31. A Classroom For the World: Faith, Coffee, and Human Connection with Diane Walker

What if a Catholic coffee company could become a powerful ministry where the Holy Spirit touches lives through hospitality, prayer, and love?

In this heartfelt conversation, I sit down with Diane Walker of @milagroscoffeecompany to talk about faith, surrender, healing, vocation, and the unexpected ways God leads us into our calling.

Diane shares her journey from passionate public and Catholic school teacher to specialty coffee expert to co-founding with her husband, Milagros Coffee Company, a Catholic pop-up coffee experience rooted in authentic human connection, prayer, beauty, and encounter. Milagros is truly a classroom for the world!

Together, we discuss:
🤍 Learning to trust God in seasons of uncertainty through discernment
🤍 Why Diane seeks out and embraces uncomfortable situations
🤍 Healing after hardship and hard seasons
🤍 Hospitality as evangelization
🤍 Intentionally creating spaces where people feel seen, loved, and known
🤍 Saints, prayer, and “God moments” or miracles (Milagros) through Milagros Coffee Company and Diane's journey to get there
🤍 How a 54 day Novena led to discernment of Diane's vocation 

This episode is an invitation to let God use every part of your story, even and especially the uncomfortable chapters, for His glory.

Follow Diane & Milagros Coffee Company on Instagram:
@milagroscoffeecompany

Resources Mentioned:
Enoucounter School of Ministry 

Connect with Carrie:
Follow Carrie on Instagram @livingwholeandholy

Schedule a Free 1:1 Catholic Coaching Clarity Call with Carrie

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:08

Welcome to the Living Whole and Holy podcast, where the Catholic faith and intentional living come together. I'm your host, Carrie Jane, a recent Catholic convert and Catholic coach, here to guide you toward a life that's rooted in Christ, centered in his love, and aligned with God's call. Whether you're a convert, revert, cradle Catholic, or simply exploring the faith, you're in the right place. Join me each week to hear inspiring conversations including conversion and reversion stories, timeless wisdom from the church, and practical Catholic coaching tools that help you deepen your faith and intimacy with Christ, cultivate Christ-centered habits, and be transformed through the renewing of your mind. If you're ready to discover and align to the beauty and richness of a fully integrated Catholic life, you've found your home. I'm so excited you're here. Let's get started. Diane is local to Orange County in Los Angeles. She grew up in Southern California and also lived on the East Coast for some time in the Maryland, D.C. area. She's a former educator and a child of two longtime educators. She continued her teaching career on the East Coast while beginning her journey in the specialty coffee industry with vigilante coffee. She's a cradle Catholic and attended Catholic school from elementary to high school and college. She's of Mexican descent and has a deep love for her Hispanic heritage. She always believed in giving back to her community and the way her parents did and honoring those in her family who sacrificed for her to be here in the United States. She is a lover of helping others know and receive God's love through genuine connection and has a deep calling to teach others how to open up authentically to themselves and the world around them. If you've ever met Diane, you know she loves to laugh, have a good time, see the humor in everything, and help people own up to their gifts and talents sincerely. Diane, welcome to the show. I'm so excited for you to be here to tell your story and talk about your amazing business.

SPEAKER_01 2:33

Thank you, Carrie. I'm super excited to be here.

SPEAKER_00 2:36

I would love to start where I usually do with all of my guests. So we I have a variety of listeners to this show. Most of them are reverts or converts, but some of them are cradle Catholic. And I know you're a Cradle Catholic and you have a beautiful story with your Catholic journey. So I'd love for you to share a little bit about that.

