A Heart That Gives with Joy: The Story of Anne Reilly
Anne Reilly’s story begins with a voyage across the Atlantic on a small ship filled with war brides and their babies. Born in London in 1946, she was just an infant when her mother boarded that vessel bound for America. “My mother took one look at that boat and thought, ‘We’re supposed to cross the Atlantic in that?’ “ Anne recalls with a laugh. “But we made it.”
Anne grew up on Long Island, attending Catholic school through high school before working in her father’s fabric export business in New York City. In 1968 she married Tom, and four years later they moved to California where they raised two sons and never looked back.
Her connection to Maryknoll began through her Aunt Marie, but it was an article in Maryknoll magazine about Father John Lange, M.M.,’s ministry in Tanzania that changed everything. “The Holy Spirit just spoke to my heart,” she recalls.
Anne reached out to Father Lange to sponsor a student and ended up sponsoring two young men through their studies. She continues her sponsorship today, currently supporting a young girl who lost an eye.
Her generosity is rooted in Scripture. She lives by Luke 6:38: “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over.”
For more than 21 years, Anne has made hundreds of gifts to Maryknoll. “Giving to Maryknoll brings me immense joy,” she states simply. “It truly does.”
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