The Blessed Mother worked in Karin Strasser’s life all along, even if she didn’t realize it. In the early 1990s, she traveled to the Working Boys Center, now known as the Center for Working Families, in Quito, Ecuador. Two decades later, the memories would come back to her in a big way when she realized she had a connection to Our Lady of Good Success and began providing free devotional boxes to those who asked.
“I was the assistant principal at New Berlin West High School in Wisconsin and was invited to Quito with a group of Catholic school principals,” she said. “We spent Easter break there.”
In 2018, Karin’s mother passed away from Alzheimer’s disease. Karin began her own business selling technology to schools, which allowed her the freedom to care for her mom and raise her three children.
“After she died, I began caring for my dad, who lived in New Berlin. He was a fully functional 87-year-old, super healthy, and acted like he was 70. I drove him to my house and brought him back home five days a week,” she explained. “One Friday, one of his brothers got him, and I used the time to do a deep dive into my business. All of a sudden, the story of Our Lady of Good Success pops up on YouTube. I had no idea about this apparition.”
Karin began researching Our Lady of Good Success. She learned about a Spanish nun, Mother Mariana of Jesus Torres y Berriochoa, a Conceptionist Order nun who lived from 1563 to 1635. She was one of six Sisters who arrived from Spain and founded the Conceptionist Convent in Quito. Interestingly, the bodies of the six foundresses have remained incorrupt for centuries and can be venerated in the convent they founded. Mother Mariana had a very active mystic life from a young age and received various apparitions of our Blessed Mother. On one occasion, the Virgin Mary asked to have a statue made of herself under the title of Our Lady of Good Success.
“I am a member of St Jerome in Oconomowoc, WI, and for years, our parish did the Our Lady of Fatima statue, where a new family received a suitcase with the statue, venerated it at home, and brought it to Mass where another family would receive it,” she explained. “I was so excited to tell my dad about Our Lady of Good Success because of her messages and because he was a super faithful Catholic. My Dad attended the Latin Mass at St. Stanislaus in Milwaukee.”
After putting her business on hold, Karin researched Our Lady of Good Success and reviewed all the documentation, especially Our Lady of Good Success. Ironically, the website creator lived just a few houses away.
“Her name is Kathleen Heckenkamp, and she also belongs to St. Stanislaus like my dad. I knocked on her door, and we had a great conversation about Our Lady of Good Success, and I asked her about getting a statue so I could start a similar ministry as the Fatima statue we had at our parish,” she explained. “Kathleen told me that she could not find any statues and that they were only available in Quito.”
Eager to tell her dad about Our Lady of Good Success, she planned to pick him up on Sunday after he took a trip with his brother to Chicago the day before. Unfortunately, he became ill, and Karin told him to stay home and rest. By Monday, he was very sick; Karin called an ambulance to take him to the hospital. No one knew what was wrong with the man who never took so much as an aspirin.
Desperate for intervention, she went to Kathleen’s home and told her what was going on with her dad. Kathleen gave Karin an Our Lady of Good Success holy card that was touched to the statue in Quito.
“I prayed with my family for him, and I knew there were many hospital healings linked to Our Lady of Good Success. I prayed to her and said that if she brings healing to my dad, I promised I would devote my life to spreading her message,” she said. “Unfortunately, he didn’t make it. He had been in the hospital for six days, and I remember telling the Blessed Mother that my promise was off the table as I was looking for a miracle. I wasn’t angry, just blown away.”
On her way home from her dad’s funeral Mass on Valentine’s Day 2019, she stopped at her mailbox and was shocked to see a mailing from America Needs Fatima with an Our Lady of Good Success rosary inside.
“I thought it was weird and began thinking of my mom and Dad, who died in less than a year. I began devoting my time to my business, and two weeks later, I went into the kitchen, and something happened to me,” she said. “I don’t know if it was five minutes or five seconds, but I was overcome by incredible grief. It was kind of an understanding deep into my intellect. I felt my dad’s grief when he lost my mom, and it was heavy on my heart. My Dad’s presence was there. I felt I should have done more, but then I heard in my heart that it was over, and there was no more I could do. I wasn’t sure if that was divine or evil. It stopped me in my tracks. I went back to work, but it planted a seed.”
After this experience, Karin began to understand that we don’t get to pray or go to church again when we leave this world. She understood our limited time on earth and realized that she needed to fulfill her promise to find the statues and spread devotion to Our Lady of Good Success.
Karin began a quest to locate Our Lady of Good Success statues to create devotional boxes to send to Catholics, hoping they would share with others.
“I ended up meeting a woman named Gina from Florida who was able to find the statues, and once I told her what I was doing, she offered to sell them to me at wholesale,” she said. “Now, my husband Rick is a UPS guy, and I am an educator. We are not wealthy, but I wanted to pay for this myself. Our Lady wants me to step up for the Faith. I have a roof over my head, a car, and a job, so it was important for me to do this.”
Interestingly, Gina was planning to move and had a slightly damaged four-foot statue of Our Lady of Good Help. She understood that Our Lady didn’t want her to sell the statue, so she offered it to Karin with the condition that she never sell it.
When the first shipment of statues arrived, Karin wanted them blessed. She and her husband loaded them into their truck and took them to the Basilica of St. Josaphat in Milwaukee.
“The door was open, and it was somewhat dark. I asked a worker if the priest was around, and a Franciscan priest turned to me and asked who I was,” Karin said. “I explained the devotional to him, and he blessed all the statues. I suddenly realized that Mother Mariana was a Franciscan, and it was providential that I brought the statues here.”
While there, the priest shared with Karin some problems they had with the school and how they needed a new principal immediately. Karin vowed to help temporarily until he could hire someone else full-time. Unfortunately, the new principal only lasted a few months, and the priest asked her to return permanently.
“I never expected I would end up in a Catholic school at the end of my career,” she said. “Our Lady of Good Success brought me here.”
In addition to serving as the principal at St. Josaphat Basilica School, Karin enjoys sending Our Lady of Good Success Devotional Boxes to those who request them. For the past two years, she has collaborated with her friend Ann Marie, her confrère from Rhode Island, who is a consecrated virgin. She helps find recipients to place statues around the world.
In addition to receiving some donations to continue her ministry, Karin has received many testimonials, such as from Kathy in Michigan.
“Good morning, Karin. Yesterday, the most beautiful statue of our most beautiful mother arrived at my house. She is so amazing. I can never thank you enough for her. What an honor you have bestowed on me. May God bless you with everything that is great and good.”
Gregory, in Ireland, wrote: “Thank you so much for the Statue that arrived here in Drogheda, Ireland. It is really beautiful, and despite the current travel restrictions, over 30 people have been able to venerate it. I hope that more will be able to come in the near future, either at our house or on their own.”
“Good day. I would like to request to have a Devotional Box of Our Lady of Good Success not only to spread her devotion to others but also to give thanks to all gifts and answered prayers that I received through her intercession. Thank you for your response, and God Bless.” Christian, from the Philippines.
Christopher from Ohio wrote: “I wanted to let you know that I received my devotional box yesterday. I’ve placed the statue on my little altar, and I have to say that it’s absolutely beautiful!”
Since beginning her ministry, Karin has mailed around 100 statues and devotional boxes worldwide. She keeps track of them in a worldwide map document.
Visit A Message for Our Time to contribute to this ministry and/or receive an Our Lady of Good Success Devotional Box.
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