SPEAKER_01 2:54

Oh yeah. Um, well, I, as you mentioned, I'm of Mexican descent. So I'm actually both sides of the family, 100%. And it's just what's beautiful about our culture and our heritage is that Catholicism and being Mexican are part of the same identity for us. So growing up, um, you know, the rosary was like a normal practice for us at home, and little prayer books and um a devotion to Mary and going to mass, of course, every Sunday. So it was it was a normal part of our lives, even though I was going to Catholic school, to elementary school. And I went to St. Norbert's in orange. Shout out to the Warhawks, although now they go by the hawks. Yeah, and uh so in terms of growing up Catholic, you know, my whole life, and I'm sure every Cradle Catholic can relate to this, you know, you you are learning about the faith in school, you're given opportunities to put it into action, but you really don't like accept, truly accept genuinely and grow into your faith until more like your early 20s is when you, you know, just cognitively, of course, and being a teacher, that's the way I think too. I think about, you know, the brain development. And so a lot of that uh genuine following of choosing your faith definitely comes post-confirmation. And for many of us, we made confirmation in our teens, so 15, 16 sophomore year of high school. And so for me, I really chose my faith uh in my early 20s. And I'll share later some things that kind of catapulted that journey, but kind of more to my upbringing. I also went to Rosary High School, which I believe now goes by Rosary Academy in Fullerton. So go Royals, and which I think is a beautiful God moment that I ended up going to Rosary. I had some other options. You know, we have the local modern day Santa Margarita. My brothers went to Survite, but a lot of the girls my age and their older sisters were going to Rosary. And I also just uh was a competitive athlete. And so I saw myself going to the sister school of my brother's school, Survite, but also just Mary. Like it is so special that we have an all-girls Catholic high school devotion to Mary. And I already had a very strong connection with Mary since little because of Our Lady of Guadalupe and our Mexican culture. And I mean, when we went over to my grandma's house, my grandma Irene, there, there's like a life, there was a life-size statue of our Lady of Guadalupe when you walk in. And the entire home had, I mean, every type of statue picture of Jesus, the Immaculate Heart, the Sacred Heart. So I think that really enhanced my faith in a way where I couldn't separate it from who I was. And that really helped me later in life when I sort of explored other faiths to challenge my faith, make sure, like, is this what I really believe? Or is this just something I'm comfortable with? Is it just nostalgic because I have so many beautiful memories and years since I can remember being in a Catholic environment? And so I did a ton of discerning and understanding. And so I guess to get to the next chapter, when I went to Loyal and Marymount University in Marina Del Rey, Los Angeles, love the Lions, go, Lions. All your teams today. I got everybody. I'm very passionate about the schools I went to. Yeah, it's a thing out here too in California. Like you you really rep, you know, where you went. And um, and it just so happens that all of mine are Catholic. So there's a there's a deep love when you go to a Catholic school when you've immersed yourself in that.

SPEAKER_02 6:23

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 6:23

Deep, deep sense of community, love, connection. But at LMU, I would say is where I really started to balloon. We had the opportunity to go to mass every day. We had all different opportunities for faith circles, for uh, one of my favorite masses was actually nine o'clock in the Husman All Guys dorm. It was a super like intimate, small group for mass and like one person playing the guitar. And I would say that was like the early stages of praise and worship for Catholics or young Catholics. Now we see it all the time, but for me, that was my intro to like intimate mass. And it's all, you know, college students. So you're all going through very similar things, you're all feeling similar emotions. And the fact that it was late at night was really good. It helped me, uh, so to speak process a lot of the hard things I was facing already, you know, as a college kid. But more importantly, St. Ignatius of Loyola uh really penetrated into my heart from that experience. And later, I asked for his intercession in life when I was going through a hard time. So um, to tie this actually, I don't know if I'm jumping ahead, but uh my Catholic faith at LMU was really interesting because I was also in the teacher formation program. So at LMU, you do your um credential liberal studies in four years instead of undergrad and then go somewhere for your credential, they pack it into four. And it's a really amazing, excruciating, brutal program for good reasons. By sophomore year, you're already teaching in front of a panel, you're in the school of education. So it expedites, you know, the challenges that someone would normally face. I would say it's like doing a master's and an undergrad together. Um, what was amazing about that journey was, you know, as a so at LMU, since it's Catholic, a lot of the formation focuses on um social justice and carrying out the Catholic social teachings as a teacher, but no matter where you're gonna teach. So the message is, you know, you're not, you might not be in a Catholic school or Catholic environment as a teacher. You could be at a public school, secular environment. And since I grew up in Catholic schools, but my dad is a renowned principal in LA, LA Unified. He's built mentors and coaches, principals, and an admin. And my mom was resource and English language learner teacher, so small group, and she worked in Santa Ana Unified. So both my parents, being Catholic Mexican, taught and served in areas where I would say more or less it's underserved. And so, you know, you've got kids struggling with things that maybe not everyone can relate to. And being Mexican and knowing my family originally came from Mexico and East LA, I wanted to go back into those places and serve the same places. And for me, that was my Catholic calling. I wasn't really drawn to a Catholic school because I grew up in Catholic schools. And I saw it as a way, especially through my LMU formation, I saw it as a way to, you know, be the light in a place that maybe doesn't always have that offering. Yes. Um, yeah. And so even though I taught in a secular environment, I very much was the Catholic person that I am. And a lot of those things kind of translate over, you know, like confidence and faith and um courage and fortitude. And so I was still teaching with the same values and virtues, you know, at the forefront. And and I'll get more into that later of how that developed my faith further, too, of course.

