I recall the first time I met Robert. I had just arrived at a parish in St. Louis to speak at a Marian Conference. I decided to wander into an adjoining cafeteria to check out some of the vendors before I had to give my talk. Within moments I was struck by a very patriotic setup with a pile of books stacked on a table so I went over to check it out. There was an older man sitting nearby and I asked him if he knew what the books were about? He shared with me that they were his books and they were about his time as a Recon Marine and how he found his way back to God. I was intrigued so I sat down to learn more. What he went on to share with me I could hardly believe. Before I knew it 30 minutes had passed and my time to speak was coming up so I thanked him for sharing and headed for the church entrance. I didn’t get more than 10 steps away when I felt moved to return and ask him for his phone number. I’m so glad I obeyed this prompting because this man had a story that I sensed needed to be told.
A year later he graciously allowed me to document a bit of his amazing journey back to God. Robert’s book and entire outreach revolves around the simple motto to “never give up.” I partnered with the Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception to produce this story for their EWTN show, Living Divine Mercy available at: DivineMercyPlus.org. If you’ve ever been tempted to throw in the towel and give up hope please watch Robert’s story and Never Give Up.
Robert Gannon
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