROL IT. SHE HAD TO BE TAKEN OFF THE CONVENTIONAL VENTILATOR AND PUT ON A JET VENTILATOR TO MAINTAIN EVEN MINIMAL O2 SATURATION LEVELS. THE DOCTORS GOT TO THE POINT THAT THE ONLY WASY GIANNA WAS GOING TO SURVIVE WAS TO HAVE HER HEART OPERATED ON. THE WAS MEDIVAC'ED TO CHOP FOR THIS SURGERY. THE FLIGHT TO PHILLY VIA HELICOPTER WAS A VERY ROUGH FLIGHT FOR EVERYONE EXCEPT GIANNA. THE DOCTOR AND NURSE ARRIVED AT CHOP NAUSEOUS AND THE DOCTOR ACTUALLY THREW UP IN FLIGHT. THEY TOLD US THAT AT ONE POINT THEY WERE BOTH SO SICK THAT THEY JUST PLACED GIANNA'S ROSARY ON HER AND PRAYED THAT SHE WOULD BE OK. GIANNA HAD NO PROBLEMS THE ENTIRE FLIGHT. GIANNA HAD HER SURGERY PERFORME BY THE SAME SURGEON THAT OPERATED ON OUR SON THAT WE LOST. WE ACTUALLY HAD TO WAIT IN THE SAME ROOM THAT WE WERE IN WHEN THE DOCTORS TOLD US OUR SON HAD DIED. THE RESULTS WERE MUCH DIFFERENT THIS TIME AS GIANNA CAME THROUGH FINE. SHE ONLY HAD TO REMAIN IN PHILLY FOR A FEW DAYS BEFORE BEING SENT BACK TO GEORGETOWN. AFTER A FEW WEEKS OF SHOWING GREAT PROGRESS GIANNA BEGAN TO SHOW SIGNS OF A SETBACK. THROUGH AN ECHOCARDIOGRAM IT WAS DETERMINED THAT GIANNA'S COARCTATION OF THE AORTA HAD COME BACK IN FULL FORCE. THIS WAS DISCOVERED IN EARLY AUGUST. GIANNA CONTINUED TO BATTLE THE ODDS AND WAS ABLE TO COME OFF THE VENTILATOR THE FIRST WEEK OF SEPTEMBER. THE NEXT HURDLE FOR GIANNA TO GET OVER WAS TO LEARN HOW TO DRINK A BOTTLE. SHE HAD BEEN FED VIA A TUBE FOR THE FIRST MONTHS OF HER LIFE. GIANNA TOOK TO THE BOTTLE FAIRLY WELL AND GAINED ENOUGH WEIGHT THAT THE DOCTORS FELT COMFORTABLE SENDING HER HOME WITH US IN OCTOBER. A LAST MINUTE BOUT WITH PNEUMONIA SET THOSE PLANS BACK. GIANNA FINALLY CAME HOME RIGHT BEFORE THANKSGIVING 2001. GIANNA WAS SENT HOME WITH 16 HOURS PER DAY OF NURSING CARE, ON 14 DIFFERENT MEDICATIONS, 2 LITERS OF OXYGEN, BLOOD PRESSURE MACHINE AND ON OXYGEN AND APNEA MONITORS. IN DECEMBER 2001 GIANNA HAD AN OUTPATIENT FOLLOW-UP VISIT WITH THE CARDIOLOGIST. THE EXAM REVEALED THAT GIANNA DID NOT HAVE STRONG ENOUGH PULSES IN THE LOWER HALF OF HER BODY AND WAS STILL SHOWING EVIDENCE OF A LARGE GRADIENT BETWEEN UPPER AND LOWER EXTREMITY BLOOD PRESSURES. THE CARDIOLOGIST SCHEDULED SURGERY FOR JANUARY 15, 2002. HE SAID THAT GIANNA COULD NOT WAIT ANY LONGER FOR HER SECOND HEART SURGERY. THE CARDIOLOGIST HAD BEEN WAITING FOR HER TO GET TO 10 LBS. SO HE COULD PERFORM THE SURGERY. IF SHE WEIGHED LESS THAN 10 LBS. AT THE TIME OF SURGERY SHE RAN A GREATER RISK OF LOSING THE ARTERY IN HER LEG. AT THIS POINT GIANNA WAS A LITTLE OVER 9 LBS. THE CARDIOLOGIST WAS HOPING THAT SHE WOULD BE 10 LBS. BY JANUARY 15TH. WHEN SHE CAME IN ON JANUARY 8TH FOR HER PRO-OP VISIT THE CARDIOLOGIST AND THE SURGEON COULDN'T BELIEVE WHAT THEY WERE SEEING ON THE ECHOCARDIOGRAM. THEY SAID THAT THEY COULD NOT JUSTIFY SURGERY AT THIS POINT BECAUSE GIANNA'S HEART HAD TAKEN A TURN FOR THE BETTER AND THE RISKS OF SURGERY FAR OUTWEIGHED THE BENEFITS OF DOING THE SURGERY. OVER THE NEXT COUPLE OF MONTHS HER HEART GOT BETTER AND BETTER. ON APRIL 29, 2002 GIANNA HAD ANOTHER FOLLOW-UP APPOINTMENT WITH THE CARDIOLOGIST. HE SAID THAT THERE IS NO LONGER ANY EVIDENCE OF ANY COARCTATION OF THE AORTA AND HE DOES NOT NEED TO SEE HER AGAIN FOR 2 YEARS. AS OF MAY 10, 2003, GIANNA ONLY REQUIRES OXYGEN OCCASIONALLY AT NIGHT AND WE EXPECT HER TO BE OFF IT COMPLETELY BY THE END OF THE SUMMER. SHE IS AS ACTIVE AS ANY OF OUR CHILDREN HAVE BEEN AND JUST LAST NIGHT WENT THE ENTIRE NIGHT NOT ON OXYGEN OR BEING HOOKED UP TO THE MONITOR. WE COMPLETELY ATTRIBUTE THE MIRACULOUS EVENT SURROUNDING GIANNA'S DEVELOPMENT IN THE WOMB AND SUBSEQUENT FIGHT TO SURVIVE, TO THE INTERCESSION OF BLESSED GIANNA. By: Lisa and Paul D. of Virginia. May 10, 2003.

Testimony 42 INFERTILITY - NON-CATHOLICS "I WAS HOPING TO GET ANOTHER PRAYER CARD FOR A WOMAN I WORK WITH. LAST MAY, YOUR PRESENTATION OF THE LIFE OF BLESSED GIANNA CAME TO OUR CHURCH, ST. STANISLAUS KOSTKA IN WYANDOTTE, MICHIGAN. BEFORE THAT TIME, I WAS UNAWARE OF WHO BLESSED GIANNA WAS AND WAS TRULY INSPIRED BY HER STORY. AT THAT TIME, I HAD JUST DISCOVERED THAT 2 OF THE WOMEN I WORKED WITH HAD SPENT A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF TIME, MONEY AND EMOTION IN TRYING TO CONCEIVE AND ALL OF THOSE EFFORTS HAD FAILED. BOTH OF THESE WOMEN ARE IN THE EARLY 30s AND NEITHER OF THEM IS CATHOLIC. I STOOD IN LINE AT OUR CHURCH TO TOUCH THE GLOVE OF BLESSED GIANNA AND ASK FOR HER GUIDANCE AS A MOTHER. THE GENTLEMAN WHO WAS IN CHARGE OF THE PRESENTATION TOUCHED TWO OF THE PRAYER CARDS TO THE GLOVES AND TOLD ME THAT THEY WERE NOW 3RD CLASS RELICS. I TOOK THE CARDS AND GAVE THEM TO EACH OF THE WOMEN I WORK WITH. I WASN'T EXACTLY SURE HOW THEY WOULD REACT TO THE CARDS AND THE STORY BEHIND THEM, BUT THEY WERE BOTH VERY RECEPTIVE TO THEM, THOUGH PROBABLY A BIT SKEPTICAL. BY THIS TIME, THEY HAD BOTH DECIDED NOT TO UNDERGO THE PROCEDURES AGAIN AS THE FAILURE WAS TOO PAINFUL AND HAD RESIGNED THEMSELVES TO THE FACT THAT THEY WOULD PROBABLY NEVER HAVE THEIR OWN CHILDREN. AFTER I GAVE THEM THE CARDS, THE SUBJECT NEVER CAME UP AGAIN. IN DECEMBER, ONE OF THE WOMEN CAME TO MY DESK, CRYING. SHE AND HER HUSBAND HAD FINALLY CONCEIVED AND WERE EXPECTING A BABY THIS AUGUST. SHE IS NOW AT THE END OF A VERY DIFFICULT PREGNANCY, BUT EVERYTHING IS STILL VERY GOOD WITH THE BABY. SHE TOLD ME THAT SHE HAD TAKEN THE CARD I GAVE HER TO ALL OF HER DOCTOR'S APPOINTMENTS AND BELIEVES THAT IS THE REASON IT WORKED FOR HER THIS TIME. SHE IS EVEN WEARING A SILVER MIRACULOUS MEDAL NOW AND PRAYS TO OUR BLESSED MOTHER AND TO BLESSED GIANNA. THE OTHER WOMAN I HAD GIVEN THE CARD TO FOUND OUT, ON THE VERY DAY THAT POPE JOHN PAUL II ELEVATED TO GIANNA TO SAINT [MAY 16, 2004], THAT SHE IS ALSO EXPECTING. HER CHILD IS DUE IN JANUARY. SHE GAVE ME THE BIGGEST HUG WHEN I SAW HER AND SAID THAT SHE ALSO BROUGHT HER CARD TO ALL OF HER APPOINTMENTS WITH HER AND PRAYS THE PRAYER FAITHFULLY. IF HER BABY IS A GIRL, SHE WILL NAME HER AFTER SAINT GIANNA. I NEED TO GET ANOTHER CARD FOR A DIFFERENT WOMAN I WORK WITH. SHE AND HER HUSBAND ARE IMMIGRANTS FROM MEXICO. THEY HAVE BEEN TRYING FOR OVER A YEAR TO CONCEIVE. SHE ASKED ME FOR A CARD AND I DON'T HAVE ANY MORE. ALSO OF SPECIAL INTEREST, MY OWN NIECE HAD BEEN IN THE CHURCH THAT DAY WITH ALL OF US AND NOT TOO LONG AFTERWARD DISCOVERED THAT SHE TOO, WAS EXPECTING. BEING AN UNWED COLLEGE STUDENT, IT WAS A DIFFICULT TIME FOR HER. SHE PRAYED TO BLESSED GIANNA. ON FEBRUARY 21, 2004 SHE GAVE BIRTH TO A BEAUTIFUL, HEALTHY BABY GIRL. GIANNA MARIE IS A BEAUTIFUL 4-MONTH OLD ANGEL." By: Kathy W. from Wyandotte, Michigan. June, 2004

Testimony 43 SEVERE PAIN IN HANDS "I GIVE THANKS TO BLESSED GIANNA FOR A GREAT FAVOR I RECEIVED THROUGH HIER INTERCESSION TO CHRIST OUR LORD FOR ME. I HAD VERY SEVERE PAIN IN MY HANDS FOR A LONG TIME. I COULD NOT EVEN FOLD AND MOVE MY FINGERS PROPERLY. I COULD NOT DO ANYTHING WITH MY HANDS GIVING ENOUGH STRENGTH TO THE HANDS. ONE NIGHT I WAS WATCHING MOTHER ANGELICA'S TELEVISION SHOW. THAT NIGHT'S SHOW WAS ABOUT BLESSED GIANNA. MR. CUNNINGHAM WAS SHOWING A PAIR OF GLOVES SHE WAS WEARING. IT TOUCHED MY HEART AND I WAS THINKING OF THOSE GLOVES ALL THE TIME. I WAS THINKING OF WEARING THEM. SINCE THEN EVERY NIGHT WHEN I GO TO BED I PRAYED FOR HER HELP THINKING OF WEARING HER GLOVES IN MY HANDS. I WENT TO SEE A DOCTOR AND HE GAVE ME SOME MEDICINE TO APPLY BUT IT DID NOT WORK. ONLY AFTER I STARTED PRAYING TO BLESSED GIANNA FOR HER HELP I WAS GETTING SOME RELIEF AND SINCE THEN I COULD MOVE MY FINGERS AND NOW MY HANDS ARE ALRIGHT. THANK YOU BLESSED GIANNA FOR YOUR HELP... IT IS A MIRACLE TO ME. I HOPE BLESSED GIANNA WILL DO MORE FAVORS FOR ME. I HAVE FULL FAITH IN HER PRAYER. By: Metilda J. from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. January 8, 2001.

Testimony 44 H E A D A C H E S "LAST EVENING WE HAD THE PRIVILEGE OF PRAYING WHILE TOUCHING BLESSED GIANNA'S GLOVES AT OUR CHURCH IN BRISTOL, PA. MY NIECE CATHY HAS BEEN SUFFERING FROM VERY SEVERE HEADACHES FOR THE PAST SEVERAL WEEKS. SHE DELIVERED A HEALTHY, HANDSOME BABY BOY ON SEPTEMBER 24 AND 4 WEEKS LATER THE SEVERE HEADACHES STARTED. ALL SHE COULD DO WAS CRY VERY LOUD, SCREAM AND SUFFER. SHE COULD NOT HOLD HER HEAD UP AND SAID SHE WOULD RATHER DIE THAN SUFFER THE PAIN SHE WAS SUFFERING. AN AMBULANCE NEEDED TO BE CALLED AND THEY IMMEDIATELY TOOK HER TO THE HOSPITAL. SHE WAS IN THE HOSPITAL FOR 8 DAYS AND WAS TESTED FOR JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING SINCE SHE HAD NUMBNESS, PAIN IN HER HEAD, NECK, COULDN'T FUNCTION AT ALL. WITH NARCOTICS SHE WAS ABLE TO FUNCTION FOR SOME OF THE DAY, BUT NEVER LOST THE HEADACHE AND EVERY OTHER DAY HAD SEVERE ATTACKS. I'M VERY HAPPY TO SAY THAT CATHY CALLED ME THIS MORNING TO SAY SHE FINALLY HAD A GOOD NIGHT SLEEP AND WOKE UP FOR THE FIRST TIME WITHOUT A HEADACHE. SO TODAY, HER HUSBAND TOOK HER 1 YEAR OLD SON TO WATCH A FOOTBALL GAME AND SHE IS HOME ALONE TO HOLD AND ENJOY HER NOW 6 WEEK OLD BABY, RYAN. I'LL CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR HER CONTINUED HEALTH THROUGH THE INTERCESSION OF BLESSED GIANNA. MY 5 YEAR OLD DAUGHTER WAS SICK YESTERDAY. SHE HAD A SORE EYE BEGINNING ON FRIDAY, SORE THROAT, FEVER AND STOMACH PROBLEMS YESTERDAY. AFTER WE RETURNED HOME FROM CHURCH SHE SAID TO ME, "MOMMY, I'M ALL BETTER NOW". SHE DIDN'T EVEN TOUCH THE GLOVE, SHE WAS AFRAID OF THE MYSTERY OF THIS. I TOUCHED THE GLOVE FOR HER AND HELD HER HAND AND ASKED BLESSED GIANNA TO PASS THIS RELIC TO KATE THROUGH ME. " By: Mary from Bristol, Pennsylvania. 11/10/2002

Testimony 45 7-YEAR OLD BOY - NO FURTHER NEED TO WEAR AN EYE PATCH "I ATTEND ST. MARIA GORETTI CHURCH IN HATFIELD, PENNSYLVANIA. MY SON RYAN IS DIAGNOSED WITH 3RD NERVE PALSY, WHICH MEANS HE WAS BORN WITH 2 MUSCLES IN HIS EYELID [NORMAL IS 6 MUSCLES]. WE HAVE PUT A PATCH ON HIS GOOD EYE FORCING HIM TO USE THE BAD EYE SINCE 8 MONTHS OF AGE UP TO NOW. HE IS 7 1/2 YEARS OLD. HIS LAST 2 VISITS WERE JUST OK, THE DR. SAID WE NEED TO PATCH FOR 10 HOURS, USUALLY WE ONLY PATCHED 2-4 HRS. A DAY. HE ALSO HAD TO GET GLASSES. THIS WAS VERY CRUCIAL BECAUSE THE EYE STOPS DEVELOPING AROUND AGE 7. I WAS AT 10:30 AM MASS ON SEPT 14TH AND WE PUT THE GLOVES OF ST GIANNA ON HIS EYE. I SAID THE PRAYER AT HOME FOR HIS EYE FOR ABOUT 1-2 WEEKS. OUR LAST VISIT TO THE DR. WAS ON NOV. 10, 2003. SHE WAS VERY EXCITED TO TELL US THAT RYAN HAD 20/30 VISION IN HIS EYE AND HE NO LONGER NEEDED TO BE PATCHED OR WEAR THE GLASSES. MY EYES FILLED UP WITH TEARS, MY HEART AND THOUGHTS IMMEDIATELY WERE DIRECTED TO THE LORD THROUGH BLESSED GIANNA. THANK YOU FOR ATTENDING OUR CHURCH ON THAT VERY SPECIAL DAY FOR ME AND MY FAMILY. By: Deana N. of Souderton, Pennsylvania. November, 2003

Testimony 46 PEOPLE AT THE RIGHT PLACE AT THE RIGHT TIME [Editor's Note: Dana was a member of the group of pilgrims of the Society of then Blessed Gianna which traveled to Rome for the canonization on May 16, 2004. Here is her note which she wrote on our return to the States]. "ON MAY 17, 2004, I ATTENDED THE CANONIZATION AND PAPAL BLESSING GIVEN FOR ST. GIANNA. I OVERHEARD A WOMAN [LIZ] BEHIND ME SAY THAT IT WAS AMAZING THAT SHE JUST HAPPENED TO BE IN ROME FOR THIS BECAUSE HER PRIEST HAD ADVISED HER TO PRAY FOR ST. GIANNA'S INTERCESSION TO CONCEIVE A CHILD. I IMMEDIATELY TURNED AROUND AND GAVE HER A GIANNA PRAYER CARD. SHE WAS COMPLETELY TAKEN ABACK AND STARTED TO CRY. A WOMAN CLAIRE WAS AT HER SIDE. CLAIRE LATER CAME BACK TO ME AFTER THE SERVICE AND SAID LIZ WAS 47, HAD EXPERIENCED FIVE MISCARRIAGES, WAS LIVING IN THE UK NOW WITH HER HUSBAND BILL. THEIR WEDDING HAD BEEN BLESSED BY THE POPE. THE DAY BEFORE, AFTER THE CANONIZATION, I HAD MET A COUPLE WHO RUN A GIANNA HOUSE FOR UNWED MOTHERS AND DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IN SLOVAKIA. I TOLD LIZ AND BILL ABOUT THIS AND AGAIN THEY WERE TAKEN ABACK. BILL'S BACKGROUND IS FROM THIS REGION. WE EXCHANGED INFO AND CLAIRE TOLD ME SHE WOULD SEND A BIRTH ANNOUNCEMENT. I AM WRITING THIS NOW AS A WITNESS TO A MIRACLE ALREADY IN PROCESS." By: DANA G. 4.18.2004. ROME, ITALY

