But for two decades, behind Archbishop Sheen\u2019s extraordinary influence, there was a group of virtually unknown women who opened thousands of letters, recorded donations, and thanked the donors. In short, they helped turn his words into material support for missionaries and fledgling churches around the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sheen, national director of one of the four Pontifical Mission Societies<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\nArchbishop Sheen served as national director of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith, one of the four Pontifical Mission Societies, from 1950 to 1966. This society coordinates the World Mission Sunday<\/a>, the annual global fundraising day that supports the Church's work in more than 1,100 mission territories.<\/p>\n\n\n\nThis responsibility was central to Archbishop Sheen\u2019s priesthood and public ministry. In addition to his work in radio and television, he traveled, preached missionary appeals, and served as editor of MISSION magazine, which began publication in 1951 by the national office of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Whenever the prelate spoke about the missions on television, delivered a sermon, or published a new issue of the magazine, the response came in the form of between 8,000 and 10,000 letters a day, filled with notes of thanks and donations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Envelopes poured into the organization's national office in New York. Some contained large checks. Others contained just a few dollars, coins saved by children, or brief notes explaining the sacrifice behind the gift.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And behind the scenes, a small army of women opened those envelopes, recorded the donations, and made sure the donors received a response.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2018Our office would be overwhelmed\u2019<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\nHelen Fitzpatrick was one of \u201cthe girls,\u201d as they\u2019re still affectionately called. <\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.omnesmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/TemaArzobispoSheen-HelenBradytrabajando-1024x768.jpg\")
Helen Brady Fitzpatrick in her office at the national headquarters of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith in New York City (Photo by OSV News\/Timothy Fitzpatrick via the Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen Foundation, Peoria, Illinois).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\nFitzpatrick, who is now 89, began working part-time for the organization in 1954, while he was a senior at St. Vincent Ferrer High School in Manhattan. After graduating, he joined the staff full-time and remained there for about a decade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Her main responsibility was to make sure that thank-you notes were sent to those who supported the missions. The work was constant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNo matter where he was (Archbishop Sheen), the office was never short of work,\u201d Fitzpatrick recalled. \u201cEvery time he sent out an appeal or printed the magazine, our office was swamped.\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.omnesmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/ArzobispoScheenCasaHelenBradyymarido-1024x768.jpg\")
Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen celebrates Mass while officiating at the wedding of Helen Brady and Patrick Fitzpatrick. (Photo by OSV News\/Helen Fitzpatrick via Pontifical Mission Societies)
<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\nBernadette Schumann, also in her eighties, recalls that the women worked in two rooms, surrounded by correspondence linking ordinary American Catholics with the missionary Church.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Each envelope represented someone who cared about the missions<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n\u201cThere were so many letters and so much work, but we knew that every envelope represented someone who cared about the missions,\u201d said Schumann, whom everyone calls \u201cBernie.\u201d \u201cWe were proud to be a part of it.\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Archbishop Sheen also made sure that the staff understood the spiritual purpose behind the paperwork.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cEvery afternoon at three o\u2019clock, we would stop whatever we were doing and pray together the World Missions Rosary<\/a>\u201d, Schumann said. \u201cBishop Sheen made sure that our work in the missions was always rooted in prayer<\/a>. He also took the time to introduce us to visiting missionaries so we could see who we were helping, even though not all of us could accompany him on his missions.\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\nFrom Cuba to New York, and off to work for the missions<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\nFor Beatriz Mendoza Orlansky, the path to the Society for the Propagation of the Faith began with exile and an unexpected change of plans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She had ten siblings; she left Cuba with her family in 1960 and settled in Miami after Fidel Castro came to power. That same year, she traveled to New York with a cousin and a friend because, as she put it, \u201cthat was the dream we all had.\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