SPEAKER_02 9:44

Yeah.

unknown 9:45

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 9:45

But it's it's it's a small world because I think when we met, I was like, wait, I work part-time for LA Unified. Oh yeah, that's right. So yeah, I love what you're saying because before I was Catholic, I also worked for LA Unified. And now that I am Catholic, it's just amazing what you're saying about bringing the light into darkness. And the the school that I serve is an underserved population as well. And when they're coming and they're receiving education, it's so important with how we're how we're presenting ourselves and the virtues that we hold. And so God always gives us an opportunity wherever we are, which I just love.

SPEAKER_01 10:26

And actually on that note, so when I was at LMU, you know, there were when you go to a Catholic college, uh, you have the opportunity to join service organizations. And some are more renowned than others or have been around for, you know, many years. And when I was in my teacher program, it's a small group of people. You basically are with the same hundred men and women throughout the four years, kind of mixed up in different classes. So even our general ed, we weren't with everybody else from the school. We were kind of compacted more according to the fact that we were on a teacher route versus another route. So I remember I was in like psychology class, like an 8 a.m. class, you know, super early. Not expecting to have a conversation with anybody. And uh this girl sitting next to me, Erica Koyar, she leans over and she's like, Hey, uh, you're in the you know, teacher program, right? And she was another Latina. And she was like, Yeah, we're starting this um service org. It's new, it's brand new, it's not fully approved yet. We're working on it, but it's called Underwings. And she was like, We're trying to find other teachers who are Hispanic too, especially, to join this program because we are gonna be serving in Boyle Heights adjacent to Homeboy industry. And so if you know Homeboy, um, Homeboy Industries was founded by Father Greg Boyle, and they specialize more with people who are going through kind of the restorative justice process. So coming out of incarceration and offering jobs and meeting people where they are with love to a lot of the young men and women, you know, who've had to resort to the gang life. And so, and growing up, my parents, they always took us back to where we're from, where we were from. So, like driving us through where they lived in, you know, East LA and where they grew up. And I was very much in both worlds, even though I kind of grew up in the suburb private Catholic world. My parents kept us, kept our roots very much alive and the reality too of that we had a different opportunity because my parents chose that path for us. And so I never was detached from that world. And I had a deep compassion, especially once I got involved in underwings. We basically, all the teachers, part of our service org, was that we taught the enrichment programs and classes at Dolores Mission. And then I also was uh, in addition to my liberal studies, I was a Spanish minor. So, well, it's like an emphasis in your credential. So it's like a minor, you take a whole bunch of classes in the Spanish department. One of them was one of my favorites, my professor was Gloria Orozco. And she was super involved in the Boyle Heights area. And this is back when Boyle Heights was going through the first initial changes thanks to Homeboy Industries and everyone who's a part of Homeboy. So we were immersed in that community through Underwings. And then with the encouragement from LMU, their quote is get off the bluff. Like you're not here just to go to school and have it so great on this beautiful bluff, this beautiful school, your parents sacrifice for you to go to. You need to go into the inner city, you need to go into LA, you need to practice and put into action, you know, who we are as Catholics. And that resonated very deeply with me and my calling to be a teacher in the inner city. So yeah, so I got a lot of experience, I would say, more on the side of letting your barriers down and making yourself be uncomfortable, even though I'm Mexican and even though, you know, my family's from there, I didn't grow up there, you know, and that that sometimes hurt me. I wanted to be like, yes, I grew up here because I want to like, I want to hold your hand through all these moments too. But the fact that you're not from there and they know that, right? You do face a lot of things in the Mexican world when you didn't grow up in that exact neighborhood. Just because your parents left or this or that, you know, you get a lot of that um resistance at first. And so there's a it's kind of funny in the Mexican world. It's like you kind of got to prove yourself. So um, but I had fun doing that. Like I was immediately immersed in it. I was friends with everybody, you know, and I was really close with the families that we served. And so the beautiful thing about that is Dolores Mission has this tiny little uh church across from the uh Catholic school. And so we would do the Posada together as a community. And so these are all Catholic Mexican traditions that we do around Christmas time, basically. And so I invited my parents to these things with me to experience as a way of kind of showing them like this world I was entering into and also inviting them into that experience with me because we're practicing our faith together as a family. And that's kind of the way I saw it as I was growing in my faith or I was growing as a teacher. I also wanted them to be a part of it because they're the ones who really inspired me to take on this path.