Testimony 47 TWINS - ONE WITHOUT AMNIOTIC FLUID FOR 2 MONTHS "I COULDN'T LET THIS HOLIDAY SEASON PASS WITHOUT SENDING YOU AND THE SOCIETY A GREETING WITH THE PHOTOS OF MY TWINS. MANY THANKS TO YOU, YOUR SOCIETY'S PRAYER GROUP AND OUR BLESSED GIANNA, COLE AND MAEVE ARE THRIVING AT HOME. THEY ARE NOW 9 MONTHS OLD AND COLE, WHO YOU MAY RECALL HAD NO AMNIOTIC FLUID FOR 2 MONTHS IN UTERO, IS DOING WELL BEYOND EXPECTATIONS. IN THE LAST 3 MONTHS, COLE'S OXYGEN REQUIREMENT HAS GONE FROM 2.5 LITERS TO JUST UNDER 1/2 LITER. HE IS TAKING ALL OF HIS FEEDS ORALLY AS THE NG TUBE BECAME OBSOLETE. HE IS ROLLING AROUND, ALWAYS THE HAPPY BABY WHO LAUGHS AND BABBLES DESPITE HIS TRACHE AND VENTILATOR SUPPORT. MAEVE IS ENJOYING HIM TREMENDOUSLY AND SHE IS CALM WHEN THEY ARE SIDE BY SIDE. WE FEEL VERY BLESSED BY HIS PROGRESS. I DON'T KNOW IF HE IS TRULY A MIRACLE BUT THERE IS NO OTHER EXPLANATION ON WHY HE'S DOING SO WELL. I THANK YOU AND ALL OF YOUR ASSOCIATES FOR KEEPING US IN YOUR PRAYERS. YOU HAVE MADE THE DIFFERENCE IN OUR LIVES. HAPPY NEW YEAR! PRAISE GIANNA!" By: Bill, Keren, Maggie, Cole & Maeve of Sewell, New Jersey. 1/3/2005

Testimony 48 BABY'S ORGANS DISPLACED [PHOTO OF A BABY ENCLOSED] "For those of you who don't know, this is Grant Bishop. He had been diagnosed with organ malformation whereby his internal organs were misplaced and twisted within the abdominal cavity. After untrasounds, x-rays, and dye sent throughout his system, it was decided by the pediatric experts for him to undergo very serious surgery to put all of his organs back to where they belonged. Prior to his surgery a prayer service was held and the gloves of Saint Gianna (then Blessed) were placed on him. He was taken to St. Christopher's Hospital in Philadelphia on May 12, 2004 and was expected to remain there for about 3 weeks. When they opened him to begin the operation, they discovered that his organs were where they belonged. May God be praised. Thank you, Saint Gianna. By: James H., Principal of a catholic high school, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania

Testimony 49 A LONG, FUNNY STORY FROM PUERTO RICO (BACKGROUND INFO: ON OCT. 13, 1999 JOE CUNNINGHAM, PRESIDENT OF THEN BL. GIANNA SOCIETY WAS A GUEST ON THE TV SHOW, "MOTHER ANGELICA LIVE" ON THE ETERNAL WORD TELEVISION NETWORK, EWTN TALKING ABOUT GIANNA BERETTA MOLLA) "A FEW MONTHS AGO, WHILE PICKING UP MY ROOM, I HAD MOTHER ANGELICA'S PROGRAM ON. IT HAD ALREADY STARTED AND SHE WAS INTERVIEWING THIS GENTLEMAN WHO WAS TALKING ABOUT SOMEONE CALLED BLESSED GIANNA BERETTA MOLLA. I DON'T KNOW WHY, BUT EVEN THOUGH I HAD NEVER HEARD OF HER, I BECAME VERY MUCH INTERESTED IN THE PROGRAM AND HEARD THE REST OF THE INTERVIEW. WHEN THE PROGRAM FINISHED I HAD ONLY REMEMBERED THAT THIS GENTLEMAN WAS FROM PHILADELPHIA. AFTER THAT AND ABOUT THREE WEEKS LATER, MY SECOND DAUGHTER (AGE 26 WITH A BEAUTIFUL 18 MONTH OLD DAUGHTER) CALLED ME WORRIED BECAUSE SHE HAD FELT A LUMP IN THE LOWER PART OF HER BACK AND IT WAS HURTING HER. I OF COURSE ADVISED HER TO GO TO THE DOCTOR WHICH SHE DID. HER DOCTOR SENT HER TO HAVE X-RAYS DONE BECAUSE IT WAS KIND OF BIG, BUT SHE HOPED IT WOULD BE BENIGN. AS SOON AS SHE TOLD ME THIS AND I DID NOT KNOW THE REASON WHY UNTIL LATER, I IMMEDIATELY REMEMBERED THE LADY THEY HAD BEEN TALKING ABOUT ON MOTHER ANGELICA'S PROGRAM BUT THE ONLY PART OF HER NAME I REMEMBERED WAS MOLLA. I STARTED PRAYING TO HER AND TOLD HER "PLEASE, I DO NOT REMEMBER YOUR WHOLE NAME, BUT I KNOW YOU WERE A MOTHER WHO DIED FOR HER CHILD. PLEASE HELP HEAL MY DAUGHTER FOR SHE HAS THIS LITTLE CHILD TO LIVE FOR." I KEPT PRAYING TO HER EVERY DAY FOR A WEEK. DAYS LATER, MY DAUGHTER TOLD ME THAT THE PAIN WAS HARDLY THERE ANY MORE AND WHEN SHE WENT TO HAVE HER X-RAYS DONE, THE DOCTOR TOLD HER THAT HE COULD NOT FEEL ANYTHING AND THAT THERE WAS NO LUMP ON HER BACK. FROM THAT DAY ON I THANKED BLESSED MOLLA AND I HAD PROMISED HER THAT I WOULD FIND HER WHOLE NAME AND LET PEOPLE KNOW ABOUT THE FAVOR I HAD RECEIVED FROM HER. HERE IN PUERTO RICO I STARTED CALLING EVERY CATHOLIC BOOKSTORE ASKING THEM IF THEY HAD EVER HEARD OF A "BEATA' (AS WE SAY IN SPANISH) MOLLA OR IF THEY WOULD HAVE A LITTLE PRAYER CARD OF HER SO THAT I COULD KNOW MORE ABOUT HER, BUT NOBODY KNEW. MY BEST FRIEND ONE DAY TOLD ME THAT SHE WAS GOING TO TAKE ME TO A FRIEND OF HERS WHO HAD A HUGE CATHOLIC BOOKSTORE AND THAT IF HE DID NOT KNOW ABOUT HER, NOBODY WOULD. WHEN I ENTERED THE BOOKSTORE I IMMEDIATELY ASKED ABOUT HER AND TOLD OF THE FAVOR SHE HAD DONE WITH MY DAUGHTER. THE OWNER SAID HE HAD NEVER HEARD ABOUT A BLESSED MOYA [PRONUNCIATION IN SPANISH OF THE WORD "MOLLA"] AND THAT FRUSTRATED ME EVEN MORE BECAUSE I WOULD NEVER BE ABLE TO REMEMBER HER WHOLE NAME AGAIN AND LET HER MIRACLE BE KNOWN. AFTER I FINISHED TALKING WITH THE OWNER, ALL OF A SUDDEN THIS LADY WHO WAS STANDING THERE HEARD ME SAY THE LAST NAME AND SHE CAME OVER TO ME AND ASKED ME "ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT BLESSED GIANNA MOLLA?" MUCH TO MY AMAZEMENT, I SCREAMED AT HER AND SAID, "YES, DO YOU KNOW ABOUT HER?" THEN SHE TOLD ME THIS AMAZING STORY WHICH I THINK WAS MY SECOND BIGGEST MIRACLE. SHE SAID THAT THE NIGHT BEFORE, AFTER SHE FINISHED READING HER BIBLE, SHE HAD THIS PRAYER CARD NEXT TO IT WHICH SHE HAD TAKEN FROM A CONVENT HERE IN PUERTO RICO YEARS AGO AND SHE ALWAYS HAD NEXT TO HER BIBLE. THAT NIGHT FOR SOME REASON SHE DECIDED TO PUT IN IN HER PURSE. WHEN SHE HEARD ME ASK ABOUT THIS BLESSED MOLLA, SHE COULD NOT BELIEVE IT. SHE CAME OVER TO ME AND SHE SHOWED ME THE PRAYER CARD OF BLESSED GIANNA BERETTA MOLLA WITH A PICTURE OF HER AND A SMALL STORY OF HER LIFE. SHE TOLD ME SHE HAD KEPT THIS PRAYER CARD FOR OVER FIVE YEARS AND FOR SOME REASON THE NIGHT BEFORE SHE DECIDED TO PUT IT IN HER PURSE. AS WE SAY IN SPANISH THERE ARE NO COINCIDENCES, BUT GODCIDENCES. SHE SAID THIS WAS A VERIFICATION THAT BLESSED GIANNA HAD INTERCEDED IN THE CURE OF MY DAUGHTER AND I DEFINITELY HAD TO LET IT BE KNOWN. SHE GAVE ME THE PRAYER CARD FOR ME TO KEEP AND TOLD ME "GOD WANTS YOU TO LET HER BE KNOWN HERE IN PUERTO RICO." By: Lucila from Puerto Rico. June 13, 2000

Testimony 50 S C I A T I C A MY CHURCH, ST. JOSEPH CHURCH IN GARRETT, INDIANA, HAD SCHEDULED THE RELICS OF BLESSED GIANNA TO BE DISPLAYED AT THE CHURCH FOR THREE DAYS ON OCT. 31 AND NOV. 1 & 2. MY FAMILY, ED, BRITTANY, CONNOR, TREVOR AND I WENT SATURDAY NIGHT, NOVEMBER 1, AFTER THE 5 PM MASS TO VENERATE THE RELICS. I HAD TO BE THERE AT 7:30 AM ON SUNDAY MORNING TO PASS OUT BLESSED GIANNA'S PRAYER CARDS. I WANTED TO GO THE NIGHT BEFORE TO VENERATE THE RELICS AND SEE WHAT I WOULD BE DOING THE NEXT MORNING. THE TWO GENTLEMEN WHO BROUGHT THE RELICS WERE VERY NICE AND TOLD US ABOUT BLESSED GIANNA MOLLA AND GAVE US PRAYER CARDS AND A BROCHURE ON HER LIFE. THERE WAS A PAIR OF GIANNA'S GLOVES THAT WE COULD TOUCH THAT WERE A SECOND CLASS RELIC. THE ONE GENTLEMAN SAID IF THERE WERE ANY SPOTS ON MY BODY THAT WERE AILING, I COULD TOUCH THE GLOVE IN THAT AREA. I SAID THAT I HAD A SCIATIC PROBLEM, AND I TOUCHED THE GLOVE IN THAT AREA OF MY LOWER BACK ON MY RIGHT SIDE. I WAS HOLDING TREVOR ON MY LEFT SIDE AT THE TIME I DID THIS. AFTER WE ALL TOUCHED THE GLOVES, THE ONE GENTLEMAN SHOWED US THE VESTMENT MADE FROM PART OF BLESSED GIANNA'S WEDDING GOWN THAT OUR PASTOR WORE FOR THE MASSES THAT WEEKEND. HE ALSO TOLD US MANY INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT BLESSED GIANNA AND SHOWED US A NUMBER OF PICTURES THAT WERE ON DISPLAY. WE THEN VISITED WITH OUR PASTOR A LITTLE BIT BEFORE WE LEFT. I REMEMBER THAT WHILE I WAS TALKING WITH OUR PASTOR I NOTICED THAT I WAS FEELING BETTER THAN WHEN I CAME IN CHURCH, AND I WAS EXPERIENCING NO PAIN FROM MY SCIATIC NERVE. I THOUGHT NO ONE WOULD BELIEVE ME THAT I FELT BETTER, SO I DID NOT SAY ANYTHING. WHEN I WAS PREGNANT WITH TREVOR, I BEGAN TO HAVE PAIN FROM MY SCIATIC NERVE. I EXPERIENCED SOME PAIN FROM IT DURING THE DAY, BUT GETTING OUT OF BED WAS THE WORST TIME. I WOULD LEAN ON THE BED, DRESSER, WALL, BATHROOM SINK, OR TOILET FOR SUPPORT BECAUSE MY RIGHT LEG WOULD GIVE OUT, AND I COULD FEEL THE PAIN FROM THE SCIATIC NERVE. IT HAD BEEN ABOUT A YEAR SINCE I WAS ABLE TO GET OUT OF BED AND WALK ON TWO FEET WITHOUT HOLDING ONTO SOMETHING. TREVOR WAS NOW SIX MONTHS OLD AND THE PAIN HAD NOT GONE AWAY. IN FACT, THE PAIN WAS AT ITS PEAK POINT BECAUSE I HAD BEEN OUTSIDE RAKING LEAVES THREE DAYS IN A ROW ON THURS., OCT. 20, FRI. OCT. 31, AND SAT. NOV. 1. AFTER RAKING LEAVES ON FRIDAY, I SAT IN A CHAIR THAT EVENING AND HAD THE WORST PAIN EVER IN MY LOWER BACK AND RIGHT LEG DOWN TO MY KNEE. SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 1, THE WEATHER WAS VERY NICE, SO FOR THE THIRD DAY IN A ROW I WAS RAKING LEAVES, RUNNING THE LEAF BLOWER, AND PREPARING THE GARDEN FOR WINTER. AFTER GOING TO BED SATURDAY NIGHT (NOV. 1), I WAS WOKE UP BY TREVOR AT 3 AM SUNDAY MORNING. I GOT UP AND WENT TO GRAB THE BED WHEN I REALIZED THAT I DID NOT NEED TO GRAB THE BED BECAUSE I COULD STAND ON TWO FEET AND WALK. I HAD NOT BEEN ABLE TO GET OUT OF BED AND WALK WITHOUT SUPPORT FOR ABOUT A YEAR. I WAS ALSO ABLE TO LIFT TREVOR BACK IN HIS CRIB WITHOUT PAIN IN MY BACK AND LEG FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE HE WAS BORN. THE PAIN FROM THE SCIATIC NERVE WAS COMPLETELY GONE. MY HUSBAND ED BELIEVES ME COMPLETELY BECAUSE HE CAN SEE WITH HIS OWN EYES THAT I DO NOT NEED TO HOLD ONTO ANYTHING FOR SUPPORT WHEN I WALK OR GET DRESSED IN THE MORNING. ALSO, I AM NOW ABLE TO CARRY TREVOR ON MY RIGHT SIDE, WHICH I WAS NOT ABLE TO BEFORE. IT HAS BEEN OVER THREE WEEKS NOW, AND I HAVE HAD NO PAIN FROM MY SCIATIC NERVE. By: Diane O. from Garrett, Indiana. Nov. 24, 2003

Testimony 51 PULMONARY VALVE STENOSIS "IN JANUARY, 2002, THE RELICS (BOTH THE GLOVES AND THE CHASUBLE) OF BL. GIANNA WERE AT MY HOME PARISH, ST. MARY'S IN CLINTON, MARYLAND. THEY WERE BEAUTIFULLY DISPLAYED DURING MASS, AND AFTERWARDS WE WERE INVITED UP TO VENERATE THEM. MY 8 YEAR OLD SON WAS WITH ME, AND MY 6 YR. OLD WAS WITH MY HUSBAND. AFTER WE WERE THROUGH, I ASKED MY HUBBIE JIM, IF MY 6 YR. OLD, BRIAN MICHAEL, HAD TOUCHED THE GLOVES. JIM SAID HE WASN'T SURE, SO I TOOK BRIAN AND GOT BACK IN LINE! WE APPROACHED THE GLOVES AND WERE TOLD WE COULD TOUCH THEM TO BRIAN'S CHEST, AS WE WERE PRAYING FOR A HEALING OF HIS HEART MURMUR, CAUSED BY A PULMONARY VALVE STENOSIS (NARROWING OF THE PULMONARY VALVE, A CONDITION HE HAS HAD SINCE BIRTH). WE DID THIS AND PRAYED FOR HIS HEALING THROUGH THIS HOLY SAINT. IN MARCH, WE WENT FOR BRIAN'S ANNUAL CARDIOLOGY CHECK UP. THE DOCTORS HAD ASSURED US THAT ALTHOUGH CONDITIONS SUCH AS THESE DO NOT GO AWAY OR GET BETTER, WE COULD HOPE THAT HIS WOULD NEVER GET WORSE (AND IT WAS MILD, BUT DID NECESSITATE SPECIAL CARE FOR DENTAL/STITCHES/SURGERY, ETC.). EACH YEAR HE HAD A FAVORABLE REPORT IN THAT THE CONDITION DID NOT WORSEN, REQUIRING SURGERY. THIS YEAR I WAS PRAYING FOR THE SAME THING. THE CARDIOLOGIST DID LENGTHY TESTING, INCLUDING AN EKG AND AN ADVANCED SONOGRAM. AFTER REVIEWING THE TAPED SONOGRAM FOR WHAT SEEMED LIKE FOREVER, HE ENTERED THE ROOM AND STATED THAT SOMETHING "VERY RARE" HAD OCCURRED AND THAT BRIAN'S STENOSIS WAS GONE! IT HAD BEEN HEALED, WHICH IS NOT A NATURALLY OCCURRING THING FOR THIS CONDITION. THERE WAS NO MEDICAL EXPLANATION, JUST A "VERY RARE THING". THE DR. TOLD US THAT ALTHOUGH THEY WOULD BE GLAD TO SEE US IN THE FUTURE, THERE WAS NO NEED TO EVER COME BACK, EVEN DURING PUBERTY, THE MOST WORRISOME TIME FOR THIS CONDITION! HE SAID IT WAS GONE, SO NO NEED TO FEAR IT GETTING WORSE! OF COURSE, WE PRAISED GOD AND THANKED BL. GIANNA FOR THE "LITTLE" MIRACLE IN OUR SON'S LIFE! HE HAS A SPECIAL DEVOTION TO HER NOW, AS DO WE ALL. The Second Answered Prayer WAS THAT DURING THE LATER PART OF MY SISTER'S PREGNANCY, SHE LEARNED SHE HAD A PREGNANCY-RELATED LIVER CONDITION, THAT COULD RESULT IN LATE TERM STILL-BIRTH OF THE BABY. WE BEGGED BL. GIANNA'S INTERCESSION, AND AFTER RECEIVING A TOUCHED HOLY CARD AT OUR PARISH IN JANUARY AND GIVING IT TO MY SISTER, THE BABY BECAME MORE ACTIVE THAN EVER BEFORE IN THE PREGNANCY, THE TESTS WERE ALL FAVORABLE AND SHE WAS BORN HEALTHY AND BEAUTIFUL ON FEBRUARY 18, 2002, NAMED CAROLINE GRACE. THESE MAY NOT BE "CANONIZATION" MIRACLES, BUT THEY ARE VERY PRECIOUS TO OUR FAMILY! I THANK YOU FOR THE WONDERFUL WORK YOU ARE DOING!" By: Marti and Jim of Upper Marlboro, Maryland. May 21, 2002

