Eileen Piergiovanni

US National Director

Eileen Piergiovanni has been the National Director of Flame of Love since 2018. Her short biography highlights moments when doors of blessings opened, hoping that many doors will open also for you.

The first door was in 1995, while she was listening to the rosary. Suddenly, she felt a calling to attend daily mass and consecrate herself to Jesus through Mary.  She then became a secular Discalced Carmelite.

The next door was Medjugorje where Our Lady led her in 2010. Since then, she has led many pilgrimages to that Holy Site. In 2011, she was invited to a small group of Catholics studying the Devout Life.  A member was Tony Mullen, a nationally-known Catholic, who distributed millions of dollars of Catholic literature and appeared frequently on EWTN. Tony, himself, was soon to find a new door opening.

Financially helping the Canadian Office with Flame of Love books, Tony realized the need for a good, readable translation. Fortunately, he knew an excellent translator who also simplified the diary. The Flame of Love had the full diary and a much smaller version. With the printing, another door had opened. The little group assumed the ministry of distributing this Simplified Version to every parish in the Philadelphia Archdiocese and also to sponsor Saturday conferences at centrally located parishes to explain the Diary. The little group, centered on Tony Mullen, soon had a gigantic mission. Yet the greatest door was still to open.

For a long while, the group met in my house, but with new responsibilities and many local Flame of Love leaders wanting to join, we moved to a Catholic convent, where we still meet every Monday.

That chapel and that meeting room has always been filled with love. We had a few sayings, “All that Jesus asks is that we love one another.” (That was so easy. We breathed love.) Also, “When does Jesus want this task done?” Answer, “Yesterday.”  At our annual Flame of Love Conference, all the people who came asked one thing “How is it that all of you love one another.” It was true. Just what we did every Monday.

In 2012, Tony was asked to become National Director for Flame of Love and he asked me to replace him as Director for Philadelphia. Tony was a devoted National Director. In 2015, he totally dedicated a full year to hopping on every possible plane and going to every diocese that asked him to talk about the Flame of Love. Twice he appeared all week, prime-time on EWTN. In 2018, came our great sorrow. Tony died of a heart attack. He often called Philadelphia “The heart of the Flame of Love Movement” and he had literally given his heart. Tony often quoted the diary, “If each Christian just saved one soul, no one would be lost.”

After Tony’s death, I was elected National Director of the Flame of Love. Knowing I lacked Tony’s skills, I established a Flame of Love Advisory Panel of Regional Coordinators (You can find all their names through the website). Also seeing the need for a bi-lingual Hispanic Director, in 2020 I appointed Patti Schwartz as National Director for Hispanic groups.

From the very beginning, because of his close ties with Tony Mullen, Monsignor Ralph Chieffo has been our National Spiritual Director.

With God’s help, I hope to fulfill my task until July 2024 when the couple who directs the North and South America will oversee another election of the National Director. By that time, many of the Regional Coordinators will be ready.

Yet another door opened on June 23, 2022. Every Wednesday, a group of us say the rosary by Zoom in a Marian Movement of Priest lay cenacle. I chose number 227, in which Our Lady spoke to Father Gobbi while he was in Africa. She talked of the mud huts, the lack of food and clothing. We all knew the story of Holly Benner (from Bethlehem, Pa) who singlehandedly built 18 water wells but has no one to support her efforts. On that day, our Rosary group became Holly’s ministry team to raise funds for water wells.

May God open many doors for you!