Woman at congress sees ‘little signs’ her deceased father wanted her there

Kimberlie Petrulis, right, takes a photo as her daughter Josephine Petrulis engages with a sculpture called “Be Welcoming” outside St. John the Evangelist Church in Indianapolis on July 18. The two members of the Diocese of Richmond, Va., admired the piece, one of two created by Catholic sculptor Timothy Schmalz for the National Eucharistic Congress. (Photo by Natalie Hoefer)

By Natalie Hoefer

When Kimberlie Petrulis was invited earlier this year to attend the National Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis on July 17-21, she felt she had to decline.

“My father fell down and hit his head last December,” said Petrulis, who lives in Virginia Beach in the Diocese of Richmond, Va. “He was 82, and we just didn’t know what was going to happen. I was afraid if I went, something would happen to him.”

Her father, Romeo San Antonio, a native of the Philippines who served for 23 years in the U.S. Navy and a member of St. Pius X Parish in Norfolk, Va., died on June 11 and was laid to rest on June 20.

Petrulis remembered hearing about a local parish organizing a group to go to the congress. But by the time she reached out to the coordinator, she learned that the trip had been canceled.

“One lady from that parish heard that I was interested in going,” said Petrulis. “She called me and said, ‘Are you still interested in going? Because I have a room and they’re hard to get, but if you want you can split it with me.’

“I never met her, but I said yes, and I decided to take my daughter [Josephine] with me, too. We just met our roommate last night” on July 17, the first night of the congress.

Petrulis saw the woman’s generous offer as a sign that perhaps she was meant to go to the congress. Now there was the matter of financing the trip.

“It’s not that we’re dirt poor,” she said. “But we just hadn’t planned on going.”

Having experience writing mission letters for organizations, she decided to write a mission letter of her own.

“I sent it out to people saying, ‘We’d like to go to the congress. Would you be interested in donating? We’ll bring your prayer requests with us and we’ll pray for them and for you all the days that we’re there.’

“From June 22 ‘til now, we raised $2,500.”

Some gave $20, some gave as much as $100 and $200. Petrulis was grateful for every donation.

But when one person donated $500, she asked if they meant $50.

“She said no, she meant $500. I just felt like my dad was looking down on me, like he was helping me out,” Petrulis managed to say before breaking into tears.

As donors began to send her their prayer requests, Petrulis realized she was not the only one suffering hardship.

“They were so emotional,” she said of the intentions. “People were telling me their stories about what was going on in their families—I didn’t expect that.

“And they said how inspiring it was that we were going and praying for them. That really helped me affirm what we were doing. I feel really blessed, even though my dad passed, because of all these little signs.”

Signs like the presence Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, a native of the Philippines like Romeo San Antonio. Cardinal Tagle was one of the two Vatican representatives sent to the congress by Pope Francis.

There was also the fact that Romeo San Antonio would have turned 83 on July 20. The last National Eucharistic Congress was held 83 years ago. And July 20 was the date of the congress’ eucharistic procession in downtown Indianapolis, a glorious celebration of more than 50,000 Catholics witnessing to the true presence of Christ in the Eucharist.

It was results of a study showing only about 30% of Catholics believe in the Real Presence as well as decreasing Mass attendance that led to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops to declare a three-year National Eucharistic Revival in June 2022.

One of the petitions given to Petrulis was for a Catholic woman’s daughter to return to the faith.

“She’s just praying for her profusely,” said Petrulis. “And that’s what this is all about. This whole congress is about drawing us back in.”

It’s a cause it seems Petrulis was called by her heavenly Father—through the intercession of her father—to witness. †

 

(See all of our coverage of the National Eucharistic Congress at www.archindy.org/congress.)