Testimony 52 UNBORN BABY - SUSPECTED NO BRAIN AND PARALYZED MY NAME IS TRACY AND ON OCT. 4TH OF 2000 I FOUND OUT THAT MY CHILD, WHOM I WAS PREGNANT WITH, HAD NO BRAIN, HOLOPROSENCEPHALY, AND SPINA BIFIDA, THEY THOUGHT AT T-12, IN THE UPPER BACK WHICH WOULD MEAN THAT SHE WOULD BE PARALYZED FROM THE CHEST DOWN. YOU SEE, I HAD FALLEN DOWN THE STAIRS ABOUT A MONTH BEFORE AND EXPERIENCED SOME SLIGHT BLEEDING AND TIGHTENING OF THE ABDOMEN. I WENT TO SEE MY OB/GYN AND THEY TOLD ME THEY THOUGHT THEY SAW A TEAR IN MY PLACENTA, (ULTRASOUND), SO THEY SENT ME TO THE SPECIALISTS FOR A LEVEL II ULTRASOUND. THAT WAS HOW WE FOUND OUT. DURING THIS TIME I WAS STUNNED. I COULDN'T EVEN PRAY EXCEPT TO BEG GOD TO HAVE MERCY ON MY CHILD. I TOLD NO ONE EXCEPT MY HUSBAND OF COURSE, MY MOTHER AND ONE SISTER, AND I ALSO BEGGED MY BABY'S NAMESAKE, YOU SEE I ALWAYS NAME MY CHILDREN IN THE WOMB, TO PRAY FOR HER. A COUPLE OF MONTHS EARLIER I READ AN ARTICLE IN "LAYWITNESS MAGAZINE" ABOUT A WOMAN WHO GAVE HER LIFE FOR HER CHILD. I ADMIRED THAT VERY MUCH, AND BEING OF ITALIAN DESCENT I LOVED HER NAME IMMEDIATELY. YOU SEE THAT NAME WAS GIANNA. MY HUSBAND LOVED THE NAME ALSO AND FROM THAT MOMENT, THAT WAS HER NAME. (WE DIDN'T KNOW FOR SURE THAT IT WAS A GIRL, BUT I HAD A FEELING). ON DEC. 19TH, 2000 MY GIANNA WAS BORN. NOT ONLY DOES SHE HAVE A BRAIN, BUT SHE CAN MOVE HER LEGS. SHE IS NOT PARALYZED, ALTHOUGH SHE DOES HAVE SPINA BIFIDA AND SEVERE HYDROCEPHALUS. SHE IS ALIVE! ONE DOCTOR TOLD ME THAT THE LONGEST HE HAD EVER SEEN A CHILD IN THAT CONDITION LAST WAS THREE MONTHS. I CAN'T TELL YOU HOW SYMPATHETIC THE NURSES AND DOCTORS WERE, POOR ME, I COULDN'T HAVE AN ABORTION, IT WAS TOO LATE. BUT I DID WITNESS, AND I DID TELL THE GENETIC COUNSELOR, WHEN SHE TOLD ME NOT TO GET MY HOPES UP, THAT "MY LORD RAISED LAZARUS FROM THE DEAD. HE CAN DO ANYTHING HE WANTS." THANK YOU FOR PRAYING FOR US GIANNA! By: Tracy. March 16, 2001

Testimony 53 CANCER TREATMENT - THEN PREGNANCY! 3/6/2002 "WHEN I FIRST WROTE YOU, MY WIFE WAS SUFFERING FROM HODGKIN'S LYMPHOMA. KAREN UNDERWENT CHEMOTHERAPY AND RADIATION TO PUT HER INTO REMISSION. THE CANCER WAS STAGE II AND HAD EXTENDED FROM HER CLAVICLE TO BEHIND HER STERNUM. WE ARE GRATEFUL FOR YOUR PRAYERS AND FELT THE SUPPORT OF OUR BENEFACTORS THROUGHOUT THE ORDEAL. BLESSED GIANNA WAS A VERY SPECIAL HELP TO US. WE NEVER FELT DEPRESSED OR AT OUR WIT'S END. IT WAS A SUFFERING, BUT ONE WITH MANY GRACES. KAREN HAS BEEN CANCER-FREE SINCE AUGUST 2000. BUT OUR STORY DOES NOT END THERE. WE HAD BEEN ADVISED BY OUR ONCOLOGIST (AT OUR CATHOLIC HOSPITAL) TO CONTRACEPT SO AS TO AVOID ALL CHANCES OF PREGNANCY BOTH DURING THERAPY AND FOR AT LEAST 2 YEARS AFTER. WE DEMURRED, CITING OUR BELIEFS, BUT STATED THAT WE WOULD STRIVE TO AVOID PREGNANCY WITH OUR PRACTICE OF NATURAL FAMILY PLANNING (NFP). HE STRESSED THAT THE CHILD CONCEIVED WOULD HAVE ALL MANNER OF GENETIC DEFECTS IF WE FAILED. TO BE CERTAIN, WE ABSTAINED FROM RELATIONS DURING THERAPY, BUT RESUMED PRACTICING A VERY CONSERVATIVE NFP IN SEPTEMBER. MUCH TO OUR SURPRISE (AND WORRY) WE CONCEIVED ONLY 1-2 MONTHS AFTER TREATMENT HAD CONCLUDED. MY WIFE WAS UPSET AND WORRIED, ESPECIALLY WITH THE HORRIBLE SCENARIOS THAT HAD BEEN PAINTED FOR US. WE PUT OUR FAITH IN GOD, KNOWING THAT THIS CHILD MUST HAVE A VERY IMPORTANT REASON FOR BEING. WE ASKED BLESSED GIANNA TO WATCH OVER OUR LITTLE CHILD IN THE WOMB. OUR DOCTORS WERE ASTOUNDED. THIS WAS IMPOSSIBLE, OR AT LEAST A ONE-IN-A-MILLION CHANCE. HER REPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM SHOULD HAVE BEEN SHOCKED BY THE THERAPY FOR AT LEAST A YEAR OR SO. IT WAS ALSO A VERY POSITIVE SIGN THAT KAREN'S BODY HAD RECOVERED WELL. IN FACT, SOME OF THE SIDE EFFECTS OF TREATMENT (SENSITIVITY TO TEMPERATURE CHANGES, ANEMIA, AND DECREASED BLOOD LEVELS) STARTED TO GO AWAY. ELIZABETH GIANNA PROVENCHER WAS BORN ON AUGUST 1, 2001. DESPITE ALL PREDICTIONS, SHE IS HEALTHY AND DEVELOPING FINE. KAREN'S BLOOD LEVELS ARE NORMAL AND SHE HAS NO PRACTICAL EFFECTS FROM THE TREATMENT. SHE REMAINS CANCER-FREE. WE'VE ENCLOSED A PICTURE OF ELIZABETH GIANNA. WE CONSIDER HER TO BE A SPECIAL GIFT FROM GOD. NOT MANY UNDERSTAND OUR JOY - BUT WE KNEW YOU WOULD. THANK YOU AGAIN FOR YOUR PRAYERS. By: William and Karen Provencher of Haverhill, Massachusetts

Testimony 54 ANOTHER PHYSICIAN PRAYING FOR HIS PATIENT: TWINS! 10 August 1998 "I FIRST LEARNED OF BLESSED GIANNA WHEN I ATTENDED A RETREAT FOR CATHOLIC PHYSICIANS IN VANCOVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA. THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN IN THE SPRING OF 1992. THE PRIEST IN CHARGE OF THE RETREAT, FR. JOE HATTIE, KNEW OF THE CAUSE, AND PRESENTED ME WITH A BROCHURE ABOUT BL. GIANNA, AND A HANDFUL (LITERALLY!) OF THIRD CLASS RELICS. I AM A PRACTISING FAMILY PHYSICIAN, AND AT THE TIME, I WAS WORKING WITH A YOUNG COUPLE WHO HAD JUST EXPERIENCED THEIR FOURTH PREGNANCY LOSS. AT THE TIME, THEY HAD NO LIVING CHILDREN. I HAD ADVISED THEM THAT THE LIKELIHOOD OF CARRYING A PREGNANCY TO TERM WAS REMOTE. WE HAD NOT YET TALKED ABOUT ADOPTION. I WOULDN'T EXACTLY SAY THAT I BEGAN A NOVENA TO BL. GIANNA FOR HER ASSISTANCE, BUT I DID PRAY OFTEN, ASKING HER INTERCESSION. IN DECEMBER OF THAT YEAR, OUR FOURTH CHILD WAS BORN, AND THIS YOUNG MOTHER WHOSE ONLY CHILDREN WERE FOUR ANGELS, HAVING BECOME CLOSE PERSONAL FRIENDS WITH MY WIFE AND FAMILY, WAS ASKED TO BE OUR DAUGHTER'S GOD-MOTHER. THE WOMAN WAS NOT CATHOLIC, NOR WAS HER HUSBAND. SHE ACCEPTED. NOW, THE REAL REMARKABLE - AND MIRACULOUS, I BELIEVE - EVENT OCCURRED AT JUST ABOUT THAT SAME TIME. FOR A MERE TWO WEEKS LATER, OR SO, THE WOMAN CALLED ME TO INFORM ME THAT SHE THOUGHT SHE WAS PREGNANT. I'D INTRODUCED THE COUPLE TO NFP A FEW YEARS PRIOR, AFTER THEIR FIRST MISCARRIAGE, AND SO SHE HAD BECOME SOMEWHAT OF AN EXPERT AT RECOGNIZING PREGNANCY, WITHIN A FEW DAYS OF CONCEPTION. SURE ENOUGH, THE TEST WAS POSITIVE. OF COURSE, I CONTINUED TO CONSULT WITH BL. GIANNA THROUGH PRAYER INVOCATION, AND BELIEVED THAT, DESPITE MY RESERVATIONS SUPPORTED BY THE MEDICAL FACTS IN THE CASE, THIS PREGNANCY WOULD BE DIFFERENT. BL. GIANNA WOULD SEE TO IT. BY THE EIGHTH WEEK OF GESTATION, THE POINT AT WHICH HER PRIOR PREGNANCIES HAD BECOME TROUBLED, THERE WAS NO SIGN OF TROUBLE, AND WE ELECTED TO DO AN INITIAL ULTRASOUND. MUCH TO MY SURPRISE (AND THEIRS TOO!) WE SAW NOT ONE, BUT TWO GESTATIONAL SACS, EACH WITH A BABY'S BEATING HEART WITHIN. OF COURSE, WE ALL SHARED A FEW TEARS OF EMOTIONAL JOY, BUT I COULD TELL THAT THEY WERE MORE APPREHENSIVE NOW THAN EVER. I NEVER SHARED MY RELATIONSHIP WITH BL. GIANNA WITH THIS COUPLE. WHY, I DON'T KNOW, FOR I SHARED JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING ELSE ABOUT MY CATHOLIC FAITH WITH THEM. I CAN'T HONESTLY RECALL WHETHER I GAVE THE MOTHER ONE OF MY THIRD CLASS RELICS, OR NOT, BUT I AM CERTAIN THAT I NEVER WENT INTO DETAIL WITH THEM ABOUT THE ITALIAN PEDIATRICIAN/MOTHER THAT I WAS COMING TO KNOW THROUGH PRAYER. I JUST KEPT PRAYING. MOST AMAZING ABOUT THIS, WAS THAT THE TWINS PROVED TO BE FRATERNAL - A BOY AND A GIRL - WHICH MEANS TWO OVA, AND THIS, FROM A WOMAN WHOSE REPRODUCTIVE ORGANS HAD BEEN BADLY DAMAGED BY A COMBINATION OF ENDOMETRIOSIS, AS WELL AS A PRIOR ECTOPIC PREGNANCY WHICH HAD NECESSITATED THE REMOVAL OF HER LEFT TUBE AND OVARY SOME MONTHS PRIOR TO THIS CONCEPTION. THE TWINS WERE CONCEIVED, I MIGHT ADD, WITHOUT THE USE OF FERTILITY DRUGS. THE PREGNANCY WAS AS COMPLICATED AS I'D ANTICIPATED, THE LAST TWELVE WEEKS, OR SO, REQUIRING COMPLETE BEDREST AND AN EXTENDED HOSPITAL STAY ON THE PART OF THE MOTHER. EVEN THE DELIVERY WAS NEARLY MIRACULOUS (ALL DELIVERIES ARE, AREN'T THEY?) IN A PROVIDENTIAL SORT OF WAY. WE HAD REACHED THE 34TH WEEK OF GESTATION AND HAD BEGUN TO MAKE TWICE-WEEKLY INVESTIGATIONS ABOU THE BABIES' WELL-BEING WITH SERIAL NON-STRESS TESTS AND BIOPHYSICAL PROFILES. THE TWINS WERE GROWING WELL, CONCORDANTLY, AND WERE IN A BREECH/VERTEX PRESENTATION, WHICH NECESSITATED THE PREPARATION FOR CESARIAN BIRTH. BOTH MOTHER AND FATHER WERE AWARE OF THIS AND WERE IN AGREEMENT. THE ACTUAL DATE OF THE DELIVERY WAS SOMEWHAT OF A SURPRISE BECAUSE, ABRUPTLY, TWIN A WHO WE KNEW TO BE A BOY, BEGAN TO DEMONSTRATE SIGNS OF STRESS AND RATHER PRONOUNCED STRESS. WE QUICKLY MOVED TO DELIVERY, AND IN THE INSTANT OF HIS BIRTH, I THOUGHT THAT HE WAS ALREADY DEAD. HE HAD NO TONE, AND INITIALLY NO VITAL SIGNS. HE DID, HOWEVER, RESPOND TO RESUSCITATION IN THE DELIVERY ROOM. HIS SISTER WAS GREAT FROM THE START. THE TWINS CELEBRATED THEIR FIFTH BIRTHDAYS JUST LAST WEEK, AND THEY ARE NEIGHBORS OF OURS, AND KNOW OUR YOUNGER CHILDREN QUITE WELL. THEIR PRESENCE IN OUR HOME, AND OUR LIVES IS A VERY REAL REMINDER OF THE ITALIAN PEDIATRICIAN/MOTHER WHO GAVE HER LIFE FOR HER CHILD, AND HER INTERCESSION BEFORE GOD ON BEHALF OF THIS YOUNG FAMILY WHO LIVES DOWN THE STREET. INTERESTINGLY, THE FATHER OF THE TWINS IS A GODFATHER TO OUR FOURTH SON, THOMAS, AND THIS COUPLE TOOK RCIA CLASSES AND WERE ACCEPTED INTO THE CATHOLIC CHURCH DURING THE TIME OF THEIR PREGNANCY WITH THE TWINS. THE TWINS, MATTHEW AND ELIZABETH (MATT AND LIBBY, AS WE KNOW THEM) WILL GO TO CATHOLIC SCHOOL NEXT YEAR. THERE WILL BE NO MORE CHILDREN BORN TO THIS COUPLE AS THE MOTHER DID UNDERGO A HYSTERECTOMY TWO YEARS AGO FOR TREATMENT OF INTRACTABLE ENDOMETRIOSIS. MY, OH MY! I DID NOT PLAN TO RAMBLE ON SO, BUT THIS IS THE FIRST TIME I'VE TOLD THAT STORY ON PAPER. I HAVE SHARED IT WITH A FEW FRIENDS, BUT IT'S THE SORT OF STORY THAT THE FAITHLESS WOULD SCOFF AT. THANKS FOR LISTENING." By: Dr. Michael S. of Nebraska

