It was no accident that Our Lady appeared to St. Bernadette in the grotto of Massabielle, the “garbage dump” for the town of Lourdes, said Detroit Archbishop Emeritus Allen H. Vigneron, GCChC, chaplain to the Michigan Area: “God is with us in our garbage.”
The archbishop gave his remarks at the Michigan Area’s August 15 “Lourdes Experience,” a signature event for the Michigan Area.
This year’s “Lourdes Experience” took place on the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, whereas other “Lourdes Experience” events have usually been held on the vigil of the feast day.
Now in its ninth year, the “Lourdes Experience” is an opportunity for Order of Malta members, malades, and caregivers to share reflections on that year’s pilgrimage. The event began with Mass, followed by brunch and a program. The venue was Holy Name Catholic Church in Birmingham, Michigan. Over 70 members, malades, and caregivers attended.
Mass was celebrated by Detroit Archbishop Edward Weisenburger, also a Michigan Area chaplain, Conventual Chaplain ad Honorem. Concelebrating Mass were Archbishop Vigneron and Msgr. Michael LeFevre, ChM. Fr. Adam Novak served as master of ceremonies.
Readings at Mass were proclaimed by Auxiliary Riya Panicker; Eileen Newell, DM; and John Buchmann, who accompanied this year’s Pilgrimage as caregiver to his daughter Nica. Maura O’Connell read the Prayers of the Faithful. Riya, Eileen, John, and Maura were all pilgrims in this year’s Lourdes pilgrimage, as were Kelly and Matt Deschamps, who also attended the Lourdes Experience with their five children.
At the conclusion of Mass, Michigan Area Chair Andy Smith, KM, led Michigan Area members in the Daily Prayer of the Order.
Special moments included Archbishop Weisenburger leading Michigan Area members in making or renewing their Consecration to Jesus through Mary. The archbishop also conducted the “Blessing of the Hands That Serve” for Michigan Area members and others.
After brunch, Andy Smith moderated a program in which members of the Order, malades, and caregivers shared their pilgrimage experiences.
Archbishop Vigneron, who has accompanied 15 Lourdes Pilgrimages, commented that Our Lady’s appearance at Massabielle shows that “God is meeting us even … in our failings and brokenness. He does not abandon us.” The archbishop also shared a comment from a Dame who was the veteran of many Lourdes pilgrimages: “Sometimes there is a miracle, but there are always healings.”
Karen Jabczenski, mother of Ava Jabczenski, attested to her daughter’s spiritual and emotional healing on the 2025 Pilgrimage. Ava was 16 years old and had been battling brain cancer for six years when Eileen Newell, who coaches girls’ soccer at Ava’s school, St. Frances Cabrini High, sponsored the teenager for the Lourdes Pilgrimage. Karen recounted how, although the visit to Lourdes did not result in a physical healing, Ava and her family found peace. On their return from Lourdes, Ava’s classmates recognized the positive change in her and asked,“Coach Newell, what happened to Ava?” Karen, who was accompanied at the Lourdes Experience by Ava’s sister Kaitlyn, said the family’s emotional healing continued even after Ava’s death on Christmas Day 2025, and that the experience informs her work as a nurse caring for pediatric cancer patients. See, Michigan Area opens 2026 with Jan. 3 First Saturday, remembrance of young malade | Order of Malta American Association.
Riya Panicker, a fourth-year nursing student at the University of Detroit-Mercy who accompanied the 2026 Lourdes Pilgrimage, expressed her gratitude for the opportunity to accompany malades. Riya was able to join the pilgrimage thanks to a scholarship fund established by Rosanne Brugnoni, DM, in honor of Sr. Rose Mary Sam, IHM, who for almost 50 years accompanied pilgrimages to Lourdes. Andy Smith reminded the audience that the fund had enabled other nursing students, most recently Joseph and Justin Francis, to serve malades on pilgrimage, and that Riya, Justin, and Joseph have joined the Area as Auxiliaries. See,
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