Estela Ruiz

Her father verbally and emotionally abused her mother, who in turn vented her frustration on Ruiz, on whom she relied for support.

[1] Though the family was Catholic before, following Inocensio's recovery the household devotion to the Church and to the Virgin of Guadalupe grew even stronger.

The anthropologist Kristy Nabhan-Warren views Delfina Aguilera's "physical and marital suffering" as an enactment "in her own relationship with Jesus and the Virgin of Guadalupe.

A car accident twenty-five years later that led to her father's recovery from alcoholism allowed him to have a better relationship with her mother and to be a grandfather to Ruiz's children.

When her mother later began suffering as a result of the radiation therapy, Ruiz drove daily from her Phoenix workplace to the hospital in Lordsburg.

The courses helped her to increase her self-esteem, set goals, separate herself from her mother, and feel like she was in control of her life.

In 1988, he accompanied Father Spaulding to Medjugorje, Bosnia and Herzegovina, where the Virgin Mary appeared to six youths beginning in 1981.

A successful, sophisticated woman, Ruiz was embarrassed by Reyes' religiosity and was jealous of his affection for the dark-skinned Virgin.

Following the two auditory experiences, Ruiz began waking up early with a strong desire to attend six o'clock mass.

Ruiz in particular was praying for her son Reyes Jr., who was struggling with cocaine addiction and for Fernando and Leticia's marriage.

During the final decade, Ruiz says she saw a light emanating from a portrait of the Immaculate Heart of Mary that grew brighter until it forced her to close her eyes.

The majority of the messages focus on the necessity of prayer, especially of the rosary, and on the need to evangelize and "fight Satan" in order to make the world a better place.

[5] The Ruiz family began their evangelism through the creation of Mary's Ministries, a lay Catholic organization that runs leadership faith camps, and proselytizes.

Mary's Ministries has branches in Linares Chile; Sullana, and Lima, Peru; Cuenca, Ecuador; Hirador, Southern Colombia, Franca, Brazil; Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico and in the Mexican states of Coahuila and Durango.

The NFL-YET, formerly called Esperanza Montessori Academy, was enlarged to serve over 600 students after receiving a million-dollar grant from the NFL in 1996.