Testimony 55 LYMPHATIC CANCER MY MOTHER WAS IN THE HOSPITAL FOR WHAT HAD BEEN DIAGNOSED AS PNEUMONIA ON SEPT. 10, 2003. SHE'S HAD A CHRONIC LUNG CONDITION MOST OF HER LIFE, SO WE WERE NOT OVERLY CONCERNED. SHE HAD BEEN THROUGH THIS SEVERAL TIMES--A VISIT TO THE HOSPITAL FOR A FEW DAYS, INTENSE ANTIBIOTIC TREATMENT, THEN RELEASE. MY MOTHER REGULARLY SEES A PULMONARY SPECIALIST. MOM IS IN WONDERFUL PHYSICAL CONDITION AND DOES NOT ABUSE HER LUNGS BY SMOKING--SHE NEVER HAS. WE RECEIVED FRIGHTENING AND DEVASTATING NEWS TWO DAYS LATER WHEN ONE OF THE PULMONARY SPECIALISTS CAME TO MOM'S ROOM TO REPORT THE RESULTS OF HER RECENT CT SCAN. I SPOKE WITH THE DOCTOR INDIVIDUALLY AS WELL. THE DOCTOR STATED THAT THE CT SCAN SHOWED A MASS OR LUMP IN MY MOTHER'S RIGHT LUNG AND VERY ENLARGED LYMPH NODES IN THE REGION OF THE CHEST CAVITY. I INQUIRED ABOUT THE PROGNOSIS. THE DOCTOR STATED TO ME THAT HE TRULY BELIEVED THIS WAS A CANCER CASE THAT ORIGINATED IN THE LUNG REGION AND HAD ALREADY SPREAD TO THE REST OF HER LYMPHATIC SYSTEM. I ASKED IF IT COULD BE REMOVED. HE SAID IT COULD NOT, CALLING IT INOPERABLE. "I'M VERY SORRY," HE SAID. MY FAMILY CONTINUED TO BE WITH MY MOM THROUGHOUT THAT WEEKEND. THE DOCTOR WANTED SOME FURTHER TESTING THE FOLLOWING WEEK. I PHONED MY PARISH PRIEST AT ST. MARIA GORETTI CHURCH IN HATFIELD, PA. BEFORE GOING TO THE HOSPITAL SUNDAY, SEPT. 14, MY FATHER AND I DECIDED TO ATTEND THE 7:30 A.M. MASS. THEN WE COULD BE WITH MOM FOR THE REST OF THE DAY. AS I ENTERED MASS SUNDAY MORNING I SAW SOME SORT OF GOWN IN FRONT OF THE ALTAR AND A SMALL TABLE WITH WHITE GLOVES. I PICKED UP THE BROCHURE AND READ ABOUT BLESSED GIANNA AS THE SOCIETY OF BLESSED GIANNA HAPPENED TO BE AT MY PARISH. MY FATHER AND I BOTH RECEIVED THE PRAYER CARDS OF BLESSED GIANNA WHICH HAD BEEN TOUCHED TO HER GLOVES. FOLLOWING MASS, I WENT DIRECTLY TO THE HOSPITAL WITH THE CARDS OF BLESSED GIANNA AND MY MOM'S ROSARIES. I SPOKE TO MY MOM ABOUT THE INFORMATION PRESENTED TO US BY THE BLESSED GIANNA SOCIETY THAT MORNING. I KEPT ONE CARD AND GAVE THE OTHER TO MY MOM. BEFORE LEAVING THE HOSPITAL AT NIGHT, WE PRAYED TOGETHER WITH THE CARDS CLOSE TO MY MOM'S HEART AND CHEST, ASKING GIANNA TO INTERVENE FOR US IN ASKING JESUS TO TAKE AWAY THIS PROBABLE CANCER. MOM SLEPT WITH HER CARD UNDER HER NIGHTSHIRT IN THE HOSPITAL. THE FOLLOWING WEEK, A BIOPSY WAS ATTEMPTED BUT NOT PERFORMED. WHEN THE DOCTOR WENT TO INSERT THE NEEDLE BY DIRECTION OF THE CT SCAN THAT DAY, HE STATED THAT THE LUMP HAD DECREASED IN SIZE, AND HE WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO BIOPSY THE LUMP. THIS WAS TREMENDOUS NEWS! BUT UPON SPEAKING TO HER SPECIALIST DIRECTLY, I LEARNED THE DOCTORS WERE STILL CONCERNED. THE LYMPH NODES STILL APPEARED TO BE VERY ENLARGED EVEN THOUGH THE LUMP HAD DECREASED IN SIZE. SEVERAL OTHER TESTS WERE PERFORMED AND DEEMED INCONCLUSIVE. MY MOM'S SPECIALIST NOW FELT THAT THE CANCER COULD ACTUALLY BE A LYMPHOMA ORIGINATING IN THE LYMPH NODES. HE WANTED A REPEAT CT SCAN FOUR WEEKS AFTER THE FIRST ONE SO THAT HE COULD COMPARE THE TESTS. DURING THIS IN-BETWEEN TIME, WE CONTINUED TO PRAY TO BLESSED GIANNA, ASKING HER TO INTERCEDE. I CALLED THE SOCIETY AND SPOKE WITH JIM BUFFLER, WHO ASSURED ME HE WOULD PUT MY MOM ON THE BLESSED GIANNA PRAYER LINE. WE CONTINUED TO PRAY, AS DID MANY OF OUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY. LAST WEEK, MY MOM RECEIVED A CALL FROM HER SPECIALIST STATING THAT THE RECENT CT SCAN INDICATED THAT THE LYMPH NODES HAD DRAMATICALLY DECREASED AND THE LUMP ON THE RIGHT LUNG WAS GONE COMPLETELY! ON OCTOBER 20, 2003, WE MADE AN OFFICE VISIT TO THIS SAME SPECIALIST. HE STATED THAT HE NOW FEELS THAT THERE IS LESS THAN 1 PERCENT CHANCE THAT THIS INFECTION IS CANCER, AS CANCER WILL NOT SHRINK OR BECOME SMALLER WITHOUT TREATMENT. HE STATED THAT UPON SEEING THE FIRST CT SCAN IN EARLY SEPTEMBER, ALL SPECIALISTS IN HIS PRACTICE WERE FAIRLY CERTAIN THAT THIS WAS A LUNG CANCER THAT SPREAD TO THE LYMPH REGION. MY MOTHER AND I HAVE NO DOUBT THAT THERE WAS INTERVENTION FOR THIS HEALING. WE CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR GOOD HEALTH AND PRAY FOR THOSE WHO HAVE PRAYED FOR ALL OF US. INDIVIDUALLY, I WANT TO THANK THE BLESSED GIANNA SOCIETY FOR BEING PRESENT AT ST. MARIA GORETTI PARISH THAT SUNDAY IN SEPTEMBER. THEIR VISIT PROVED SO VALUABLE. By: Theresa Mack as reported in the Catholic Standard and Times newspaper

Testimony 56 GOD GAVE HER A SIGN--AN ACTUAL SIGN! "I HAD A TROUBLED PREGNANCY WITH MY SECOND CHILD. THE DOCTOR TOLD ME THE BABY WAS HIGH RISK FOR SPINAL BIFIDA AND SAID AN ABORTION WOULD BE AN OPTION. THEY COULD NOT TELL ME THE SEVERITY OF THE CONDITION. THE DOCTOR SENT ME TO A SPECIALIST TWICE A WEEK FOR THE DURATION OF THE PREGNANCY. THE BABY WAS BORN ON OCTOBER 1, 2002 AND SHE DID NOT HAVE SPINAL BIFIDA. WE NAMED HER GIANNA ROSE C... (I SAW THE NAME GIANNA IN A NAME BOOK FOR THE FIRST TIME AND FELL IN LOVE WITH IT). A WEEK AFTER GIANNA WAS BORN SHE WENT FOR A ROUTINE BLOOD EXAMINATION. THE RESULTS WERE DEVASTATING! THE DOCTOR TOLD ME GIANNA HAD AN EXTREMELY RARE BLOOD DISEASE CALLED GLUCOSE-6-PHOSPHATE DEHYDROGENASE (AN ENZYME FOUND THROUGHOUT THE BODY WHICH IS NECESSARY TO CHANGE SUGAR TO ENERGY). THEY COULD NOT TREAT HER AND SENT THE OFFICE RECORDS TO THE NEONATAL SPECIALISTS AT SAINT CHRISTOPHER'S HOSPITAL IN PHILADELPHIA, PA. I TOLD THE PHYSICIANS WHAT THE OB/GYN PRACTICE PUT ME THROUGH DURING MY PREGNANCY, AND ASKED IF THIS COULD BE A MISTAKE. SHE SAID, I AM REALLY SORRY BUT THIS IS NOT THE SAME THING AND IT'S NOT A MISTAKE. SHE TOLD ME TO GET GIANNA'S BLOOD RE-TESTED. THAT WEEK I WAS DRIVING IN MY HOMETOWN, BRISTOL BORO, PA. IRONICALLY, RADCLIFFE STREET IS NOT A ROAD THAT I TRAVEL ON. AS I AM DRIVING I SEE ON SAINT MARK'S CHURCH "GOD BLESS GIANNA" (IT WAS LIKE A NEON SIGN). I AM CATHOLIC, BUT AT THE TIME WAS NOT PRACTISING. I WENT INTO THE CHURCH AND ASKED THE PRIEST WHY IS THE SIGN OUT THERE. HE TOLD ME TO COME TO THE MASS AT 7:00 THAT NIGHT. AT MASS UPON THE ALTAR WERE GIANNA BERETTA MOLLA'S GLOVES. I TOLD TWO WOMEN THERE ABOUT GIANNA'S CONDITION. THEY ASKED ME TO PUT THE GLOVES ON MY BABY. A COUPLE OF DAYS LATER GIANNA'S PEDIATRICIAN CALLED ME ON THE PHONE AND HER EXACT WORDS WERE "GIANNA'S BLOOD IS 100% NORMAL, THEY COULD NOT BELIEVE IT AND THEY DO NOT HAVE AN EXPLANATION FOR WHAT HAPPENED". AT FIRST, I DIDN'T TELL FAMILY AND FRIENDS THAT I THOUGHT THE EVENT AT CHURCH CURED MY BABY. HOWEVER, THERE IS NO QUESTION IN MY MIND GIANNA'S MIRACULOUS RECOVERY WAS DUE TO GIANNA BERETTA MOLLA'S BLESSING. "MY DAUGHTER IS A MIRACLE". By: Bridget C. of Levittown, Pennsylvania

Testimony 57 FLESH-EATING BACTERIA 8.30.00 "MY DAUGHTER-IN-LAW TOLD ME OF HER FRIEND WHO WAS STRICKEN WITH A BACTERIA THAT EATS AWAY YOUR FLESH. SHE CONTRACTED IT WHEN GIVING BIRTH BY C-SECTION. SHE WAS NOT EXPECTED TO LIVE. SHE DID SURVIVE AND I THINK IT IS BECAUSE OF THE INTERCESSION OF BL. GIANNA. WE ALL BEGAN TO PRAY TO HER AND ASKED EVERYONE TO JOIN US. THE DOCTORS WERE AMAZED THAT THE INFECTION WAS CONTROLLED IN A SHORT PERIOD AND HER RECOVERY WAS QUICKER THAN THEY HAD EVER SEEN.. I WANT TO THANK BLESSED GIANNA AND ASK FOR HER CONTINUING HELP AND ALSO ASK IF THIS MAY HELP IN HER CANONIZATION PROCESS. By: Mary B. of Madison, Virginia

Testimony 58 OB/GYN PHYSICIAN PRAYS DURING DELIVERY 6.20.2000. "I WOULD LIKE TO TELL YOU ABOUT A BABY AND MOTHER I BELIEVE WERE THE RECIPIENTS OF BL. GIANNA'S INTERCESSION TO OUR LORD. I AM AN OB/GYN PHYSICIAN, AND HAVE JUST COMPLETED MY RESIDENCY TRAINING. IN FEBRUARY OF THIS YEAR, I WAS CARING FOR A PATIENT ON LABOR & DELIVERY WHOM I HAD ADMITTED 2 WEEKS PRIOR WITH PRETERM, PREMATURE RUPTURE OF MEMBRANES. SHE WAS ABOUT 31-32 WEEKS PREGNANT AND WAS NOW GOING INTO PRETERM LABOR; IT WAS CLINICALLY APPARENT THAT THERE WAS AN INFECTION GOING ON IN THE UTERUS FROM HER SYMPTOM COMPLEX AND THE FETAL HEART TRACING. I WAS IN COMMUNICATION WITH HER ATTENDING OB/GYN PHYSICIAN INDICATING THAT SHE MAY NEED AN EMERGENT CESARIAN DELIVERY DESPITE THE FACT SHE HAD GONE INTO LABOR BECAUSE THE BABY WAS NOT TOLERATING THE LABOR. THE FETAL HEART TRACING WAS OMINOUS AND I HESITATED WAITING FOR THE ATTENDING TO ARRIVE BEFORE DOING A "STAT" C/SEC MYSELF. BEFORE GOING TO THE C/SEC THE BABY'S TRACING EXHIBITED A TERMINAL BRADYCARDIA. AS WE PROCEEDED WITH THE "STAT" I BEGAN TO PRAY TO THE BLESSED MOTHER AND TO ASK BLESSED GIANNA FOR HER INTERCESSION. I CONTINUED AS I DELIVERED THE PRACTICALLY LIFELESS, LITTLE INFANT AND PASSED HIM OFF TO THE WAITING PEDIATRICIANS. THE PEDIATRICIANS/ NEONATOLOGISTS PROCEEDED TO VIGOROUSLY RESUSCITATE THIS BABY BOY, AND I CONTINUED TO PRAY FOR BLESSED GIANNA'S INTERCESSION TO OUR LORD TO BLESS THEIR EFFORTS. WHEN THEY INTUBATED THE BABY (PASSED A BREATHING TUBE IN ORDER TO PUT HIM ON A VENTILATOR) PUS CAME OUT - THE BABY WAS OVERWHELMINGLY INFECTED. THE PARENTS WERE BEING PREPARED FOR THE WORST. THE ATTENDING OB/GYN DID NOT EXPECT THE BABY TO SURVIVE OR IF HE DID THAT HE WOULD SHORTLY START HAVING SEIZURES SECONDARY TO ANOXIC BRAIN INJURY FROM THE SEPSIS/INFECTION. I CONTINUED TO PRAY FOR THIS INFANT AND HIS MOTHER AND FAMILY THAT GOD'S WILL MIGHT BE DONE AND THAT THEY WOULD BE STRENGTHENED AND COMFORTED. I CONTINUED TO ASK BL. GIANNA TO INTERCEDE FOR A MIRACLE FOR THIS CHILD AS I PRAYED IN THE HOSPITAL CHAPEL BEFORE THE EUCHARIST. THE NEXT DAY IN INQUIRED IN THE NEONATAL INTENSIVE CARE UNIT - HE WAS RESPONDING TO THE ANTIBIOTICS! HE HAD NOT HAD ANY SEIZURES! I FOLLOWED HIS COURSE OVER THE FOLLOWING WEEKSWHERE HE CAME OFF THE VENTILATOR AND PROCEEDED TO "FEED AND GROW" UNTIL AN ADEQUATE WEIGHT TO GO HOME. I INTEND TO REVIEW HIS HOSPITAL CHART TO GIVE SOME MORE CONCRETE DETAILS AND TO OBTAIN FOLLOWUP INFO TO SEE IF HE HAS ANY SEQUELAE AT THIS POINT. BY MEDICAL STANDARDS, I DON'T THINK THIS BABY SHOULD HAVE SURVIVED--BUT GOD'S CRITERIA ARE DIFFERENT! I BELIEVE THAT BL. GIANNA INTERCEDED HERE. DOES THIS QUALIFY AS A MIRACLE IN HER CAUSE FOR CANONIZATION? PLEASE LET ME KNOW." By: (ob/gyn physician), Pennsylvania

Testimony 59 MOTHER AND SON SEPARATED FOR 16 YEARS 7/8/2002. "I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR THE VERY FINE PRESENTATION THAT THE SOCIETY GAVE TO OUR PARISHIONERS ON MOTHERS' DAY, 2002. MANY PEOPLE TOOK GREAT COMFORT IN KNOWING BETTER BLESSED GIANNA. HER STORY IS CURRENT AND OUR PEOPLE WERE ABLE TO IDENTIFY WITH HER. I WAS PERSONALLY MOVED BY THE PIETY AND DEVOTION OF MY PARISHIONERS. THE SUNDAY FOLLOWING THE VENERATION OF THE RELIC, ONE OF OUR PARISHIONERS CAME TO ME WITH TEARS OF JOY. SHE PRAYED TO BLESSED GIANNA THAT SHE WOULD RENEW COMMUNICATION WITH A SON THAT SHE HAD NOT HEARD FROM FOR SIXTEEN YEARS. IMAGINE, THE PAIN IN THE HEART OF THAT MOTHER. THAT WAS HER INTENTION AS SHE VENERATED THE RELIC. ON WEDNESDAY OF THE WEEK FOLLOWING MOTHERS' DAY HER SON CALLED HER (FOR THE FIRST TIME IN MANY YEARS). HE CALLED HER FROM TEXAS. SINCE THEN THERE HAVE BEEN SEVERAL CONVERSATIONS AND NOW PLANS TO GET TOGETHER THIS SUMMER. I HAVE HEARD OF OTHER WONDERFUL "THINGS" THROUGH HER INTERCESSION FROM OTHER PRIESTS THAT HAVE HAD DEVOTION IN THEIR PARISHES. MAY GOD BLESS YOU ALL IN YOUR APOSTOLATE OF MAKING THIS MODERN "HOLY WOMAN" BETTER KNOWN. By: Rev. Msgr. Edward M. Deliman, Pastor, Visitation B.V.M. Church, Philadelphia, PA

Testimony 60 UMBILICAL CORD WITH KNOT WRAPPED 5 TIMES AROUND BABY'S NECK! In September 2001, I discovered I was pregnant again. My previous pregnancy had not been an easy one, and while I was thrilled to be blessed with another baby, I was a little concerned about how this pregnancy would be. Between homeschooling our older son, taking care of the toddler, and working weekends in the Maternity Unit of a hospital, I was frequently exhausted. I had read about Gianna Beretta Molla (then a \"Blessed\") and found a special connection with her. Like Gianna, I too had young children at home, worked in the maternal/child medical field and had a husband who was frequently away on business. I began to draw strength from her examples of daily living and how she handled her difficult pregnancy. Having a history of low hormones, I had to give myself progesterone injections to help build up the uterine lining until about week 13. Just when I thought I would get a reprieve from needles, it was discovered that I had again become a gestational diabetic and needed to give myself insulin several times daily. This added to my worrying, but also increased my prayers. At a routine ultrasound done around 20 weeks, the scan was unable to show all four chambers of the heart and a complete brain was not visible. My doctor reassuringly told me that it was probably do to baby\'s position and she would have another scan done in a couple of weeks. I decided to put my trust in God and not push for a high-resolution ultrasound at this time. I made it through the Christmas holidays with tears and prayers and finally, a scan the first week of January showed a perfectly formed little boy with all his necessary organs! Thank you Jesus, Blessed Mother, and Blessed Gianna! All seemed to go well until I had reached my 33rd week. A vein that had been giving me trouble was found to be clotted off and not only caused severe pain, but posed a danger of the clot breaking free and traveling to my heart or brain. It was decided surgical intervention was necessary and would best be done under spinal anesthesia. All went well in the operating room, but in recovery, my blood pressure plummeted and I lost consciousness. The first thing I remember seeing was the lovely face of my coworker from OB, hooking me up to the fetal monitor and the feeling of relief as I got to hear little Patrick\'s heartbeat ticking away. After my recovery preceeded without incident, I was able to go home on bedrest (as much bedrest as you can get with small children around). The week before my scheduled C-Section, I was in the doctor\'s office for a routine non-stress test. A strong Braxton-Hicks contraction caused Patrick\'s heartrate to go from the 140\'s to the 80\'s and remain there for the duration of the contraction. I had rolled to my left side as soon as I heard the deceleration of heartrate and called out for the office nurse. The contraction wore off and the heartbeat resumed it\'s normal rate and after being monitored for several more hours, I was sent home. The non-stress test the day before the birth was fine, and although I had increasing Braxton-Hicks contractions, I felt good. This was the third baby I would be delivering by Ceserean, in the hospital unit where I worked, surrounded by knowledgable coworkers, so all seemed to be going well. On April 24, 2002 (the anniversary of the Beatification of Gianna Beretta Molla), my husband and I arrived at the hospital where I was placed on the fetal monitor and an IV started. Two hours later, I walked, pushing my IV pole into the C-Section room. After the spinal block was in place, my husband sitting nervously beside me and my doctor gowned and gloved, we were ready. Being a high-risk pregnancy, the Neonatalogist, and an RN and Respiratory Therapist from the NICU were called in to take care of Patrick. The first thing I can recall hearing after the surgery began was my OB saying there was thick meconium (baby\'s first stool) present in the amniotic fluid. That means that at some point in late pregnancy, the baby was under physical duress. We would soon find out why. Meconium can be deadly for a newborn if they aspirate it into their lungs when they take their first breath. After clearing out Patrick\'s little breathing passages, my doctor began to bring Patrick\'s head out, only to discover the cord wrapped around his neck - 5 times. Finally, with the cord loops removed from his neck (a sixth loop was discovered around his shoulders), he was pulled free from my uterus and passed off to the NICU team for resuscitation. Upon examination of the very long umbilical cord, a true knot was found in it as well. Both my doctor and her nurse commented that it must have been all those prayers and Hail Mary\'s I had said that kept Patrick safe. He was easily resuscitated and we got to snap a few pictures of him before he was taken to the NICU for evaluation and observation. After all that, I was finally able to shut my eyes and sleep during the remainder of the surgery. I was so thankful that the neonatalogist determined Patrick was doing great and was brought out to be with me only 4 hours after his harrowing birth experience. It was the next day, with Patrick in my arms, when my doctor told me that in her 20 years of OB/GYN, she had never encountered a baby with cord wrapped around it\'s neck more than 4 times that was not a stillborn, let alone having a true knot in the cord. I know with all my heart that, along with Jesus and the Blessed Virgin Mary, it was the intercession of Blessed Gianna, along with Patrick\'s Guardian Angel, that kept him safe. In a few weeks, on the 24th of April, we\'ll be celebrating n Patrick\'s 6th birthday, and 4 days later, on April 28th, St Gianna\'s feast day. I\'ve come to find those two days seem to go hand in hand for our family. I love St Gianna and have found that she is a powerful intercessor! St Gianna Beretta Molla, pray for us!

