I was not born into a Catholic family -- I was raised in a Christian home, but by mid-high school I had abandoned my faith entirely. In my first year of college I was pulled in many different directions and found myself feeling lost and empty. In the summer that followed, I experienced a strong conversion of heart and began seeking out fellowship with other Christians. A few days later, a friend invited me to a barbecue to celebrate the feast of Bl. Pier Giorgio (who I had never heard of at the time). In the years that followed, his model and patronage accompanied me in my journey to Catholicism in many significant ways. If nothing else -- though I do believe he was interceding for me throughout this time -- his witness of life has had a lasting impact on the young men of our time, and that impact, through others, reached me in my time of need.
Bl. Pier Giorgio, ora pro nobis!
-James