With great joy, we celebrated the 40th wedding anniversaries of two of our leadership couples: Mike and Mary Ann Halloran and Tommy and Ceci Barrientos. We gathered together for a Mass and reception to rejoice on this special occasion.
Mary Ann came here when she was only 19 years old, and Mike arrived two years later. They got married at the Lord’s Ranch with Fr. Thomas officiating, and they raised their 8 children here.
Tommy and Ceci owned and operated a barbeque restaurant in downtown El Paso and for years fed all our visiting groups there for free. They have been very involved in our prayer ministry and moved to the Lord’s Ranch shortly before they retired.
The Halloran’s son, Nathan, is a priest and he celebrated the Mass where both couples renewed their vows.
Fr. Nathan shared in his homily:
You were made one flesh 40 years ago, but the grace of that wedding has been tested for 40 years – by children, by life, by each other, by the devil, by suffering…. The witness of how you have handled the 40 years had a huge impact. You can look around this room. It is a witness to the fact that the 40 years has made your marriage grow. You have let the grace of marriage become the core of your identity…And that is what we celebrate today.
Thank you for saying yes 40 years ago and every day since.
So many of us have been blessed by the faithful witness of these two couples as they live out their vocation of marriage. May the Lord bless them with many more happy years.