A full-circle moment shows the depth of a woman’s love and faith
By John Shaughnessy
Some of the best stories of our lives are full-circle moments.
A coach who guided young players is touched when they rally around him years later during a hard time.
A boy and a girl who went to their high school prom as friends reunite years later for dinner on the opposite coast of the country, leading to their marriage.
For Angela Espada, her favorite full-circle moment involves a faith-filled aunt and that woman’s dedication to the Blessed Mother and praying the rosary.
“Mary Weathers had an unshakable faith in God and a deep appreciation for being Catholic,” says Espada, a member of Holy Angels Parish in Indianapolis. “Her faith touched my life almost from the moment that I was born.
“With a due date of mid-May, I arrived in February in 1961 weighing a mere 3 1/2 pounds. Aunt Mary immediately began to pray the rosary nonstop for me. The doctors didn’t express much hope for my survival, but Aunt Mary was faithful.”
Her aunt’s faithfulness and prayers continued to guide Espada through some challenging times in her formative years.
“There were times when I was young that I didn’t fully appreciate Catholicism,” Espada notes. “As an Africana American growing up, there weren’t many other Catholics in my neighborhood. The differences in my way of worshiping compared to my friends and neighbors could have made me feel like an outsider. It was Aunt Mary who helped me to see the differences as something to celebrate.
“While I didn’t fully understand why there were differences, I knew that I wanted to be a part of something that made her so happy and peaceful. Appropriately, she was my sponsor when I was later confirmed.”
Beyond the prayers and the guidance, Espada also saw how her Aunt Mary put her faith into action.
“Despite not having children of her own, she and her husband, Edward, allowed many of her nephews and me to live with them for extended periods of time,” Espada recalls. “We all experienced love, support and encouragement in their home. It was Aunt Mary’s faith that brought her husband to the Church and helped him open his heart, home and wallet to us all.”
Her Aunt Mary also opened Espada’s eyes about the best way to live life.
‘Her faith had taught me to have faith’
“It was watching Aunt Mary put her faith in action that taught me the importance of leadership through service,” Espada says. “She was a eucharistic minister at Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral Parish, as well as a volunteer to clean the cathedral. Weekly, she volunteered at St. Francis Hospital and was even named volunteer of the year. Her actions taught me to help others whenever I could.
“When I later expressed an interest in law school, she encouraged me to be an advocate to help, instead of focusing on earning a big salary.”
After earning her law degree, Espada pursued a career path that included serving as a Marion County deputy prosecutor, a law school administrator and the executive director of the Indiana Catholic Conference (ICC), the public policy voice of the Church in Indiana.
Serving the ICC from 2019 to 2024, Espada was the first woman to lead the state conference and the first woman of color to be the director of a Catholic conference nationwide. In working with Indiana legislators, she advocated the Church’s position of fighting on issues that helped the poor and vulnerable and protected the sanctity of life at all stages.
Espada believes her aunt would have been pleased to know that the baby she once prayed for to live worked for the cause of life—and a better life—for others.
That feeling also connects to the full-circle moment in Espada’s life.
“A little over 30 years to the day when I was born, my daughter, Maya, arrived,” Espada shares about that moment in 1990. “She was also early. With a due date of mid-April, she was born in February. I was told that she was having trouble breathing. She had to be closely monitored. Therefore, it would be a while before I could hold her.
“I was concerned but not alarmed. I wasn’t alarmed because my husband, Jose, also told me that Aunt Mary was at the hospital. Aunt Mary was outside of the nursery, rosary in hand, nonstop once again praying the rosary and interceding to the Blessed Mother. Her faith had taught me to have faith. Our daughter came home with me the next day.”
Espada’s Aunt Mary died in 2013, but the way she lived her life continues to influence her family.
“She believed in the Blessed Mother Mary and the Sacred Heart of Jesus,” Espada says. “Through her overwhelming love, she became the beloved heart of our family.” †