His family already knew Archbishop Sheen. Before the Cuban Revolution, he had traveled to the island to officiate at a relative\u2019s wedding. The archbishop also arranged for his sister Sof\u00eda to receive a scholarship to attend Rosemont College, a Catholic women\u2019s college in Pennsylvania that was then run by the Sisters of the Holy Child Jesus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Young, single, and hoping to become a flight attendant, Mendoza approached Archbishop Sheen with a request. TWA (Trans World Airlines), which he had dubbed \u201cFly with Angels,\u201d sponsored his television show, and she wondered if he could put in a good word for her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHe told me I wouldn\u2019t become a flight attendant,\u201d she recalled. Instead, Archbishop Sheen put her to work for the missions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMy job was to open the letters, collect the money, and send the thank-you notes,\u201d he said. \u201cIt was a privilege to work there with him.\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
By the time he joined the staff, the daily recitation of the rosary was no longer part of the office routine. But the 3:00 p.m. break remained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHe would always come out at 3 p.m. and share a three-minute reflection with us that reminded us why what we were doing mattered,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.omnesmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/ArzobispoFultonSheenRadioTV.webp\")
Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen turned radio and television into tools for evangelization (\u00a9OSV News).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n\u00abWe do the impossible right away.\u00bb.<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\nDuring those years, the office began producing donor thank-you notes in-house\u2014a task significant enough to resemble a small printing press. A sign at the entrance reflected the spirit of the staff: \u201cThe impossible, we do right away. Miracles may take a little longer.\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mendoza and her husband, H\u00e9ctor Orlansky\u2014an Argentine man she married 52 years ago\u2014came to feel a deep admiration for Archbishop Sheen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHe was one of my heroes,\u201d said H\u00e9ctor, \u201ca man with a depth of knowledge and wisdom I\u2019ve never seen in my life.\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dozens of women helped support the Society for the Propagation of the Faith during the 16 years that Archbishop Sheen served as its national director. Some married and started families. Others entered religious life. Most are no longer with us, and their contributions were often known only to their colleagues and family members.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Missionary Calls of the \u201cMicrophone of God\u201d<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\nMary Regis McLoughlin, who died in 2022, was the executive editor of MISSION magazine during the 1960s, overseeing its day-to-day operations while Archbishop Sheen remained its editor-in-chief.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sister Marlene Brownett, a member of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus who died in 2024, worked in the Office for the Propagation of the Faith before entering religious life. She later became a close friend of Archbishop Sheen and served on the board of the Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen Foundation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This responsibility was central to Archbishop Sheen\u2019s priesthood and public ministry. In addition to his work in radio and television, he traveled, preached missionary appeals, and served as editor of MISSION magazine, which began publication in 1951 by the national office of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Whenever the prelate spoke about the missions on television, delivered a sermon, or published a new issue of the magazine, the response came in the form of between 8,000 and 10,000 letters a day, filled with notes of thanks and donations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Envelopes poured into the organization's national office in New York. Some contained large checks. Others contained just a few dollars, coins saved by children, or brief notes explaining the sacrifice behind the gift.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And behind the scenes, a small army of women opened those envelopes, recorded the donations, and made sure the donors received a response.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2018Our office would be overwhelmed\u2019<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\nHelen Fitzpatrick was one of \u201cthe girls,\u201d as they\u2019re still affectionately called. <\/p>\n\n\n\nHelen Brady Fitzpatrick in her office at the national headquarters of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith in New York City (Photo by OSV News\/Timothy Fitzpatrick via the Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen Foundation, Peoria, Illinois).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\nFitzpatrick, who is now 89, began working part-time for the organization in 1954, while he was a senior at St. Vincent Ferrer High School in Manhattan. After graduating, he joined the staff full-time and remained there for about a decade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Her main responsibility was to make sure that thank-you notes were sent to those who supported the missions. The work was constant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNo matter where he was (Archbishop Sheen), the office was never short of work,\u201d Fitzpatrick recalled. \u201cEvery time he sent out an appeal or printed the magazine, our office was swamped.\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\nArchbishop Fulton J. Sheen celebrates Mass while officiating at the wedding of Helen Brady and Patrick Fitzpatrick. (Photo by OSV News\/Helen Fitzpatrick via Pontifical Mission Societies)