SPEAKER_00 14:57

I love what you said about, you know, it's it's a continual process. And even as a convert, I haven't been Catholic that long, but we're constantly reforming and we're constantly converting all the time. And like you said, you grew up in this really wonderful Catholic home and you had family that was also practicing the faith, but at some point you had to make it your own. And we continue to have to do that through our lives and through our adulthood. And I love what you said about being uncomfortable because all of this, most of the saints were very uncomfortable. They did very, very hard things. And so I'm curious because I know that you've you've made a transition. So you're you're no longer an educator, but you've taken your education with you to what you're doing now. And tell us a little bit more about what you're doing now in the world with Milagros.

SPEAKER_01 15:50

Thank you. Um, oh, that's like one of my favorite parts of life, I would say, is when all that happened. And I think to kind of tie it together with the uncomfortability, my brothers can attest to this, but I thrive in uncomfortable situations. I laugh because I don't know why. Maybe just being the youngest of two boys and you're just kind of like thrown into things all the time and you're trying to keep up and just be on that same level. I I enjoy being pushed to a really hard limit. And I love the challenge of like, how is this gonna look now in my faith? Okay, I lean lean on God in this way, and then you know, He does this for me, or I lean on God in that way, and now this worked out. Every time is different. And as a teacher or kind of a perpetual learner, is the way I see it when you're a teacher, you're constantly studying how God works and resilience and what is that? Vulnerability, what is that? So when I was teaching, uh, I was in my fourth year at Synergy Academy, which is an amazing, amazing gem of a charter school in LA. And I was originally with L A USD, like right out of uh college. I had gotten a job at Lillian Street, which I loved it there. And at that time, they were um laying off teachers up to nine years of experience. So if you were a new teacher, you just, you know matter how good you were, it didn't matter, you were gonna get riffed, and they would let you know in like April. So for two years in a row, my my first two years of teaching, I would have to, you know, receive the pink slip and just kind of be like, I have no idea where I'm gonna be in the fall, just kind of be ready for anything. Um my dad at the time, uh, he was still uh in in L E U S D and he was like, you know, it's gonna be like this for a while. Uh I think you're gonna have to go outside the district, you know, maybe look into some charter schools. So he actually um sent me two options and I applied for both. Um but I also took that time to discern and think about like, well, maybe I should go back to school and just get my master's, and because I I had assumed I would just go the admin route because I really I loved the idea of coaching other teachers. But you know, two years, as much as you might already have a knack for something or be just, you know, innately good at something, I was like, no, I want to give myself the practice and really be in the classroom. I want to try out all these things, I want to have that knowledge and wisdom before I I go that route. So I applied to LMU grad school, got in. I applied to both and interviewed to the both charter schools, got in. And I was like, oh no. Now I have to choose, like I have to really discern. And so I ended up just through a lot of prayer and reflection. I decided to go with Synergy. And at that time, they were taking on four new teachers because they were uh doubling their grade levels. So they were moving from one site to another and and expanding the amount of teachers they were gonna have. And so I really got this idea in my head when I was in prayer of fourth grade. I just like the idea of teaching fourth grade and being able to just hone in on all the skills of the teacher life. So I ended up getting fourth grade and I had a blast. Like the best years of my teaching life were at this school. And I say this because when it came time to realize that I wasn't gonna be in the classroom anymore, this is really important. I was someone who never thought I would leave the classroom. I was like, live and die in this room. This is all I love to do. And this is what I knew I was gonna do since I was like six. When I was really young, I already knew I had a really strong calling to be a teacher. And so, um, and I discerned that my whole life, even throughout all the years of volunteering in high school and college. Like I still discerned is this for me, you know? And so anyway, here I am at like the height of my teacher life. And the last year that I was there, some things happened. Like my brother and his wife had their first child, and uh I might get choked up. Um, so his name is Samuel Sammy, and uh hold on a minute.

