41. Central Association of the Miraculous Medal
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Today’s Episode
This week we visit one of Changing Our World’s former clients, the Central Association of the Miraculous Medal which is located in the suburbs of Philadelphia. We visit with Mary Jo Timlin-Hoag, President and Chief Executive Officer, Sheila McGirl, CFRE, Senior Director of Institutional Advancement and Jim Friend is joined by Kaitlin McTighe, Managing Director at Changing Our World.
Mary Jo is the first lay president and CEO in the 103-year history of the Shrine. She has held leadership roles at Aetna, GE Healthcare, General Motors, McKesson, MedScape and Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. She was also active through service on several charitable boards and a member of a number of professional societies. Mary Jo has a long connection to the shrine. When she was a child her parents had a devotion to the Virgin Mary and would bring Mary Jo regularly to the weekly novena. Mary Jo’s connection with CAMM and the shrine has been reinforced over the years through her brother, Father John Timlin, C.M., who directs formation at the Vincentians’ nearby De Paul Novitiate.
Sheila McGirl is a Certified Fundraising Executive who has served the Catholic Church in Archdiocese of Philadelphia and the Diocese of Camden since 2005. Sheila most recently came to the Shrine from the Diocese of Camden where she served as Associate Director of Development and as Founder and member of the Board of Trustees for the Catholic Business Network of South Jersey.
About the Shrine and the Vincentians
The Central Association of the Miraculous Medal is dedicated to spreading devotion to Mary Immaculate and her Miraculous Medal, supporting the promotion of this devotion, helping the formation and education of seminarians, providing care to the aged and infirm Priests and Brothers of the Eastern Province, and supporting programs that provide assistance to the poor.
The Miraculous Medal was revealed to St. Catherine Labouré in 1830. St. Catherine was a member of the Daughters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul, and her vision of Our Lady occurred in the motherhouse of the Daughters of Charity in Paris, France.
St. Vincent de Paul, recognized as the “Great Apostle of Charity,” was also the founder of the Vincentian Order of Priests and Brothers. It was Father Joseph Skelly, CM, a Vincentian priest, who founded the Central Association of the Miraculous Medal in 1915.
St. Vincent de Paul, and his beautiful legacy of charitable giving connects to the Shrine through the founding and the manifestation of the Miraculous Medal.
In March of 1915, Father Joseph Skelly, CM, established the Central Association of the Miraculous Medal. The original purpose of the Central Association was to spread devotion to Mary Immaculate by encouraging devotion to Mary under her title of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal.
Today it is a thriving ministry, serving thousands of visitors each year through tours, personal visits, and a tremendous online presence.