Hi, my name is Zofia, I’m 19, and I’ve just begun my second year with Holy Family Mission at Glencomeragh House in Co. Tipperary.

Holy Family Mission is a year-long Catholic formation program where young people live in community, grow in prayer and faith, and are trained to share the Gospel with others. Over the past year, this place has completely transformed my life — my relationship with the Lord has become a lot more personal and intentional, I’ve grown in confidence, learned to live my faith more deeply, and discovered the joy of serving others through retreats, parish missions, and school visits.

What makes Holy Family Mission so special is that it’s not just about learning - it’s about living. Every day is rooted in prayer, community life, and practical mission work. We pray together, study the faith, serve on retreats, and encourage one another to become the people God is calling us to be. We learn about the faith, we learn about how we can live it, share it, bring its joy to others!

I chose to stay for a second year because I’ve seen the incredible fruit this mission bears, not only in my own heart but in the lives of the young people and communities we meet. Throughout the past year, I have experienced the richness of daily prayer, the strength of living in a Catholic community, and the joy of sharing the Gospel with others. It has been a year of profound growth: emotionally, spiritually, and personally. I’ve been challenged, encouraged, and transformed in ways I never expected.The Lord has healed so much in me, helped me grown in so many different ways and has done more than I ever expceted in me in the last year and so not only am I excited to grown, heal and deepen my relationship with him more but I am also excited to share the love, the joy and the peace he gave me in my times of need! Returning for a second year will allow me to build on this foundation and give back more intentionally.

This year I’ll be taking on more responsibility mainly by helping to lead retreats and supporting new community members. Some of the mission work we do is hosting retreats on our beautiful grounds, leading school retreats both on and off-site where we aim to bring the message of our faith to the youth and family days where we lead families in prayer, games,music and catechesis for various age groups! We also attend and help out at retreats like Youth 2000 and events like the Divine Mercy Conference…

To make this year possible, I need to fundraise to help cover the cost of living, formation, and mission work. If you’re able to support me in any way, whether through a donation or by sharing this with others, I would be so deeply grateful. Your generosity genuinely makes a difference — not just for me, but for everyone I will have the chance to reach through this mission. Most importantly, I’d be very thankful if you could keep me and Holy Family Mission in your prayers.

Thank you so much for journeying with me. I can’t wait to share the fruits of this adventure with you!

God bless,

Zofia