SPEAKER_02 19:56

Okay, I think I got it.

SPEAKER_01 19:57

So um Sammy is my first nephew, and he's just so special to me, as you can tell. But anyway, uh so they had Sam and they were moving to the East Coast after they had him, like a year after. And I was I was chosen to be his godmother along with uh some other family too. And so it was just such a special moment, and I never imagined us all not living near each other. Like our whole family, you know, Mexican Catholic, you pretty much don't live anywhere else except like 10 minutes, 20 minutes away from your family. It's just kind of a thing. And you know, we're the we're the next generation. So, you know, my brothers have had amazing opportunities, and my brother accepted a position in DC. And so he and his wife and Sam, they, you know, they packed the car moved, and it was so sudden too. Like none of us were really ready for it. And so I I took that to prayer and then I kind of like let it simmer for a while. Like I just went back to my life and was playing a lot of beach volleyball aside from teaching and just immersing myself more in what I was doing. And as I was um getting better and better at teaching and seeing the big picture of teaching, especially after if you teach the same grade over and over, you get so much repetition in honing in on like what is this gift and how does it help people? You know, it's not just for learning information or adapting to society, especially with my LMU formation and Catholic formation of like teaching the whole person. So I was very involved in my students' lives and my kids' lives, that's what I used to call them. And you know, uh, very involved in their families. I was there for them in really hard times. And so emotionally I didn't want to leave. And then the last year when I was teaching there, I had done this theme. Um, it was like a parallel to surfing. And I had this whole theme played out so beautifully. And I remember it was like the end of the year, and I was having them teach. Uh, they had to come up and do like a business pitch as part of Westward Movement. It was a little lesson I did. And in the back of my mind, the the concept of a future coffee shop was already percolating, but I I didn't really know what that was. It was just it kind of Popped up in prayer a lot, and I was spending a lot of time in coffee shops writing lesson plans, and I was very much a communal person. And then I also spent a lot of time with the homeless and was basically saying hi to them and knowing where they live and dropping off little presents and food and trying to emulate, you know, the saints that I had been studying. So all this stuff starts to come together. And I remember one of the kids came up to do his project and he was sharing his concept. And I'm watching him and I'm thinking, oh no, I need to be brave enough, just like the kids I'm teaching. I need to see this through this business idea that I have for myself that might be completely unrelated, but a teaching, who knows? I gotta give it the chance to to grow or to see what that is for me. And as a side note, like I was super involved in teaching confirmation and youth ministry and all that too. So the level of understanding what teaching is for me was on is on many different platforms. And for me, I think for the first time, I was understanding that small businesses, such as a place like a coffee shop, sort of speed can be a classroom for the world. I didn't fully know that yet. I just was praying about it. So then fast forward, my dad is like, hey, we're gonna go visit Mike and Allison and Sam, and you know, we're gonna stay for like two weeks. And I was like, ah, I don't really want to go. I'm trying to focus, figure out this next chapter of my life. It was just a lot of prayer. I think I did like three rosaries in a day on that one. Um I was like, all right, I'll go, you know. And so it's funny that I reluctantly went because I I love them very much. I just I thought I was trying to be very focused. And so anyway, I get there, I'm in Maryland, we're all hanging out, we're having this great time. My brother's showing us the most amazing trip. And as I'm there, I'm like, I could live here. Like it just the thought, and I said it out loud, they always laugh about this. We were at the in the gold room of St. Jerome's, that's their parish there, and that was my parish when I lived there. We're in the gold room, and my brother's introducing me all these people, and and this one man who helps people find homes there if they're relocating and they're Catholic, it's kind of his own apostolate. So I say to him, I could live here, you know, and he's like, I can make that happen. So I go back to school uh to my teacher position after that trip, and we were supposed to sign our contracts that spring, that March. And I told my principal who who I adored, and we had a close relationship. All of us were very close with her, and I was like, I'm not coming back next year, and I'm not signing this thing. She's like, What? Contreras, we don't even have any plans. I was like, I know it's okay though, it's gonna work out. God will provide. Yeah, and that's clearly what happened. And I think that's why I say I love uncomfortability. I love, and that was what I taught my students all the time, too. This is what the classroom is for. We're giving you the opportunity to come to a fork in the road and for you to have zero answers. Like, that's a good thing. That's what I'm here for. You know, I'm gonna help you through these moments. So it's like I already knew how to do this with other people. Let's let's have fun with my own life now. Let's do this. Let's jump off the cliff, so to speak. And so when I came back and, you know, that whole conversation went down that I wasn't coming back. She was, she didn't believe it. She's like, I don't know, Kerris is gonna be here on the fall, this and that. Well, that spring, um, my sister-in-law, my brother's wife Allison, I texted her. I think I just said something like, Hey, yeah, like I think I think I really do want to make the move out there. And I just put it out there and she ran with it. And she's someone who does that. Like, you give her the go, she'll like boom, boom, boom, boom, boom boom, she'll set all this stuff up. So she found me an attic to live in, because out there you could live in an attic basement. I've lived in it all. An attic to live in for like $700, everything included across the street from them. And then she put me in touch with a principal out there to teach. Wow. And I immediately was like, okay, the Lord has made straight the path, right?