Testimony 61 INFERTILITY - NOW TWINS! My husband and I had struggled with infertility for years. We had one early miscarriage and decided to move on to adoption. Through a series of events in my life, St. Gianna came into my life. I prayed to her, prayed her novena and visited the shrine on several occasions. Imagine my surprise when my husband and I found out we were expecting twins! A double miracle and a double blessing! Thank you God and St. Gianna! I am currently 15 weeks pregnant and continue to pray to St. Gianna daily to watch over the babies and myself through this pregnancy. Thank you again St. Gianna for answered prayers!

Testimony 62 BLESSINGS BY PROXY! On the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe I've been celebrating a Mass of Hope and Healing for families that have lost a child through miscarriage, SIDS, abortion, accident, and for couples experiencing infertility. During the Mass couples come forward to receive a blessing using a second class relic of St. Gianna Molla (thanks to Joe Cunningham). This past Dec 12 a woman returned to give thanks; last year she came to the Mass and stood in proxy for her daughter who could not conceive. Nine months and one day after the blessing...her daughter gave birth to her first child and this woman's first grandchild. The woman cried last year in desperation; she cried this year in profound thanksgiving. Thank you, Saint Gianna, for helping this family! By: Fr J Francis Sofie, Jr., Mobile, Alabama

Testimony 63 2-YEAR OLD GIRL-CANCER / GLOVES ARE WARM! I was a month pregnant with my son when my 2-year old daughter, Katie, was diagnosed with cancer. The pregnancy did not start off well and combined with the stress of caring for Katie, my doctor told me to go on a modified bed rest or I could lose the baby. At the same time, Katie was not able to walk or even crawl due to the intense pain from the compression fractures in her spine caused by a combination of the leukemia and chemotherapy. I had to take Katie to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia 3 or 4 days each week for chemo and have her blood counts checked, along with giving her daily chemo at home. A member from the Blessed Gianna Society who heard about Katie, contacted me and asked if they could come to our home with some relics of Blessed Gianna. They came with a pair of her gloves and a priest’s robe that was made from pieces of her wedding dress. I was permitted to put on the gloves and immediately felt a warming sensation that started in my hands and went through my entire body. I placed one of my gloved hands on Katie’s back and the other on my belly and prayed. Katie began to crawl and eventually walk a couple of weeks later. She never had a fever or was hospitalized during the first year of treatment – which is highly unusual. Katie’s little brother, Kyle, was born a few weeks early, but at a healthy 10 pounds, 1 ounce! Our family believes through St. Gianna’s intercession, we have two miracles in Katie and Kyle!

Testimony 64 PHYSICIAN WITH PREECLAMPSIA/ GLOVES ARE WARM! I have always been a devout Catholic but I never felt that my prayers have had much meaning until I met St. Gianna. I think that it is when we are in our darkest hour that we truly give ourselves totally to God's mercy. I myself am a physician and I often pray for my patients. I felt all was lost after many years of trying to conceive a baby. A dear friend of mine told me of St. Gianna and that her relic was going to be at St. Mary's of the Assumption church. I did touch her glove and a feeling of warmth came over me. Later after the Mass, we were told that people who receive blessings often felt the same way. I did conceive a baby several months later. At 31 weeks, I was diagnosed with severe preeclampsia and was told I had to deliver the baby. My health was in jeopardy. I told my husband to go home and get my prayer to St. Gianna. I have been praying to her throughout my entire pregnancy and I trusted she wouldn't let anything happen to me. My son was delivered weighing only 2 lbs. 13 oz. He was very healthy and never needed oxygen or medications. Now at 1 years old, he is a 19 lb very happy and healthy little boy. I continue to pray to St. Gianna everyday. It was also through her intercession that I passed my medical boards. I do consider St. Gianna my friend and guide. I never proceed through a surgical procedure until I pray to her to guide my hands. Blessed be St. Gianna!

Testimony 65 EXTREME VOMITING DURING PREGNANCY + UPDATE My dear friend Saint Gianna, thank you so much for your loving intercession to our Lord Jesus during my last pregnancy. I discovered I was pregnant with our third child in November of 2005. I had always gotten bad morning sickness when pregnant, but this time bad turned into horrifying. I could not keep anything down. I vomited everyting I ate and drank. Even water made me sick. I quickly lost twenty pounds during my second trimester. I was dehydrated as well, and needed many IV infusions. I often spent the day in my bathroom, vomiting for hours on end, until all that came out was bile and blood. I was diagnosed with hyperemesis gravidarum (HG). Saint Gianna had been a cherished friend of mine since she was still a Blessed. I "met" her during my pilgrimage to World Youth Day in 2002, of which she was a patron. I knew this lovely saint had also suffered from HG. Each day, when I dragged myself to the bathroom, I brought my postcard from World Youth Day with the image of Saint Gianna. I would pray for her intercession and her strength. There was a day I thought constantly about abortion; Satan was tempting me severely. I cried out for it all to end. I looked at the picture of Saint Gianna and begged for her help; God felt so far away but Gianna understood what it was to suffer for a baby. When I asked for her help, I remembered Christ in the Garden, begging for the cup to pass from Him -- "nevertheless, not my will, but Thine be done." The temptation to abort was instantly taken from me and Jesus suddenly felt close again. My darling daughter, Naomi Elizabeth Pearl, was born on Aug. 2, 2006. Saint Gianna helped me every step of the way. The baby's "secret" name will always be Gianna Gethsemane. Bless you, Saint Gianna. Thank you, loving Father, for providing saints like Gianna as role models of holiness for the rest of us. UPDATE: APRIL 9, 2010 Message :- Follow-up to testimony 56 -- I am the woman who gave testimony #56, extreme vomiting in pregnancy. I have a happy follow-up story. I am now pregnant with my fourth child, and through good medical care and the prayers and intercession of Saint Gianna, I have completely avoided hyperemesis gravidarum in this pregnancy. Praise God! St. Gianna helped give me the courage to dare another pregnancy after the last horrific one. My third son is due in June 2010. By: Cindy M.

Testimony 66 RISKY PREGNANCY Saint Gianna was canonized the day after my first born daughter's funeral [May 16, 2004]. A good friend of my mother sent us a copy of a novena for then blessed Gianna and her story. Our family began praying to Gianna then. I had a very complicated first pregnancy and in addition to losing my daughter, I nearly lost my own life. I was told I had a 60-80% chance of a reoccurence in a following pregnancy. My husband and I so desparately wanted a child and decided we were willing to try again. But in the long months following our daughter's death we had trouble conceiving. It had been almost a year when one Sunday there was a blurb about the shrine to Saint Gianna in our church bulletin. We decided to visit the shrine. Saint Gianna's gloves were placed on my stomach and I kept the card I was given that day close to me at all times. Within 2 months I was pregnant. I prayed to Saint Gianna regularly and kept that card close to me always, especially at all of my medical appointments when I feared getting devastating news. In the end I was able to carry my second daughter to 36 weeks and despite a major complication at delivery she survived and is now a very healthy, happy, and energetic 11-month old. I still pray to Saint Gianna and am so very grateful to her for watching over us. There is no greater gift than the gift of life.

Testimony 67 SIGN ON A TRUCK About a year ago, my wife and I, unfortunately suffered a miscarriage. As devastating as it was, we kept our faith strong and put everything into Our Lord's hands. On my way into work each morning, while saying my prayers, I would always ask Our Lord, through the intercession of St. Gianna, to bless my wife and me with a child. One day, while driving to work, I saw a truck in the other lane as it passed. It had written on it, in huge gold letters, "GIANNA". I knew that St. Gianna was hearing my prayers and within a couple of weeks, my wife and I received the greatest news ever; we were expecting. Thus far my wife is doing wonderful in her pregnancy and my devotion to St. Gianna is always present. God bless!

Testimony 68 INFERTILITY - GRAVES DISEASE When I was 21, I was diagnosed w/ Graves Disease. I was engaged to be married, and physicians had told me that I probably would not be able to conceive a child. During this time of struggle I prayed a lot for healing. One day they brought the gloves of St. Gianna to my church... I prayed so hard and asked for her intercession, that I vowed that if God blessed me to have a child and it would be a girl that i would name her after St. Gianna. I am now 27 years old and 8 1/2 months pregnant expecting my first child and she is a girl. Conceived naturally through God's blessing and with lots of prayer. I wanted to thank whomever it was that brought her gloves to my church of St. Luke's Catholic Church, Palm Harbor, Florida. Because with her help and her prayers I have been truly blessed.

Testimony 69 PREGNANT WITH KIDNEY STONES I was pregnant with my fourth child in 2005. I have had problems with kidney stones during pregnancy and a friend of mine (her fourth child is named Gianna)gave me a relic of St. Gianna. I learned more about her life and prayed to her throughout the pregnancy. Then on October 3, 2005, I went into labor (after many episodes of kidney stones and even a surgery while I was pregnant - during all of which I prayed to St. Gianna) I always had her relic with me. All day had passed and finally at night I had an epidural. Shortly after that the nurse checked to see how far dilated I was. When she checked she found the baby was facing the wrong way. She seemed very frantic and quickly started to make calls to the doctors and prepare for a C-section. My husband and I were nervous. So we prayed to St. Gianna and held onto the relic. At that moment I felt a big movement with the baby. When my doctor arrived and checked she said the baby was just fine and in the correct position. We gave birth to our fourth healthy son, Nikolas Joseph early in the morning of October 4, St. Gianna's birthday! Praise be to God!

Testimony 70 PREGNANT AND HAD CANCER! St. Gianna was brought to my attention by my sister-in-law. Hesitant to bring me her story, she did it anyway. Thanks be to God! I was diagnosed with Stage IIe non-hodgkins\' lymphoma AND papillary thryoid cancer on June 9, 2004. On 6/15/04 I found out I was pregant with our 4th child. Obviously, terminating my child was not an option. So, I had to wait to have surgery until my baby could make it through also. In August, during a 7 hour surgery, I had my spleen removed (where the tumor was) and my entire thyroid. I would promptly start chemotherapy 3 weeks later, 7 days after my 37th birthday. I would put off a portion of my treatment b/c it was not known how it would affect our baby. During each round of chemotherapy, I could just feel St. Gianna there filtering all the toxic drugs away from my beautiful child. Three weeks after my last treatment, on January 25, 2005, Grace Gianna was born into this world at 7 lbs. 6 oz. and perfectly healthy! I finished up 4 more treatments for the lymphoma and 2 more for the thyroid cancer that I couldn't do while pregnant and I have been in remission for 1 1/2 years! Praise our Good God!! Grace Gianna has also enjoyed great health! Also, before my surgery, my husband and I were invited by our Archbishop, Raymond Burke, to his home so he could pray with us. He has a relic of St. Gianna's wedding dress! We were able to venerate the relic and on our journey we continued with the comfort that we had St. Gianna interceding for us! This month (May 2006)Archbishop Burke has announced a new parish in our archdiocese.[Archdiocese of Saint Louis]. It is named....St. Gianna!

Testimony 71 INFERTILITY - PHYSICIAN - 7 YEARS Thank you Siant Gianna. One year ago today I first learned of your beautiful life as I watched a documentary on TV. Today that same documentary aired again and I was reminded of how much you interceded for me. I too am a physician and a mother and I knew that you could help me. My husband and I had been unable to conceive for 7 years after our first child was born. I asked your intercession and that of Our Blessed Mother Mary, and Saint Michael the Archangel and to our delight Benjamin Thomas was conceived within 1 month of my prayers. We welcomed him to our home on February 23, 2006. Thank you!!! By: a physician

Testimony 72 INFERTILITY Through the past year, after losing a baby boy named Joseph, we have been praying to do God's will for having another child. We felt the Lord was putting it on our hearts, so it was his will. After months of prayer and discerning his will, we were disappointed when we weren't getting pregnant. We have 6 children who had been praying very hard for another child. I knew St. Gianna's relics were coming to our church and was doing a novena to St. Gianna and St. Joseph (since we lost Joseph). When St. Gianna's relics came to our church, they prayed over me and placed the gloves on my stomach. The next day, which was the feast of St. Joseph, we found out that we were pregnant. Needless to say my children were very excited, as well as, my husband and I.

Testimony 73 LEUKEMIA/OSTEOPOROSIS/GLOVES ARE HOT! The beginning of December, 2005 I was diagnosed with acute myelogenous leukemia. I was a healthy, active 52-year-old female and needless to say I was devastated. This is an extremely aggressive type, and I was also unfortunate in that my cytogenetics indicated that I had a specific gene that showed that my leukemia would be very resistant to treatment. I was immediately admitted to the hospital and underwent two rounds of intensive chemotherapy. After 7 weeks in the hospital, many allergic reactions, and a bout with pneumonia, I finally was able to go home. Unfortunately, my prognosis was very poor. I still had 20% leukemia cells in my bone marrow (under 2% is considered good for a stem cell or bone marrow transplant). My options seemed very limited. There were no close bone marrow donor matches for me, plus I was not in remission. Jack and Amy Weber brought Saint Gianna’s gloves over to my house on February 7, 2006. I held the gloves and we talked and prayed for a long time. Jack and Amy explained some of the healings that people experienced after holding St. Gianna’s gloves. I was hopeful, but not sure that I was worthy of a miracle. My pregnant daughter, Jessie, and her son were at my house visiting during this time. Jessie was busy on the phone talking to out of state hospitals trying to gather more info about possible treatment options for me. Finally we were able to get Jessie to sit and pray with us. I held the gloves to Jessie’s back, as she experienced terrible bone density loss after her first pregnancy. It was so severe osteoporosis. Her doctors strongly recommended that she not have any more children. When Jessie became pregnant again, she never even considered not having the baby, even though her doctors warned that she may end up in a wheelchair or worse. While we prayed, I held St. Gianna’s glove to Jessie’s back. She whispered to me to please take it away as it was very hot and felt uncomfortable. My heart just leapt for joy, as I knew that Jessie would be cured, even if I were not. On February 21, 2006 Jessie had a doctor’s appointment and the good news is that the curvature of her spine has greatly improved. Jessie is due to deliver Emma Grace about the middle of March. About three months after that, her doctors will do another bone density test. I feel positive that the results will be normal, and that she will have no spine fractures after this baby. Thank you Saint Gianna, praise God!!!! I was preparing myself to undergo more chemotherapy and a very risky stem cell transplant—i.e. a transplant when you are not in remission and do not have a good donor match. Chances of success were poor at best, but my other option was to go on hospice and enjoy my last 6-9 month on earth. The transplant process is full of pitfalls, including organ rejection, pneumonias and chemo drugs, and a possible 3 month stay in the hospital if you were lucky to live that long. I was determined to see my yet-to-be born granddaughter, and prayed that I would live long enough to hold baby Emma Grace in my arms. On February22, after another bone marrow biopsy, I was given the best news of my life—“”there is no evidence of leukemia in your bone marrow”. My husband, three children, extended family and wonderful friends all jumped for joy with me. Even more impossible to explain, is that at my next appointment the doctor reported that the problematic cytogenetics issues of the abnormal gene that was resistant to treatment had ether vanished or resolved itself. The doctors were at a complete loss to explain how this could have happened. I know how this happened – MIRACLE! I am so very grateful to Jack and Amy Weber for bringing over St. Gianna’s gloves to me when I was so down and facing such long odds. Not only did they cure my daughter of her back problems, but me also. Two miracles for the price of one visit! I am still not quit out of the woods, as I will now go through the transplant procedure. But now that I am in remission, my chances of a successful transplant are vastly improved. I may be able to do a self-transplant, where my own stem cells are harvested, cleaned up and given back to me. This option completely eliminates all the rejection stuff. If I do go the donor transplant avenue, a better match has turned up in the meantime (another miracle!). I am feeling very positive about my future. Thank you Saint Gianna, for interceding on my behalf. Thank you Jack and Amy Weber (I may need another visit before the transplant.) Thank you to all my wonderful family and friends who have been praying non-stop for my recovery. By: Debbie from Lansdale, PA