<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\nBernadette Schumann, also in her eighties, recalls that the women worked in two rooms, surrounded by correspondence linking ordinary American Catholics with the missionary Church.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Each envelope represented someone who cared about the missions<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n\u201cThere were so many letters and so much work, but we knew that every envelope represented someone who cared about the missions,\u201d said Schumann, whom everyone calls \u201cBernie.\u201d \u201cWe were proud to be a part of it.\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Archbishop Sheen also made sure that the staff understood the spiritual purpose behind the paperwork.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cEvery afternoon at three o\u2019clock, we would stop whatever we were doing and pray together the World Missions Rosary<\/a>\u201d, Schumann said. \u201cBishop Sheen made sure that our work in the missions was always rooted in prayer<\/a>. He also took the time to introduce us to visiting missionaries so we could see who we were helping, even though not all of us could accompany him on his missions.\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\nFrom Cuba to New York, and off to work for the missions<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\nFor Beatriz Mendoza Orlansky, the path to the Society for the Propagation of the Faith began with exile and an unexpected change of plans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She had ten siblings; she left Cuba with her family in 1960 and settled in Miami after Fidel Castro came to power. That same year, she traveled to New York with a cousin and a friend because, as she put it, \u201cthat was the dream we all had.\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
His family already knew Archbishop Sheen. Before the Cuban Revolution, he had traveled to the island to officiate at a relative\u2019s wedding. The archbishop also arranged for his sister Sof\u00eda to receive a scholarship to attend Rosemont College, a Catholic women\u2019s college in Pennsylvania that was then run by the Sisters of the Holy Child Jesus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Young, single, and hoping to become a flight attendant, Mendoza approached Archbishop Sheen with a request. TWA (Trans World Airlines), which he had dubbed \u201cFly with Angels,\u201d sponsored his television show, and she wondered if he could put in a good word for her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHe told me I wouldn\u2019t become a flight attendant,\u201d she recalled. Instead, Archbishop Sheen put her to work for the missions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMy job was to open the letters, collect the money, and send the thank-you notes,\u201d he said. \u201cIt was a privilege to work there with him.\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
By the time he joined the staff, the daily recitation of the rosary was no longer part of the office routine. But the 3:00 p.m. break remained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHe would always come out at 3 p.m. and share a three-minute reflection with us that reminded us why what we were doing mattered,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\nArchbishop Fulton J. Sheen turned radio and television into tools for evangelization (\u00a9OSV News).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n\u00abWe do the impossible right away.\u00bb.<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\nDuring those years, the office began producing donor thank-you notes in-house\u2014a task significant enough to resemble a small printing press. A sign at the entrance reflected the spirit of the staff: \u201cThe impossible, we do right away. Miracles may take a little longer.\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mendoza and her husband, H\u00e9ctor Orlansky\u2014an Argentine man she married 52 years ago\u2014came to feel a deep admiration for Archbishop Sheen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHe was one of my heroes,\u201d said H\u00e9ctor, \u201ca man with a depth of knowledge and wisdom I\u2019ve never seen in my life.\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dozens of women helped support the Society for the Propagation of the Faith during the 16 years that Archbishop Sheen served as its national director. Some married and started families. Others entered religious life. Most are no longer with us, and their contributions were often known only to their colleagues and family members.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Missionary Calls of the \u201cMicrophone of God\u201d<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\nMary Regis McLoughlin, who died in 2022, was the executive editor of MISSION magazine during the 1960s, overseeing its day-to-day operations while Archbishop Sheen remained its editor-in-chief.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sister Marlene Brownett, a member of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus who died in 2024, worked in the Office for the Propagation of the Faith before entering religious life. She later became a close friend of Archbishop Sheen and served on the board of the Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen Foundation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Fitzpatrick, who is now 89, began working part-time for the organization in 1954, while he was a senior at St. Vincent Ferrer High School in Manhattan. After graduating, he joined the staff full-time and remained there for about a decade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Her main responsibility was to make sure that thank-you notes were sent to those who supported the missions. The work was constant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNo matter where he was (Archbishop Sheen), the office was never short of work,\u201d Fitzpatrick recalled. \u201cEvery time he sent out an appeal or printed the magazine, our office was swamped.