Rosary makers build faith one bead at a time

A Chaplet of Divine Mercy prayer card, right, pamphlet on how to say the Rosary, middle, and a Queen of Heaven Rosary Makers card and a simple string Rosary are included in the small zip bags found at parishes around the state. They are free and all are welcome to have them. (Photo/Philip A. Janquart)

By Philip A. Janquart

ICR Assistant Editor

Many of them are simple, nothing fancy.

The rosaries, made of various colored beads on standard white string, are packaged in plastic zip bags that include a Divine Mercy Chaplet card and instructions on how to recite Mary’s special prayer.

You’ve likely seen the small packets at your parish church, school or adoration chapel.

But where do they come from? Who assembles the packets?

They are made available through the painstaking love and dedication of Queen of Heaven Rosary Makers at Holy Apostles Church in Meridian, a group of women committed to ensuring everyone has a rosary or can obtain one if, for example, they discover they have left theirs at home.

In such cases, they can sometimes be seen dangling between the clasped fingers of those praying as they patiently wait in line to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

“These are our regular rosaries, and you’ve probably seen them all around,” Leanne Collenborne told the Idaho Catholic Register (ICR), referring to what the group also refers to as its “standard rosary.”

“We make rosaries for just about everybody we can think of,” Collenborne, the group’s coordinator, said. “We make and send out about 10,000 a year. People think we must have 50 people making them, but we have about 25 women and men.”

The group meets in Room 105 of Holy Apostles’ administrative building every Thursday from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. It was founded over 20 years ago by Cora Fischer, who handed leadership responsibilities over to Collenborne about three years ago. Anyone is welcome to join, and materials are provided.

Rosary Makers coordinator Leanne Collenborne, left, mingles with fellow rosary makers at Holy Apostles in Meridian, including Marta Wilson, right. (Photo/Philip A. Janquart)

“We have a very dedicated group of people,” said the veteran nurse of 40 years. “But it’s not strict; if you can come, wonderful. Sometimes, people are busy and just come to pick up supplies. Most of the rosaries, I believe, are made in our homes. We don’t charge anything for them; they are freely given.”

Donations provide money for materials, much of which is obtained at a discounted rate from Our Lady’s Rosary Makers, a supplier in Tennessee. However, the group pools its resources when funds fall short.

“We also go to craft stores and wherever we can find them (the beads),” Collenborne noted. “Parishioners will have a lot of the beads we use, and they just donate them.”

More elaborate rosaries are crafted for special events and occasions, such as graduations, conferences, and retreats.

People also turn in rosaries for repair. They are fixed and returned, but if they are not fixable, they are returned to their owners.

“We make chain rosaries for Bishop Kelly High School’s graduation, in the school colors; each graduate gets a rosary,” Collenborne said. “This year, our goal was to make 200 rosaries for every parochial school in the Diocese. We make them in their respective school colors. There are 17 schools, and we met our goal, so we are very proud of that.”

Rosaries are supplied to any parish that requests them, as well as to the Council of Catholic Women and the Knights of Columbus. Many are distributed during Confirmation and First Holy Communion, and to hospitals, nursing homes, and foreign missions overseas, specifically in Nigeria.

All of the rosaries are blessed, according to Collenborne, except those shipped overseas, as there is no guarantee they will arrive at their final destination.

St. Paul Street Evangelization

Holy Apostles’ rosary makers also supply hundreds per year to St. Paul Street Evangelization, a group dedicated to introducing the rosary publicly and, perhaps, drawing back Catholics who may have fallen away from the faith.

“We set up a table at the Grove downtown on Sunday afternoons, and we lay out rosaries,” volunteer Chuck Roberts told the [ITAL/] ICR. “We have some pamphlets and other information. We are just trying to get people to pray the rosary … that’s our hook. I mean, that is very Catholic. Everybody knows that ‘this is Catholic.’ Some people say, ‘Well, I’m not Catholic.’ We tell them, ‘This is about Jesus, so come on over.’ We are encouraging people to pray and get to know Jesus through the rosary.”

Roberts lauded Holy Apostles’ rosary makers.

“Those ladies who make them … they deserve recognition, because they have given us thousands of rosaries over the years,” he said. “I’m not sure how they crank them out like that; it’s a little miracle going on there.”

United in Ministry

Collenborne said making rosaries is time well spent, sharing cookies, coffee and life.

“It’s the camaraderie and just coming together,” she said, adding that newcomers are taught how to make the rosaries.

“Marta (Wilson) has only been here a month and is already making beautiful rosaries,” Collenborne notes. “You start with the string rosaries and then graduate to the chain rosaries.”

A convert to the faith, Marta, originally from Poland, said her desire to join the group came after receiving a rosary from them.

“When I was converted, I got this little packet with the prayer of how to pray the rosary, and it changed me,” she said. “I’ve learned how to pray, and I like knowing someone is going to touch these rosaries and pray with them.”

“It’s so fun; it’s addicting,” Collenborne said. “I think all of us in the group can tell you that we can’t sit down in our homes without beads in front of us. When we are in front of the television or as soon as dinner comes off the table, the beads come out. We are all absolutely dedicated to it.”

For more information, call Leanne Collenborne at (208) 938-4893.