Testimony 74 INFERTILITY – 10 ½ YEARS! 10/10/2002. “MY WIFE PATTY AND I HAVE BEEN MARRIED FOR 10 ½ YEARS AND HAD TRIED TO CONCEIVE FOR THOSE YEARS WITHOUT SUCCESS. AFTER UNDERGOING FERTILITY TESTING AND FINDING OUT THAT MY WIFE HAS ENDOMETRIOSIS, WE BELIEVED THAT WE WOULD NEVER CONCEIVE. I READ ABOUT BLESSED GIANNA WHILE I WAS IN AN ADORATION CHAPEL ON AUGUST 19, [2002]. AFTER FINISHING THE PAMPHLET, I ASKED BLESSED GIANNA TO INTERCEDE FOR US SO PATTY WOULD BECOME PREGNANT. THREE WEEKS LATER, ON SEPTEMBER 11, [2002] PATTY TOOK A PREGNANCY TEST AND SHE WAS, IN FACT, PREGNANT. I TRULY BELIEVE THAT BLESSED GIANNA’S INTERCESSION ALLOWED US TO BECOME PREGNANT.” BY DARREN G. ONE YEAR LATER, JOE CUNNINGHAM, PRESIDENT OF THE SOCIETY OF THEN BLESSED GIANNA, WAS INVITED TO ST PETER'S CHURCH IN NEWARK, DELAWARE TO GIVE A TALK AT A LUNCHEON. AS JOE LIKES TO TALK A LOT ABOUT ST GIANNA, HE KIDDINGLY ASKED THAT NOBODY INTERRUPT HIM. SUDDENLY, A COUPLE STOOD UP IN THE BACK OF THE ROOM OF 200 PERSONS TO INTERRUPT JOE'S TALK! DARREN AND PATTY WANTED TO PRESENT THEIR DAUGHTER GIANNA TO EVERYONE AND TO PUBLICLY THANK GIANNA BERETTA MOLLA FOR PRAYING TO GOD FOR THEM. By: Darren and Patty G. (and Joe Cunningham)

Testimony 75 PROBLEMS WITH BABY IN UTERO “I JUST WANTED TO TAKE A MOMENT TO SHARE THE STORY OF OUR MIRACLE WITH YOU. OUR OLDEST DAUGHTER, COLLEEN, WAS PREGNANT WITH HER SECOND CHILD LAST FALL WHEN SHE WAS TOLD THAT THERE WAS A PROBLEM WITH THE BABY. THRU AN ULTRASOUND, IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT THIS 20-WEEK OLD FETUS HAD A MASS GROWING OUT THE BACK OF ITS NECK. IT ALSO HAD AN ARTERY COMING OFF THE MAIN ARTERY IN ITS NECK FEEDING THIS MASS BLOOD. THIS PUT STRESS ON THE BABY’S HEART. WHILE A NORMAL BABY’S HEART TAKES UP 50% OF ITS CHEST, HER BABY’S WAS AT 68%. COLLEEN WAS TOLD BY THE DOCTORS AT CHOP [CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL OF PHILADELPHIA] THAT THEY HAD NEVER SEEN THIS PROBLEM BEFORE AND THAT THEY DID NOT EXPECT THE BABY TO MAKE IT TO 30 WEEKS, THEY EXPECTED THE BABY WOULD GO INTO CARDIAC ARREST DUE TO THE STRESS. SHE WAS MONITORED WEEKLY BY DOCTORS AT ST MARY’S HOSPITAL AND ALSO AT CHOP. BY CHRISTMAS WEEK THE MASS HAD DOUBLED AND WAS HALF THE SIZE OF THE BABY’S HEAD. THE PROGNOSIS WAS NOT GOOD AND AT THAT POINT THE DOCTORS DID NOT HAVE A PLAN OF ACTION FOR WHAT TO DO IF THE BABY WERE TO BE BORN. ANYWAY, TO MAKE THE REST OF THE STORY SHORT, COLLEEN DELIVERED A LITTLE GIRL BY SCHEDULED C-SECTION ON FEBRUARY 28TH DOWN AT UNIVERSITY OF PA HOSPITAL AND OUR LITTLE GIANNA HAD SURGERY 3 DAYS LATER TO HAVE THE MASS REMOVED. BOTH MOTHER AND BABY ARE NOW HOME AND RECOVERING BEAUTIFULLY. COLLEEN PRAYED TO ST GIANNA DAILY AFTER THE BABY’S DIAGNOSIS LAST NOVEMBER AND VISITED YOUR SHRINE THE NIGHT BEFORE HER DELIVERY. WE HAD NOT EVEN HEARD OF THIS SAINT UNTIL OUR REQUEST FOR PRAYER TURNED UP A PRAYER CARD. WHAT A WONDERFUL SAINT SHE IS! THE POWER OF PRAYER IS TRULY AMAZING!!” By: Dennis and Ann Quinn

Testimony 76 PREGNANCY “I HAVE ENCLOSED A PICTURE OF A BABY GIRL, GRACE SAVANNAH LANIER, BORN JULY 19TH, 2005. I WANTED TO SHARE THE TESTIMONY OF MR. AND MRS. ROBERT LANIER. THEY HAD THEIR FIRST CHILD IN 1999 AND THEY STARTED TRYING TO HAVE ANOTHER BABY LAST YEAR (2004). THEY GOT PREGNANT AND LOST THE BABY TO A MISCARRIAGE. AFTER THE MASS IN NOVEMBER WITH THE RELIC OF ST. GIANNA AND THE PRAYER WITH HER GLOVES, HER HUSBAND, WHO NEVER CRIES, BEGAN TO CRY. MRS. LANIER GOT PREGNANT WITH GRACE RIGHT AFTER. THEY HAD NEVER EXPERIENCED A MASS LIKE THAT BEFORE. THEY BELIEVE ST. GIANNA INTERCEDED FOR THEM AS THEY PRAYED THE PRAYER ON THE CARD OVER AND OVER AGAIN. WE WOULD LIKE TO HAVE THE RELIC OF ST GIANNA BERETTA MOLLA HERE AGAIN.” By: Rev. Michael Snyder, Pastor, St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church, Picayune, Mississippi

Testimony 77 LITTLE AMNIOTIC FLUID. BABY NOT GROWING - COUNTRY OF MEXICO Tenía 5 meses de embarazo, y mi utero estaba muy delgado y I WAS 5 MONTHS PREGNANT AND MY UTERUS WAS VERY THIN no tenía casi irrigación hacia la bebé, la niña no estaba creciendo, I SCARCELY HAD ANY AMNIOTIC FLUID FOR THE BABY, AND THE LITTLE GIRL WAS NOT GROWING, OR DEVELOPING. no se desarrollaba. Entonces mi esposo encontró a Sta. Gianna y conocimos su historia, le pedimos todos los día por la bebé y le prometimos llamarla como ella si es que se lograba, en un par de ocasiones el doctor nos dijo que había que sacar a la bebé de mi utero y tratar de lograla artificialmente. THEN MY HUSBAND HEARD OF SAINT GIANNA AND WE LEARNED HER STORY, WE PRAYED TO HER EVERY DAY FOR THE BABY AND PROMISED TO NAME HER AFTER THE SAINT IF THE BIRTH WERE SUCCESSFUL. ON A FEW OCCASIONS THE DOCTOR TOLD US THAT HE HAD TO REMOVE THE BABY FROM MY UTERUS AND WE WOULD HAVE TO TRY ARTIFICIAL INSEMINATION. Nosotros nos negamos porque confiamos en que Sta. Gianna intercedería por la bebé, y a sí fue, en un mes la bebé creció todo lo que no había crecido los últimos tres meses, incluso nacio pesando 3 kilos 200 gramos, es una niña saludable y feliz y se llama Gianna Raisa. WE REFUSED IT BECAUSE WE TRUSTED THAT SAINT GIANNA WOULD INTERCEDE FOR THE BABY, AND SO IT WAS, WITHIN A MONTH THE BABY GREW THE AMOUNT THAT SHE HAD NOT GROWN FOR THE LAST THREE MONTHS. SHE WAS BORN WEIGHING THREE KILOGRAMS AND 200 GRAMS, SHE IS A HAPPY AND HEALTHY BABY AND HER NAME IS GIANNA RAISA. Document Available :- si, los ecosonogramas, el doctor mismo dijo que fue un milagro. YES, THE ECHO SONOGRAMS, THE DOCTOR HIMSELF SAID THAT IT WAS A MIRACLE. Option Selected:- I grant the Society of St Gianna the permission to edit and post my intercession (translated by Joe Cunningham) By: Larissa, Country of Mexico

Testimony 78 PREGNANCY - ENDOMETRIAL CYST DISCOVERED Back in Nov 2008 I found out I had a large endometrial cyst and needed a laproscopy. I was very worried about what they would find during surgery and if my fertility would be affected. I prayed to Mary and St. Gianna often and touched her holy card to my belly. Right before my surgery, a nurse was prepping me and her name was Gianna! I started tearing up with joy, as I felt Gianna was with me! After surgery I was told I had endometriosis. However, not even two months after my surgery, I became pregnant, and am now 16 weeks with my first child. I feel so blessed and thank Gianna and Mary for interceding for me to Jesus and answering my prayers! By: Becky, Downingtown, PA

Testimony 79 DANGEROUS PREGNANCY IT WAS 2 WEEKS AGO THAT MY BROTHER HAD SENT OUT AN EMAIL TO FAMILY AND FRIENDS TO INFORM US THAT HIS DAUGHTER, MY NIECE ROSE, WAS 3 MONTHS PREGNANT AND HAD BEEN RECENTLY DIAGNOSED WITH A CYST/POCKET THAT CONTAINED A DANGEROUS AMOUNT OF BLOOD. OF COURSE, THE ONLY OPTION THE DOCTOR GAVE MY NIECE WAS TO TERMINATE THE PREGNANCY. THE DOCTOR WENT OVER THE COMPLICATIONS IF SHE CHOSE TO KEEP HER BABY. WITHIN TIME, THE CYST/POCKET OF BLOOD WOULD RUPTURE, THE BABY WOULD DIE AND THEN MY NIECE ROSE WOULD FOLLOW. SHE HAD MANY THINGS TO CONSIDER, ONE BEING HER 2 YEAR OLD DAUGHTER, AND HER NEW ENGAGEMENT. BUT, TO MY NIECE, SHE WOULD NOT END HER PREGNANCY; SHE WOULD TRUST THE LORD AND HIS WILL FOR HER LIFE. SHE WAS GOING TO BEGIN A VIDEO JOURNAL FOR HER DAUGHTER AND WOULD MARRY HER FIANCÉ WHO WOULD ADOPT HER DAUGHTER AND LEAVE THE REST IN THE HANDS OF GOD. I PRINTED THE NOVENA TO ST. GIANNA AND SENT IT OUT TO EVERYONE I KNEW. THE NEWS WAS DEVASTATING TO MY BROTHER AND SISTER-IN-LAW AND WE WERE ALL HEARTBROKEN BUT, PROUD TO HEAR THAT SHE WOULD DIE FIRST RATHER THAN KILL HER UNBORN BABY. IN THE MEANTIME, MORE DEVASTATING NEWS FOLLOWED. HER BROTHER, MY NEPHEW ROBERT ANTHONY, DIED IN A FIRE IN BEIJING, CHINA. I SAW MY BROTHER'S LIFE COME TO A HALT: HIS DAUGHTER AND NOW HIS SON. I ASKED MY NIECE IF HER ROBERT ANTHONY KNEW WHAT WAS GOING ON WITH HER. SHE SAID, "NO". WE WERE TOLD THAT HE LIVED FOR AN HOUR AND A HALF AND HIS HEART JUST CAME TO A STOP. I TOLD MY NIECE THAT I REALLY BELIEVED THAT HE MADE THAT DECISION WITH GOD TO GO IN HER PLACE BUT, ONLY TIME AND HER FOLLOWING ULTRASOUND WOULD REVEAL THIS TO US ALL. WELL, THE FEASTDAY OF ST. GIANNA WAS ON TUESDAY [4/28/09] AND ROSE'S ULTRASOUND WOULD BE ON THURSDAY. THE RESULTS SHOWED THE CYST WAS TOTALLY GONE! SHE FOLLOWED UP IN THE AFTERNOON WITH HER DOCTOR WHO ASKED THAT THEM IMMEDIATELY FAX OVER THE RESULTS. THE DOCTOR WAS DUMBFOUNDED; SHE COULD NOT UNDERSTAND WHAT MAY HAVE HAPPENED. BUT WE ALL KNEW. WE CRIED, AND THANKED OUR WONDERFUL ST. GIANNA FOR HER POWERFUL INTERCESSION AND PRAISED THE LORD FOR HIS ABUNDANT GRACE. By: Melinda, Fresno, TX

Testimony 80 COINCIDENCES FROM GOD! This is Joe Cunningham, President of the Society of Saint Gianna. On Jan.22, 2009 I traveled to the March for Life in Washington, DC with a tapestry containing the photo of Saint Gianna and her son Pierluigi. The wind was blowing and my arms were sore from holding the tapestry all day, but I was a driven person, wanting to tell everyone about our Saint. I remember a lady from Virginia coming up and taking a photo of the tapestry. Little did I know what would happen later..... Here's a story from our fellow Board Member from the Feastday Mass on April 28th, 2009 in Warminster, Pennsylvania: "A woman approached the table to venerate the gloves and looked at the tapestry behind us in church. She asked if the tapestry, or a large photo just like it, had been in Washington, DC for the March for Life. I told her that it had been in DC for the March. She said that her daughter could not get pregnant and she [the mother] took a photo of the picture of our Beloved Gianna and gave it to her daughter to venerate and to pray to conceive a child. Her daughter did this and she became pregnant. She is due in November. The evening of the Feast Day, I took her photo, with her family, in front of the tapestry". By: Joe Cunningham+Maryellen White

Testimony 81 PREGNANT LABOR AND DELIVERY NURSE I am a labor and delivery nurse and during the summer of 2007 I was pregnant with my second child. I had just started a new job working in pediatric hospice part time days. During the transition, I was inspired by St. Gianna, because she worked as a pediatrician and still managed her family. So that was the beginning of my sense of St. Gianna being with me spiritually throughout my pregnancy. I found out around 6-7 months that my unborn baby had a complex heart defect known as tetralogy of fallot, and that after she was born she would need open heart surgery to repair this. Needless to say throughout my pregnancy I encountered, many doubts and fears and extreme anxiety from the constant testing, and wondering and waiting. Almost everyday I cried and told God how scared I was of the unknown, and known. Being a nurse made it worse since I had more understanding of what could potentially happen(like St. Gianna). At 34 weeks I began bleeding, I ended up on bedrest and at 36 weeks was induced for IUGR, conincidentally, it was discovered the same day that I had gone into preeclampsia. This whole time I had been praying for healing and yet everything had gone wrong. It culminated with an emergency c-section for a placental abruption during induction. Ironically, the reason for my induction(that the baby wasn't growing-based on ultrasound) was wrong, but the other--my blood pressure came out of nowhere and was the real problem--that was definitely God being a safety net. I never got to see my baby after birth, we were separated for almost 2 days, because of her being tested and my bad state after losing so much blood. My baby was born on Sept. 28th, the eve of the feast of the archangels, we knew her name would be Gianna Rafaela before she was born, but until the events unfolded we didn't know just how significant her name would be. I later found out Gianna was a form of John and St. John of God is the patron of heart problems, Rafaela means God heals and the day she was born coincided with St. Rafael. I truly believe that although God didn't take away these crosses, these little "signs" were His and His saints ways of letting us know they are near, praying and supporting us with graces to do what God is asking of us. My little Giann had surgery Jan. 4 of 2008, is little but is doing fine, and is spunky as all heck! Thank You St. Gianna for your example to mothers, I love you.

Testimony 82 PANCREATIC CANCER I was pregnant with my third child when my dad was dying of Pancreatic Cancer. He was in the hospital bleeding internally. The doctors did not think he would make it. Two individuals came to the hospital with St. Gianna's relic gloves which they placed on my dad and on my belly. My dad recovered and lived long enough to meet and spend time with my daughter. My dad wanted to watch my daughter grow but knew he would not be able to. I believe my dad recovered, gained weight and lived seven additional months because of St. Gianna.

Testimony 83 INFERTILITY My son Joseph Michael is about to turn 1 year old. He is a child that was conceived after I visited St. Gianna shrine, prayed daily and touched the gloves to my abdomen. We had not luck for 11 months and the 12th month he was conceived. I have been praying and telling people about St. Gianna ever since.

Testimony 84 LOW AMNIOTIC FLUID I am the mother of four beautiful children. During my fifth pregnancy, after having miscarried pregnancy number 4, it was determined that I was developing anti-bodies to the blood of my unborn child. I had to consult with experts at Johns Hopkins, who closely monitored my pregnancy. The concern was that the unborn child could go into fetal distress and/or suffer heart failure. I prayed to St. Gianna for the safety of the child. The last ultrasound showed slightly lower amniotic fluid. Several days later, during a routine checkup one week before the due date, my ob/gyn decided to do another ultra sound. He said the amniotic fluid was low but that it was not an emergency situation. He decided to induce labor that evening anyway. When he went to break my water -- there was none! The child was born 12:08 a.m. on Dec. 27th, 2002 (St. John's feast day) in perfect health. We named her Gianna Marie (after St. John, St. Gianna and the Blessed Mother). I found out several years later that the child whose miracle was used for the canonization of St. Gianna was named Gianna Maria, and her mother had no amniotic fluid in her fifth month, yet still gave birth to a healthy baby!

Testimony 85 DELIVERY COMPLICATIONS - GLOVES ARE WARM! Jan 7, 2004 I was in the hospital to deliver my baby. The pregnancy was normal, the delivery had complications. My daughter lost most of her blood, we didn't know if she would live or what kind of damage might have been done. My husband, Pietro, and I decided to call her Gianna and prayed for the best. We had liked the name and choose it because we like the meaning. A few days later, on Jan 11, my sister went to Mass at a church and time which was different from what she normally attends. There was a presentation at that church. My sister touched the gloves, asked for prayers, and brought relics to the hospital for myself and my daughter. The relics felt so warm to me. Nobody else could feel the warmth. When my sister explained the story of Gianna and of the gloves, I knew it was a sign. My husband and I immediately went to the nursery, touched the gloves to my daughter's hands, and left it in her crib in the NICU. I am happy to report that our beautiful Gianna will be four and has no side effects of the blood loss. I still pray to St. Gianna daily and thank God we have our Gianna in our lives.

