The more I think back on my many years of missionary life, the more I come to see that God had called me and had been preparing me from a very young age. It should not surprise me, and yet it does, moving me to humble and grateful acknowledgement of His extraordinary love, mercy, and providential care for me. I see many simple, ordinary signs that could easily be overlooked. And yet, how powerfully was God working to lead me to Him in the consecrated family of the Fr. Kolbe Missionaries of the Immaculata!
I remember one of the first gift given to me for helping to sell raffle tickets to raise funds for the missions, a color comic book with the life of St. Therese of Lisieux, patroness of the missions!
I remember my mother, asking me and my brother every year to sort through our few toys and possessions, to find some good items to donate to children who might have even less.
And, of course, I remember the unexpected invitation by Fr. Luigi Faccenda – our founder – to accompany him on his first trip and visit to our mission here in California, when I was still a senior in high school. The net of lights I could see from the airplane as we were landing in Los Angeles on a late October afternoon spoke to me of the many souls living in those house or driving those cars: did they know of the love of God and His Mother for them? Could I help someone encounter Him and be changed for life?
I said Yes to God’s call, and every morning I embrace anew – with the help of Mary, my Mother, and after the splendid example of St. Maximilian Kolbe – the most incredible adventure I could ever have thought of!
-Ada Locatelli
Fr. Kolbe Missionary