SPEAKER_00 25:38

Yes, that's exactly what I was thinking. I was like, when he wants something to happen, he just sets everything up.

SPEAKER_01 25:43

Yes. And and just as I fast forward to the Milagros, when we were discerning the name for Milagros, and I, you know, was connecting it with what got us to this point. And really, I mean, one of the common themes I have in prayer with with God, and when because I spent a lot of time just sitting, and it's different every day in prayer, it's different every day. Like God sometimes throws like movie pictures up real fast, and it's like boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, and you're seeing all these memories from your life, or he's honing in on one thing and he's like, I need you to go into this, even though I know you're scared. Or sometimes it's nothing and it's silent, and you're just receiving his love. And one of my favorite things that God does, especially when you're in an uncomfortable time frame or you're surrendering, and whether it's something tough or hard that you've been through, he shows you very clearly like, here's this mess, and I'm gonna go like this and I'm gonna line it up for you. And every time I love that feeling, you know, like when I just go, Yeah, I have no idea what's coming next. Here you go, Lord. Right. And then he pieces it for you one thing at a time. And it's just like my favorite moments with God have been those moments, and that was one of the best lineups because it was like boom, the the place of living, the job fell through. Then there were like a ton of signs from saints I had been praying and asking for intercession, like back to back to back to the back. So all these milagros, as we call them, miracles in Spanish, or God moments, you know, they were so obvious at that time in my life. Also because I had just kind of reverted as well. Like, even though I was cradle Catholic, I had made this uh promise in a way to God when I got through all this stuff that I went through in my early 20s, and I was just like, I'm all yours. Use me as you will. And when you do that, the Lord does that. He responds immediately.

SPEAKER_02 27:32

Yes.

SPEAKER_01 27:33

And it's cool because he gives you the courage and the excitement and the strength and the wisdom to see those moments too after that, which is cool. So there's times in my far past where I dismissed moments like that, or I may not have taken them seriously, or I didn't think they were like really from God. But once I got to the point of really knowing, like accepting God in my heart and receiving him in that way after that, it was like I can recognize this feeling every time, or this this thing that's happening, this milagros. I know what this is, and I know to go forward, and I know not to be afraid when you know you can't tell what's coming next.

SPEAKER_00 28:08

Yeah, absolutely. And I I feel like I can relate to so much of what you're talking about because when I was 25 years old, I lived in the Midwest my whole life, grew up in Michigan, then did grad school in Chicago, and God was calling me. I didn't know at the time because I wasn't I wasn't Catholic or Christian at the time, but God was calling me to Los Angeles. And I mean, you're right. We really we have to be uncomfortable to do the work that he's calling us to do. And sometimes that means moving across the country, sometimes that means leaving behind a career that, you know, maybe God clearly did bring you to, but he's calling you to something else. But he everything that you do along the way was not for nothing. And God, like you said, creates these little milagros in your life, and it makes sense when you look back on it.