Testimony 86 PREGNANCY I have a very wonderful story with St. Gianna and would be happy to share it. Two years ago my husband and I conceived our first baby. I chose the name Gianna for a girl. At that time I didn't even know that a St. Gianna existed. I just liked the name. Unfortunately, that pregnancy ended in a miscarriage. Last spring we found out we were pregnant again. We were told by the doctors that pregnancy too would result in a miscarriage. I was so upset and I didn't even know how to handle my emotions. I just prayed for God to help me through it and to make me strong. It was a couple weeks before Easter and I was on a Catholic website searching for Easter gifts. To my surprise, I stumbled across St. Gianna! I couldn't believe my eyes. After reading about her and finding out that she helps mothers with troubled pregnancies, I knew that God had answered my prayers and sent me a special angel to help me through my troubled time. I then found out that the St. Gianna shrine was about an hour away from my house. I visited the very next weekend with my mother. Unfortunately, that pregnancy could not be saved but I had a new found strength through St. Gianna. Last summer I started to see a specialist and he informed me that I had a very large fibroid on my uterus that could be preventing me from carrying a baby full term. I remembered St. Gianna and the uterine fibroid that she had. I again, found great strength in her as I went through surgery to have it removed. I pray to St. Gianna daily and have been since she was sent to me. I found out this weekend that I am pregnant again. It is very, very early in my pregnancy so I am not out of the woods yet. I will be visiting the shrine again this weekend and will continue to pray to St. Gianna for this pregnancy to last. I calculated my due date on the internet and to my surprise it said April 28th, St. Gianna's feast day!!!! I believe that when you pray to God, you have to be open to the way he answers your prayers. I think that he answered my prayers by leading me to St. Gianna.

Testimony 87 CONTEMPLATING ABORTION One day I was walking along the road heading toward a Planned Parenthood to kill an innocent life, when I ran into Gianna. She just talked to me, as if she had no idea what I was about to do. We sat there talking about life, and about children and how they are extremely important to the sanity of others. I then decided, without ever talking to her about it directly, that aborting my fetus was not the right decsion. Then I became a more devout Catholic. Document Available :- no Option Selected:- I grant the Society of St Gianna the permission to edit and post my intercession

Testimony 88 THREE WOMEN; THREE PREGNANCIES My niece, her sister-in-law and a mother in my school were all pregnant. My niece had a miscarriage, her sister-in-law gave birth to still born twins and the woman in my school had a miscarriage. I gave the three of them the prayer card for St. Gianna. The first to have a baby was the woman who had given birth to still born twins. She had a little girl and called her Paige. The second to have a baby was the woman from my school who gave birth the day before Gianna's birthday. She named the baby Gianna in honor of St. Gianna. The third one to have a baby was my niece who gave birth in November. She named her baby Alexandra. All three women prayed to St. Gianna and all three women had little girls!

Testimony 89 DOWN'S SYNDROME? I was pregnant in 1999 with my fourth child. I took a routine blood test which indicated that our baby may have Down's Syndrome. My husband and I asked St. Gianna to pray for our baby, that she be healthy. We were given an option of terminating the pregnancy but that was absolutely not an option for us. It didn't matter if the baby had Down's or not, healthy or not; she was a gift from God. Anna was born in March 2000. Yet, she had a single crease in the palm of her hand. The pediatrician told us that the crease is a trait of Down's children and suggested that Anna could have a mild case of Down's. A blood test indicated that her chromosone count was normal. Did Anna have Down\'s and was it reverse in utero? Possibly but who knows? We have a beautiful, healthy child. The whole experience was very humbling. We thank St. Gianna for her prayers. To this day 6 yr. old, Anna, shows everyone her "special line" from God.

Testimony 90 PROBLEMS DURING PREGNANCY Hello - I submitted this testimony via email in 2004 before the advent of this website. Today I would like to resubmit my original testimony for the benefit of all. Thank you. I would like to take the time to write in my own testimonial to a favor received on the behalf of Saint Gianna. On Feb 9th 2004 a friend of mine, M., called me to let me know she was unexpectedly pregnant. She was very happy about it, to say the least. In that conversation she told me about her previous pregnancies that she never told me before. This was her 6th pregnancy. Between the 5 previous pregnancies there were 6 children. At this time she only has one living son who was 7 and a half. He was born at 22 weeks is legally blind and has other disabilities. She did not have high hopes for this child making it to full term, but was optimistic nonetheless. That day I decided to begin a novena for the sake of herself, her family and her unborn baby. Also, that same day, I went to my parish and asked for a mass to be said that month for them all as well. My personal intention for the mass was that she and the baby “make it” to the next month. While in the parish chapel beginning my novena a priest of the parish, Fr Matt, walked in. I told him about M. and her baby. The two of us prayed together for them and I asked him to remember them in his prayers. Yet, I felt the need to do more. I decide to make a novena for her and the baby, every month beginning on the 9th of the month, the anniversary of the day she told me she was pregnant. In addition to that I went back to my parish to arrange for another monthly mass, after the previous one had already been said, with the same personal intention – may they make it another month. I decided to continue in this manner for a total of nine months from February to October. Using a book of Novena prayers as I guide I composed a novena prayer to Gianna. “O Blessed,Saint Gianna, intercede before God with my petition. Be it his will, not mine, that my friend M’s pregnancy proceed to full term. May the child be delivered healthy and without blemish. It is you O gracious Gianna that understands difficult pregnancies. May the blessings of Almighty God rain down on the A------ family. I ask this in the name of Jesus my Lord, Amen.” As time went on, despite difficulties and worries that this pregnancy would end like all the rest, my friend’s pregnancy continued. At various times her doctors tried to convince her to allow them to deliver the baby. During the month of August she had continued problems with her blood pressure. She consistently refused as long as the baby was not in distress. Considering the possibility that she could still deliver early the doctors administered cortisone shots to mature the baby’s lungs. On August 20th it was decided to deliver the baby via caesarian section due to M’s condition. This was about her 34th to 35th week. Amanda Marie weighed in at 4 pounds, 13 ounces, did not need any extraordinary medical intervention and roomed in with mom from the first moment. I had the remaining masses, that were to be said after her birth, said as Masses of Thanksgiving. After she was born I asked my friend what she, or her doctors, could attribute to her and Amanda’s success. She said she and the doctors had no idea. Today I finished the 9th day of the 9th Novena and in recognition of this I am sending you my testimonial.

Testimony 91 COLON CANCER May 5, 2006 My nephew, Todd, in his mid thirties, was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer a couple of years ago. Our local parish, St. Joseph's was hosting a special presentation about the life of Blessed Gianna and her gloves were there as a part of this program. I went up to place my hands on her gloves and I asked her to pray for my nephew, who was so sick and....through her intercessions to our Lord, to make him well again. Todd had major surgery, followed by radiation and chemo and today he is 100 percent cured from stage 4 colon cancer! I am convinced, Blessed Gianna helped to save his life. Todd is alive and cancer-free! By: Rebecca

Testimony 92 PHYSICIAN PRAYS TO ST GIANNA I am a physician, a specialist in the foot and ankle, and during my professional career I have encountered many couples who cannot conceive. Today my 8:00am patient was young lady presenting for an initial consult. Her husband accompanied her. The patient was in need of having a procedure on her foot, but was not sure if she was pregnant. I began to take her medical history and among other things, she suffered from years of gyn procedures for endometriosis and infertility. I advised her that I would need a pregnancy test prior to performing any procedure. I performed the urine pregnancy myself and waited ten minutes; my nurse was present with me. (The usual time for a urine pregnancy test is no more than five minutes, but I was hopeful for this patient so waited ten minutes)The test was negative. As I informed the patient, she appeared very sad, but not surprised. Despite the negative pregnancy result, I decided to proceed with conservative treatment and not the surgical procedure. Shortly after the patient left the office, I said a prayer to St. Gianna to look over this young lady, and requested St. Gianna to intercede for this couple so they may be blessed with a child. I proceeded to see my morning patients. At 11:15am my nurse burst into my office extremely astonished and excited. She blurted "Doctor, doctor, you're not going to believe this...that pregnancy test from this morning was still in the lab and as I proceeded to discard it, I noticed it was positive; the patient has a positive pregancy test!" I responded, GOD is good and thank you St. Gianna. I had this overwhelming feeling of awe and had no doubt in my mind that St. Gianna interceded for this young lady. I telephoned the patinet to advise her and as she heard the good news, she broke into tears. I am not sure of this women's religious beliefs but you can be certain that when she returns for follow-up, she will hear the story of St. Gianna Beretta Molla. By: (physician)

Testimony 93 CONFIRMATION NAME Two weeks ago, the man whom I thought I would marry, broke it off with me. I was heartbroken. The following Sunday, I had the opportunity to touch the gloves of St. Gianna. A sense of peace and healing instantly came over me. I am confident that St. Gianna will lead me to the right man so that I may become as devoted a wife and mother as she was. I am about to complete my adult Confirmation, and I have selected Gianna as my Confirmation name in thanks and reverence to her.

Testimony 94 "THE NIGHT ST. GIANNA CAME TO OUR PRAYER GROUP" I am inspired to write this story of feeling Gianna's holy and special touch. It was on 10/19/03 that the parish of St. Philip Neri in Lafayette Hill, [outside Philadelphia] had veneration of St. Gianna's gloves. It was so wonderful. I went with my youngest daughter. About a year later after that I was at St. Philip Neri's prayer group on a Thursday night and I noticed a new person who had come to the group Elisa. I knew her from my high school days at Hallahan Catholic Girls' High School, but I have not seen around for almost 3 years. She had moved to the New York area. One of the ladies, Loretta, in the prayer group to the morning Mass and was prompted by Jesus to ask Elisa (whom she did not know) to the prayer group. She did not know why Our Lord had to ask Loretta 3 times to invite this woman she did not know. Loretta who is usually shy found it difficult, but did this in obedience. Elisa accepted the invitation and came that night. Our group started with the rosary. As we started the rosary I saw and recognized Elisa, I smiled to welcome her. During the rosary I was shown an image of an elderly woman with white hair holding a baby. There were many angels in a circle protecting the child with heavenly weapons pointing as if in protection. I had the understanding that this was the grandparent of the baby and through her prayers the baby was protected by dangers of the outside world. The prayers represented the Angels with heavenly weapons protecting as prayers would. As I shared in faith to the prayer group what I was shown, Elisa started to shake her head and smile and pointed her finger. She took several seconds of quiet and then shared a beautiful story about her when her daughter Elizabeth was expecting her second child. Elizabeth had been about to deliver her second child and the doctors were very concerned for the baby's health, they were worried about the baby's heart. Elisa shared with the group that her daughter's first child was born the color of a purple Easter egg, so she was really worried with this birth of her new grandchild. So, Elisa started to pray when in the waiting room came in the other grandmother(the father's mother). The two grandmothers hugged as they prayed and awaited their new grandchild. The other grandmother whispered and told Elisa that she just came from Elizabeth's hospital room and I slipped a relic of saint under the mattress without Elizabeth's knowledge. She said, "I don't know the the saint's name. I forgot they had her things at the church. So the grandmother's prayed together for the baby to be born healthy. Labor went well and the baby girl was a beautiful healthy little girl with no heart problems. The father of the baby said in the delivery room, the name "Gianna is coming to me, we will name her "Gianna". Afterwards the two grandmothers went to the mattress to see the saint that was placed and it St. Gianna's relic that had touched the gloves at St. Philip Neri. They were so astounded, and prayed in thanksgiving. Well, as I sat there listening to this miracle story. It then dawned on me that it was so ironic that it was Loretta who invited Elisa to the prayer group that night. Because it was Loretta who was the one responsible for getting the gloves of St. Gianna to the the church. As I shared this just then another member jumped up and screamed with excitement, "I was the nurse that rubbed holy water on your daughter in the hospital. "I remember it well" See it was all so connected, we were all amazed. St. Gianna's presence was so strong, and she wanted to thank and let Loretta know the fruits of her effort to bring her gloves to their parish. And Elisa was able to thank Loretta also for being the one to arrange for glove to come that helped her grand-daughter. Then Elisa also thanked Merlinda for help in prayers and faith. The women all talked and were amazed of how they did not really know each other but for some reason were brought together on this night. Elisa was from New York and was visiting her daughter and had come to St. Philip's church at Mass that morning in thanksgiving of the miracle received through the intercession of St. Gianna. I was blessed two days after prayer group in meeting the miracle baby at a family party. Elisa was not there so I would not have never known the beautiful story connected to the baby or that it was her grand-daughter. For it was her daughter's friends who came to me about hearing the story about what happened at our prayer group and they asked if I wanted to see baby Gianna? I was able to hold her and thank Jesus for using St. Gianna to heal this beautiful special baby girl. Even if we tried, I don't think it would have been possible to set up all the connections I had seen. It was a most powerful and most memorable night. The night St. Gianna came to show us the power of prayer and her saintly intercession from heaven, Thank You St. Gianna. By: Bee Johnson

Testimony 95 INFERTILITY Thank you St. Gianna for the safe and healthy birth of our daughter, Gianna Rose, on February 20, 2006. In 2003 Gianna's older brother, Derek, was born to eternal life the day after his earthly birth. Following Derek's passing, we were told by our infertility doctor that a subsequent pregnancy was unlikely. However, after touching St. Gianna's relics and praying for her intercession, I became pregnant without requiring an ovarian cyst aspiration as had been previously done in attempts to conceive Derek. Ultimately, our prayers were answered with the safe and healthy arrival of our baby daughter. Thank you St. Gianna for your intercession and for God's living miracles!

Testimony 96 INFERTILITY My husband and I desperately wanted a baby. I had two miscarriages that were incredibly difficult on us. My mother gave introduced me to St. Gianna. She gave me a prayer card and a brief biography. Her story was inspiring. I began to pray to St. Gianna, asking for a baby. In May of 2005 we were blessed with a beautiful, healthy baby girl. We named her Gianna Mary Frances. We have her prayer card in the nursery and I continue to pray to St. Gianna with my daughter. Document Available :- Option Selected:- I grant the Society of St Gianna the permission to edit and post my intercession

Testimony 97 HIGH RISK PREGNANCY I learned about St. Gianna back in Sept.2004. I had a miscarriage.I have a 10 yr. old.I finally had gotten pregnant.A dear friend told me to pray to St.Gianna and she would help me.In JanauryIwas pregnant.I was high risk due to my age and history of my first pregnany.We decided not to have any tests done to check for birth defects because this was already a miracle. Then at 35 weeks at one of my many ultrasounds the doctor informed me that the baby had fluid in the ventricles and that at this late stage of the pregnancy it was impossible it would dissolve. The count was at 11, two days later it had risen to 12. The doctor mad an appointment to speak to both my husband and I to explain all the risk factors and what it meant for our baby, we were devasted, everything was going so well and now at the end this devasting news. I had been praying to St. Gianna althrough the pregnacy and also considering naming my child after her if it were a girl.That weekend a dear who is a priest brought my husband a present to give to me knowing I was almost due. The Life of St. Gianna Molla, my husband read the book that night from cover to cover that weekend was also St. Cosmo and St. Damian\'s feast day, my husband\'s grandfather was devoted to them. That Sunday we went to the Shrine and recieved a special blessing. That Monday I was sceduled for another ultrasound, plans had been made for a neurologist to be present during my deliver to establish how much brain damage our precious gift had. The same nurse wanted to test me, she looked at me and said,\" Seven, I can\'t believe it went down to seven,let me get the doctor,\" the doctor came in and said that at this late stage she had never seen this. I hope you believe in miracles, it couldn\'t have happened to a nicer person. My first thought was THANK YOU GOD, THANK YOU SAINT GIANNA. On October 10, 2005 I gave birth to a beautiful, healthy baby girl. Yes, Gianna. impossible that it would desolve. The count was at 11. Two days later I went back to the hospital and the count was rising it had elevated to 12. The doctor made an appointment with my husband and I to explain all of the risk factors and what it actually ment for our baby, we were devasted, everything was going so great and now such bad news at the end.I had been praying to St. Gianna and also considering naming my child after her throughtout the entire pregnancy if it was a girl. That weekend a dear friend, who is a priest brought my husband a special gift to give me, knowing I was almost due, The life of Saint Gianna Molla. My husband sat up all night and read cover to cover, that weekend was also the feast of St Cosmo and ST. Damian, my husbands grandfather in Italy was devoted to them, that Sunday we went to Shrine and also recieved a special blessing. That Monday I was sceduled for another ultrasound, plans had been made by our doctor to have a neurologist present when I delivered to establish the amount of brain damage our precious gift had. The same nurse wanted to do the test, she looked at me and said \"seven I can\'t believe this, it went down to seven, don\'t move I\'ll get the doctor.\" When the doctor came in she said at this late state of the pregnacy she has never seen this, I hope you believe in miracles. My first thought was THANK YOU GOD THANK YOU ST. GIANNA. Two days later when tested again the fluid had completely desolved, and the doctor said she spoke to the neurologist and he said it was very rare that such a thing would occur at 36 weeks. On October 10, 2005 I gave birth to a beautiful, healthy baby girl. Yes, Gianna. Document Available :- Could get records from the hospital Option Selected:- I grant the Society of St Gianna the permission to edit and post my intercession

Testimony 98 PRE-TERM LABOR WITH TWINS I have experienced so much in praying to St. Gianna. In November of 2001, I lost twin sons at 20 weeks to an infection. The following May, when I announced my second pregnancy, a friend's mom gave me St. Gianna's information. I began praying to her right away. Joe came to visit me when I was 18 weeks pregnant and let me hold onto a relic from Gianna. 20 weeks into my 2nd pregnancy, I began to develop complications again. At 24 weeks, I was admitted to the hospital with preterm labor. They had the NICU doctors come and try to prepare my husband and me for the very premature birth of our 2nd set of twins. The doctors thought there was no way they would be able to stop the labor. I prayed to Gianna constantly during my 8 week hospital stay. Through several bouts of pre-term labor - Gianna came through each time. I was sent home at 32 weeks - with the doctors completely stunned that I had made it that far. At home, I continued to pray to Gianna for healthy babies. My twins were delivered at 36 weeks - absolutely fine! That was 3 years ago and my doctors still say it was a miracle. I have met several other girls who have had various complications, and to every one, I tell Gianna's story and give them her prayer cards. I am now pregnant again (another miracle!) and Gianna is the first saint I pray to every night. I can truly feel her watching over and protecting my unborn child.