\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Bernadette Schumann, also in her eighties, recalls that the women worked in two rooms, surrounded by correspondence linking ordinary American Catholics with the missionary Church.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThere were so many letters and so much work, but we knew that every envelope represented someone who cared about the missions,\u201d said Schumann, whom everyone calls \u201cBernie.\u201d \u201cWe were proud to be a part of it.\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Archbishop Sheen also made sure that the staff understood the spiritual purpose behind the paperwork.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cEvery afternoon at three o\u2019clock, we would stop whatever we were doing and pray together the World Missions Rosary<\/a>\u201d, Schumann said. \u201cBishop Sheen made sure that our work in the missions was always rooted in prayer<\/a>. He also took the time to introduce us to visiting missionaries so we could see who we were helping, even though not all of us could accompany him on his missions.\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For Beatriz Mendoza Orlansky, the path to the Society for the Propagation of the Faith began with exile and an unexpected change of plans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She had ten siblings; she left Cuba with her family in 1960 and settled in Miami after Fidel Castro came to power. That same year, she traveled to New York with a cousin and a friend because, as she put it, \u201cthat was the dream we all had.\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n His family already knew Archbishop Sheen. Before the Cuban Revolution, he had traveled to the island to officiate at a relative\u2019s wedding. The archbishop also arranged for his sister Sof\u00eda to receive a scholarship to attend Rosemont College, a Catholic women\u2019s college in Pennsylvania that was then run by the Sisters of the Holy Child Jesus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Young, single, and hoping to become a flight attendant, Mendoza approached Archbishop Sheen with a request. TWA (Trans World Airlines), which he had dubbed \u201cFly with Angels,\u201d sponsored his television show, and she wondered if he could put in a good word for her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHe told me I wouldn\u2019t become a flight attendant,\u201d she recalled. Instead, Archbishop Sheen put her to work for the missions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMy job was to open the letters, collect the money, and send the thank-you notes,\u201d he said. \u201cIt was a privilege to work there with him.\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n By the time he joined the staff, the daily recitation of the rosary was no longer part of the office routine. But the 3:00 p.m. break remained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHe would always come out at 3 p.m. and share a three-minute reflection with us that reminded us why what we were doing mattered,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n During those years, the office began producing donor thank-you notes in-house\u2014a task significant enough to resemble a small printing press. A sign at the entrance reflected the spirit of the staff: \u201cThe impossible, we do right away. Miracles may take a little longer.\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Mendoza and her husband, H\u00e9ctor Orlansky\u2014an Argentine man she married 52 years ago\u2014came to feel a deep admiration for Archbishop Sheen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHe was one of my heroes,\u201d said H\u00e9ctor, \u201ca man with a depth of knowledge and wisdom I\u2019ve never seen in my life.\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Dozens of women helped support the Society for the Propagation of the Faith during the 16 years that Archbishop Sheen served as its national director. Some married and started families. Others entered religious life. Most are no longer with us, and their contributions were often known only to their colleagues and family members.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Mary Regis McLoughlin, who died in 2022, was the executive editor of MISSION magazine during the 1960s, overseeing its day-to-day operations while Archbishop Sheen remained its editor-in-chief.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sister Marlene Brownett, a member of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus who died in 2024, worked in the Office for the Propagation of the Faith before entering religious life. She later became a close friend of Archbishop Sheen and served on the board of the Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen Foundation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\nEach envelope represented someone who cared about the missions<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
From Cuba to New York, and off to work for the missions<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\u00abWe do the impossible right away.\u00bb.<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The Missionary Calls of the \u201cMicrophone of God\u201d<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n