Print Issue: January 16, 2003

Magnificat Breakfast To Debut At Killian Hall Feb. 15

Gretchen Keiser, editor of The Georgia Bulletin, will be the speaker at the February 2003 Magnificat breakfast.

LILBURN- The first Magnificat prayer breakfast of the year will be held Saturday, Feb. 15 at Killian Hall, 908 Killian Hill Road, from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Gretchen Keiser, editor of The Georgia Bulletin, will be the guest speaker at the breakfast, which will be held at the new location of Killian Hall for the first time. Since 1993, the quarterly breakfasts for Catholic women have been held at Mt. Carmel Christian Church in Stone Mountain.

Susie Goodrow, a parishioner of St. John Neumann Church, Lilburn, serves as the coordinator of the ministry, in which Catholic women come together to share faith. Goodrow formerly served as secretary of Magnificat, until Olga Myers, the founder of the Atlanta Magnificat chapter, passed the torch to Goodrow at the beginning of 2002.

Goodrow said that Myers has been extremely supportive during the transition.

"It has been a great blessing to serve the women of this archdiocese through the Magnificat Joyful Visitation Chapter of Atlanta," she said. "All the support and encouragement I received from Olga Myers, the service team, 13 chairwomen that oversee the various ministries and all the volunteers made my first year as coordinator a smooth transition."

Magnificat meals are held four times each year. Goodrow said that the ministry has been "refreshing."

"It's amazing to see how many women are touched coming to Magnificat - to see them come and see the way their lives have been changed," she said.

The breakfasts usually draw about 200 women. The new location, which is run by the Knights of Columbus, will allow for a full breakfast to be served, as opposed to the prior location, where women were served a continental breakfast. The Columbiettes will prepare and serve the breakfast as a service project.

"To be in a Catholic facility just makes me so happy," Goodrow said.

In addition to the location change, there is also a transition in Magnificat's music ministry. Elyse O'Kane, former Magnificat music coordinator, stepped down at the November 2002 breakfast, though she will remain on the advisory board. Mary Marder, a St. John Neumann parishioner, will serve as music coordinator starting this year. Marder has led the Life Teen music group at St. John Neumann.

The success of Magnificat, Goodrow said, is owed to many.

"It is really a team effort," Goodrow said. "I coordinate it, but I couldn't do it without the team. It's a wonderful thing. I never feel worthy."

The Magnificat breakfast includes a talk by a woman sharing her experiences of God's action in her life, a meal, ministry through music and intercessory prayer. An opportunity for the sacrament of reconciliation is available after the breakfast is over.

Raised in a Catholic family in a town outside New York City, Keiser attended Catholic elementary school and is a graduate of Connecticut College in New London, Conn., and Columbia University in New York and a journalist. As she grew up, she discarded strong childhood devotions. Life, with all of its attractions, provided joy and also heartbreak. In her early 30s, she was led back to Christ and to the Eucharist.

During the breakfast, Keiser will talk about her rediscovery of the truth of the Catholic faith after many years of rejecting it for more "sophisticated" views. She will speak of her experiences of the Holy Spirit, from childhood, years of newfound faith, miracles, and baptism in the Holy Spirit, to today, striving to walk by faith and trust in the mercy and compassion of God.

Tickets for the breakfast are $5. No tickets are sold at the door. Priests and Religious may attend at no cost, but it is requested that they register to receive tickets.

Child-care is not available at Magnificat breakfasts and it is requested that young children not be in attendance, so the participants may avoid distractions.

To register for Magnificat, send name, address, phone number and parish to Lynda Cupell, 2140 Briarwillow Drive, Atlanta, GA 30345. Indicate the number of tickets needed and make checks payable to Magnificat. Women should indicate if it is their first Magnificat breakfast. The deadline for registration is Feb. 5.

For information, call Cupell at (404) 634-8303.