Testimony 99 CANCER February 28, 2006 On February 2, the gloves of Saint Gianna were take to a woman in Philadelphia with cancer. The woman just underwent tests and the cancer is gone By: Jim, Warminster, PA

Testimony 100 MULTIPLE MISCARRIAGES My Wife & I had our first child in 2000. After our first child we had 3 miscarriages including twins so we lost a total of 4 children. The doctor thought that we might not be able to have children any more but we decided to try again. My wife got pregnant again but had many difficulties. She was put on bed rest in her 3rd month as she was having contractions. We were told of St Gianna by my cousin Marie who herself had a miracle through St Gianna. We mailed for prayer cards & prayed to St Gianna every day for her intercession. The doctors thought the baby would be early & born in March. However, our little girl made it full term & was born on the Feast Day of St Gianna, April 28th 2005. St Gianna truly interceded for us & we are forever greatful. Words cannot explain how blessed we are with our baby Megan Gianna. A special thanks to my: Cousin Marie Aunt Rose Sister Regina (Aunt) & to all who prayed for us And St Gianna whose intercession lead to a true miracle in our life By: John, Aurora, Colorado

Testimony 101 INFERTILITY My husband and I had been praying for almost 4 years for a child. As a teacher, I love children and wanted a big family. Doctors were puzzled by my infertility. A specialist told me that I may need exploratory surgery. I was depressed and scared. Then the day came that changed my life forever. I was cantoring at Sunday Mass on Mother's Day at Our Lady of Ransom. My grandmother and mother were also there to celebrate the day with me. The Society of Blessed Gianna just happened to give a presentation that day and my family and I were able to pray and touch the sacred gloves. It was the first time that I had heard of Blessed Gianna. From that day on, I felt hope. I knew that Gianna would hear my prayers. I prayed that my surgery would be successful and that God would send me a baby to love. In the meantime, Gianna became a saint. I bought a medal directly after it was struck and had it blessed by a wonderful priest friend. I bought books and read them and my husband and I prayed daily for the intercession of St. Gianna. Everyone prayed to St. Gianna for me, even my 3 year old niece! My surgery went better than expected, but I was told that I had severe endometriosis and that adhesions still remained in my body. The doctor was unsure of my fertility. To the surprise of the doctor, I became pregnant only 2 months after my surgery. My doctor, who is not Catholic, called it a miracle. He could not believe that I was able to conceive without any medical interventions so quickly. But I knew that St. Gianna had heard my cries for help and God answered me. I continued to wear the medal and carry her relic cards throughout my pregnancy and even while in labor. My pregnancy was wonderful- I was never sick! In fact I felt the most healthy when carrying my baby. The baby was due on April 22, 2005. I was not surprised that the baby was due then- Gianna died on the 28th, Gianna Emmanuela was born on the 21st, and Gianna was beatified on the 24th. Maybe this isn't a miracle to others, but in my heart, I know that St. Gianna was there for me and continues to watch over my family. I have been promoting Gianna to many friends who also had trouble conceiving. I prayed daily for them and gave them the St. Gianna relic cards. I am so pleased to report that my one friend has a healthy baby boy who is 5 months old, and another friend is expecting twins in April!! I feel that it is my calling to make others aware of the loving Gianna who reaches out to the depressed. I named my baby Erin Gianna and promise to teach her all about her patron saint. Erin Gianna was born on 4-15-05 and I was able to take her to her feast day mass at Nativity on April 28. It was beautiful. Since then, I have also gone to the shrine as well as other parishes to venerate the gloves/relics and to get more relic cards that I continue to distribute to friends. Last week, I was lucky enough to go to a Mother's meeting at Our Lady of Good Counsel and hear the story of Gianna that I know so well. Erin Gianna and I were able to touch the gloves and the special stole from Gianna's canonization. I bought the 2 books and dvd that I did not have and loved reading and watching the movie. I am so touched by Gianna's life and the miracle that I received that I hope to help the society in some small way. Thank you and God bless you Jim and members of the society for making St. Gianna known to me. By: AMS from PA

Testimony 102 TUBULAR PREGNANCY January 22, 2006 During the early part of my pregnency, for a month the doctors were unsure if I was having a tubular pregnancy and they said that only time would tell. A friend had just heard of this new saint named St. Gianna who was the patron of the unborn and mothers. So my husband and I began to ask St. Gianna for her intersession. The pregnancy went on well and thankfully I did not have a tubular problem however I did have preclampsia towards the end and I wound up delivering 6 weeks early. Our daughter, Gianna turned out to be beautiful and healthy as can be. We owe our greaditude to God and to Saint Gianna! She truly is a wonderful and marvelous saint, who really does interceed. Our daughter Gianna should have had problems at birth being that she was so early and problems with development. But no she is absolutly perfect! Thank you Saint Gianna for all your interceeding By: Jennifer, Tempe. AZ

Testimony 103 We so desired to increase our family size, and last Christmas Eve at Mass we prayed to the baby Jesus. Two months later, we found out we were expecting. We were thrilled. Despite for some typical pregnancy discomforts, everything went as it should. On May 23, 2003, we were nervous and excited that we were going to have our ultrasound! The ultrasound showed an absence of part of the brain. It seemed like hours that the tech spent on our child’s head. I felt so out of control. I wanted to run, but I was lying down with the probe on me, and felt trapped. We were then rushed into the doctors office, and we were abruptly told ' your baby has 'Andy Walker' which incidentally is 'Dandy Walker, I would later find out" and not to go off the deep end, our equipment here is very good, but we do think you need to find out about your options and alternatives. I know you are a nurse, so don't go home running to the computer to look this up. We would like you to see this group of docs.' I then said, this "Andy Walker, can be minimal problems with this too, some delays, walking disabilities, learning issues, but the baby will be ok, right?" Well, the look on the doctors eyes spoke volumes. We then went to these 'special' doctors, and after having a week and a half to look into this disease, we felt we were prepared. We went to these docs because we knew that we were going to need special care for the rest of our pregnancy, and a second look at the brain. No other reason, and we felt we made that clear to the first doc. So this doc reconfirmed the Dandy Walker cyst, and we were then told (after he knew our plan would never be to terminate) that we had "five days to legally wrap this all up". He said, this abnormality could be anywhere from mild to severe mental retardation". I then said to being completely normal? He just looked at me...they must learn that look in med school... But they also sent us to yet another set of Docs, downtown. We got physically drained in one day, and then---again, shot down with all bad news again...they then tell us that a chromosomal abnormality has caused this, and we should have an amniocentesis, as this would describe the course of the delivery, etc. I told them regardless, we would be saving our child. Another look... So we turned immediately to prayer. We are well founded in our faith, but prayer sometimes escapes me, and my husband. At the same time this crisis was occurring, there was an article by the Blessed Gianna Society. My husband immediately went on line to find out more. We were all praying the novena, etc. Something changed. We started the Good fight. We would then have to be our daughters defender of Life. It seems like the medical professionals thought her potential outcome was dim. Jeff arranged a visit to our parish's chapel for the Blessed Gianna Society for a laying on of gloves. We all prayed the rosary and while I prayed, I held on to her gloves over Caitlin while I said the rosary. An unbelievable peace came over me. It was just an amazing experience, one we all celebrated together as a family. So, not too much later, our daughter was born prematurely, something not associated with her Dandy Walker. One thing that was asked to me as soon as I arrived downtown--"Did your baby move in utero? She seems very lethargic, and we have done so many things to her, and she did not fight..." Somehow indicating the same thing that the others had. Now, I having been discharged early from a C section, knew that I was my daughters advocate. In so many words, I reminded this doctor that Caitlin had been given this drug, and that drug, and almost died at birth, and then during the transport, we would all be lethargic if that happened to us. We have struggled with weeks upon weeks of hospitalizations. The Blessed Gianna Society again came to visit we had a laying of gloves on Caitlin while Mr. Heinrich, Jeff and I and a close nurse to her prayed the novena. We currently have no indications that this Dandy Walker has begun to stir. What we currently deal with are sick lungs, related to being in Respiratory Distress at birth. So, in a way, God prepared us for a journey, and we accepted a journey, we just thought it would down a different path, and a longer one at that. You see, her sick lungs will heal, and get better. She will grow, and new lung tissue will form. We know that the Dandy Walker could become a problem, but deep down we are convinced that she is going to be more than ok!! Sorry this has taken so long. Do you need any more? As you are aware, there is a lot more. I know you have to shorten this; I just thought I needed to mention many of these aspects. May God bless you for your ministry. We are thrilled to know we are being prayed for and supported during this time. Let me know if there is anything we could do for you. I mean that!!!! Sincerely, Colleen By: Colleen, Bucks County, PA

Testimony 104 AMNIOTIC FLUID PROBLEMS July 13, 2005 We are having a great summer. My baby, Andrea is now 11 weeks old and getting quite chubby, she was only 5 lbs 6 ounces at birth so her 11+ pounds seems huge. She was induced 2 1/2 weeks early due to amniotic fluid levels. The levels were very low earlier in the pregnancy at 30 weeks prior to seeing you in the chapel, March 22, 2005, at Bethlehem Catholic High School. After we were there, my fluid level improved enough so that I did not have to deliver a premature infant. All of my family was praying to Saint Gianna during the last 8 weeks of my pregnancy, and I am thankful my condition improved enough to hold off the delivery for those 8 weeks. Andrea was by far my easiest delivery and recovery. I was up and around as soon as I came home from the hospital. All of the kids were thrilled to have a sister and they all love her so much. My boys are 5 and 7 years old and Heather is now 16. We had Andrea baptized on Father's Day. Heather was very excited to be her little sister's God Mother. Not many people get to do that for a younger sibling. It is nice to have children so far apart. Watching them interact with the baby without being jealous is wonderful. Thanks for asking Heather to bring me to the chapel and introducing our family to Saint Gianna. God Bless you, Carol By: Carol, Bethlehem, PA

Testimony 105 IMMUNE DISORDER - CLARE, AGE 3 January 5, 2004 I am writing you to share the wonderful story of Blessed Gianna’s intercession on behalf of my daughter Clare. Clare is a bright and happy four-year old. She has a gentle spirit. She is truly just a joy. More than a year ago we began to notice that Clare was getting sick on a regular basis. We began to keep track of her illnesses and discovered that she was getting ill about every fourteen to twenty one days. She would get your run-of-the-mill things like colds and ear infections but also get some odd things like mastoiditis (an infection of the jawbone). With each illness, her main complaint was the sores that she would get on the inside of her mouth. These sores would range in size from the size of pinhead to the size of a thumbtack. These sores were very painful. During each occurrence she could not eat or sleep or drink anything but water. She wanted to be held for hours on end. So for about 10 days every month her illnesses dominated her life and the lives of her parents and siblings. We began to see an immune specialist in Philadelphia to determine why our little girl was getting sick so often. Copious amounts of blood were drawn. It was determined that Clare was suffering from some immune disorder. We went back to the specialist four weeks later to get further blood work done so that we could actually get a medical diagnosis for her disorder and find out the best treatment. These tests too suggested an immune problem. We were waiting for a final diagnosis when something amazing happened. We went to mass as a family on a Saturday evening in September which happened to be a night a representative from the Blessed Gianna Society was there to speak. We were told the story of Gianna and were invited to touch some articles of her clothing. When my daughter touched Blessed Gianna’s glove, she dropped it back into my hands and exclaimed that it "felt hot " With tears in my eyes, I instinctively touched my little girls face and asked Blessed Gianna to intercede for us. As we left church that day, my husband Michael, and I couldn’t help but wonder "what if". Life went on in our household. With three small children, the days went by in a blur. I didn’t give the events of that day much thought. I would add a quick prayer to Blessed Gianna into my daily prayers but that was about all. We did notice, however, that Clare was not getting sick as often and the blisters did not accompany the occasional cold that she did come down with. We went back to the specialist a few weeks later for the most recent lab results. When he came in the room, he stated that he had no explanation for what had happened. Clare’s blood work had come back completely normal, despite of the fact that the two dozen previous blood tests indicated some type of disorder. We repeated the tests that day just to be sure. Once again all tests indicated that Clare was completely healthy. The doctor had no idea how this happened. However, Michael and I did…BLESSED GIANNA! Months later I am happy to report that Clare remains healthy and happy. I have no idea why Gianna blessed our family with her help. Perhaps it was the work I did to support the pro-life cause as a teen. Perhaps she answered our prayers because she knew of the aid that I gave a pregnant friend whom without my input and support would have had an abortion, instead of giving the baby up for adoption. Perhaps she saw in me, a young catholic mother who, like herself, was trying to raise happy healthy children to love and know God. I will never know why our lives were changed that day. I only know that they were. I wanted to let you know of this amazing story so that you could share it with others. Our story shows that all things are possible with God. I pray that by sharing this story with you and your readers, others will call on Blessed Gianna for help. She is remarkable woman who continues to serve God and his people to this day. By: Anne, Hatfield, PA

Testimony 106 INFERTILITY PROBLEMS October 18, 2004 MY DAUGHTER AND HER HUSBAND, MARRIED 4 YEARS, HAD MUCH DIFFICULTY GETTING PREGNANT. HER HUSBAND HAD VERY LOW SPERM COUNT AND THEY WERE IMMOBILE. ONE DOCTOR TOLD THEM IT WAS ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE FOR HER TO CONCEIVE. I TOLD HER ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE WITH GOD. THEIR PARISH PRIEST HAD ST. GIANNA'S GLOVES TO VENERATE. FR. JOHN TOUCHED CORDED ROSARIES TO HER GLOVES AND GAVE THEM TO ALL MOTHERS AND EXPECTANT MOTHERS AFTER MASS ONE DAY. MY HUSBAND PRAYED THE ROSARY AND DIVINE MERCY CHAPLET WITH IT EVERYDAY. WELL, TO MAKE A LONG STORY SHORT, MY DAUGHTER JUST GAVE BIRTH TO A BEAUTIFUL LITTLE GIRL ON OCT. 5TH (ST. FAUSTINA'S FEAST DAY). WE THOUGHT FOR A WHILE MAYBE SHE WOULD HAVE BEEN BORN ON ST. GIANNA'S BIRTHDAY (OCT. 4TH). THEY NAMED HER EMILY GIANNA. SO, I WOULD LIKE TO HELP OTHER BECOME AWARE OF ST. GIANNA. I'M FINDING OUT MANY NEVER EVEN HEARD OF HER, EVEN PRIESTS. Again thank you and may God bless you for all you do for St. Gianna. By: Susan, Dearborn, Michigan

Testimony 107 Baby Gianna Amanda Received from Lee Ann September 3, 2004 We are so in love and so blessed to have our healthy baby Gianna Amanda. We are certain that our prayers and faith, and those of our family, through the intercession of Saint Gianna, contributed to this blessed occasion. Gianna is only 6 weeks young, I am days away from being 41 and we pray that we will have another healthy child in the near future. We were so touched when we attended the mass on April 28 and you made a point of inviting us to have our Gianna blessed when she arrived. Thank you also for allowing us to have Gianna's baptism jewelry blessed. We think Gianna Amanda is particularly special. She is the light of our lives and I become emotional just looking at her. We pray that God will bless us with another happy, healthy sibling for Gianna. May I briefly tell you about my niece and my sister, whom I prayed about to St. Gianna and God, of course. While my sister was expecting, she developed a blood clot in her lungs, was hospitalized for about a week or more (at about 10 weeks in the pregnancy). For the duration of the term and following, my sister Mary Lou needed to give herself injections of Lubenox . We don't know the long term impact of this medication upon an unborn child and are told there is no interference, but to the best of my knowledge no study has been conducted. Michaela is a healthy, beautiful baby, as is our Gianna. I wish them a lifetime of healthy, safe and happy living and pray to St. Gianna to intercede on their behalf. Mary Lou was recently taken off all medication and is doing well. Finally, the blood clot has disappeared. Thanks to God and St. Gianna! By: Lee Ann, Philadelphia, PA

Testimony 108 CONCERN OF MISCARRIAGE After church presentation on Oct 20, 2001 I first learned of Blessed Gianna Beretta from an announcement in the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Sunday Bulletin. The Society was coming the following week and everyone was invited to come and pray and to touch the gloves that Blessed Gianna wore during her lifetime. I learned that Blessed Gianna was especially helpful to those with problem pregnancies. At that time, I was 7 weeks pregnant - the third pregnancy in a year and a half. My previous pregnancies ended in miscarriage at 8-1/2 and 9-1/2 weeks. I was very apprehensive about my chances for this pregnancy and was happy to have someone special to pray to for help. The Friday before the Society was due to come to our parish, I began to bleed, badly. I felt that this pregnancy, too, would result in a miscarriage. My doctor put me on strict bedrest and my spirits fell. I was especially upset because I would not get the chance to touch the gloves of Blessed Gianna. When my mother came to visit me that night, I asked her to go to church on Sunday and touch the gloves on my behalf. She happily agreed to do so and that Sunday she not only went to church to touch the gloves, but she asked the Society to come to my home so that I could touch the gloves myself. Maryellen White conferred with the other Society members and they agreed to visit me after the last Mass was completed. When they came to my home, the gloves were placed on my abdomen and the Society members, together with me, my parents and my daughter, Alyssa, prayed together to Blessed Gianna. It was a remarkable experience. From that time on, I gained confidence and just knew that things were going to work out. Throughout my pregnancy, I prayed to Blessed Gianna at least three times a day to intercede with God on my behalf to grant me a healthy baby. Others in my family, my husband's family and friends also prayed to Blessed Gianna for me. By Thanksgiving, I was out of bed and the pregnancy was proceeding normally. I continued to pray. There were times when my confidence would waiver, but though my prayers, I was able to get through those times. Finally, on May 28th of this year, my precious baby, Matthew Robert, was born - at a healthy 8 lbs. 14 oz. If the baby would have been a girl, she would have been named Gianna. Matthew is such a wonderful blessing. Although my experience may not be qualified as miraculous, I believe with all my heart that Blessed Gianna was an important factor in the success of my pregnancy. I will continue to pray to Blessed Gianna so that she may help other women with their problem pregnancies. I am convinced that Blessed Gianna is to thank because she was the only thing different from my previous two pregnancies. Karen By: Karen, Bensalem, PA

Testimony 109 WARMTH OF THE GLOVES! Yesterday I experienced St. Gianna working through me when I came and touched her gloves at St. Nicholas of Tolentine Church. I was the one that was pregant last year then lost the baby two days later because it was an ectopic pregancy. When the gloves where placed on my stomach to be able to conceive again I felt I presence of warmth in my being. By: Maria, Philadelphia, PA