SPEAKER_02 28:56

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 28:57

Even if you're not if you know, even if you don't stay where you are, it all it all makes sense. But when things are supposed to happen with him and he's guiding us, it is easy. I mean, we have to do the hard thing of saying, okay, I'm gonna be obedient to this desire that God has for my life, which could mean moving across the country, or it could just mean making it a change, but it does start with that being willing to be uncomfortable. Yeah. We're gonna have to either be uncomfortable staying where we're at or be uncomfortable moving into what he's calling us into. They're both gonna be uncomfortable, right?

SPEAKER_01 29:31

Right. Because even when you're in it, and even though I know it feels easy because we lean on the Lord, there's like a hundred percent discomfort the whole time too, which is the whole paradox of how God works, right? And I think that's where people get maybe a little tripped up before, you know, the hesitation to surrender is usually like, oh, I'm worried about what people are gonna think about me, or surface level stuff, like superficial things. Or I think the way I look at it is back when I was praying in Santa Monica and I was literally like, What is what do you need me to do? Because I feel like I've reached this level of teaching, and all of a sudden it feels finished. And I don't know why, because that was never what I thought would happen. And it was basically like, okay, let's go to the admin route again, let's go teach English in another country. I explored all those things and got all those things too, once again. And then it wasn't until I was uh I was doing a rosary every day, and I had lived in a studio, no kitchen. It was like the simplest little life, but I was like a few steps away from the water, the ocean. And that was where I did a lot of my hard processing and prayer. So I would take my little notebook, ride my bike down, spend like two to three hours, you know, on the sand, watching the sunset. And the whole time I was prayer journaling, praying, just talking to God, like sometimes out loud. You know, there's like nobody around sometimes when you're at the beach, it's great. And then I would like lay down and just receive what he said. I mean, I had this amazing life at this point because I knew how to teach really well, so I could come home, do that. And during that time frame of just constant prayer, constant listening, constant surrendering, he put this image in my brain. It was so clear. Like I was in a coffee shop and it had all these positive, uplifting scripture verses on the wall. And then there was like a latte mug and a saucer, and on the saucer, it had a psalms verse. And I was like, man, that's specific. Wow. I didn't even drink coffee like a real coffee person. You know, I literally would throw back coffee with all my with all my lunch peeps in the back at the cafe and uh at our school. I didn't even know how to brew coffee. That's how hilarious this is. Everybody in my life coffee and I did it. And then at that point, I mean, I had done I'd spent a lot of time in coffee shops. And when you're in LA, it is so amazing. It's an amazing city where you're constantly in communion with people. Like you could be by yourself. This was that's why I moved there because I could be by myself. I could be single and walk into a bar and make friends or just whatever. Nobody cared that you didn't have someone with you or they didn't roll in with like five friends or something. You could always go by yourself. So I would go to all these different spaces that were helping me work through my stuff. And then I would go shoe pool at a dive bar because my family, they all shoe pool, my dad and Uncle Henry. And so that was my place to kind of like observe other people and what they were doing with their lives. And I met so many amazing people who inspired me. And that's when I realized, oh, I technically could just explore this concept of this coffee shop thing. Let's just see what happens, right? But I didn't know where to start. And so what ended up happening first was I just said yes to the move to the East Coast because that's what God gave me as like a yes. So I went, he affirmed it in many ways. Once I got out there, because this was like 2014. This is the cool thing. I didn't know this at the time. When I moved there in 2014, Vigilante Coffee had just bought or uh started renting this roastery space. And they opened, I want to say it was July 25th, and I moved to the East Coast on July 25th. And we didn't know this until later when we became friends, and they were telling me about the start of their company. Hilagos. Yeah, and they also were a pop-up and they also had humble beginnings, and they also were people who were really trying to figure out what is my true calling. And I just thought that was so amazing. And I didn't even go to their shop, the roastery, until a snow day happened. Well, first my brother invited me because he drank coffee there all the time. And my brother's definitely all about quality, and so I was like, Oh, I can trust whatever he's saying, you know, let's go to the shop, sure. And we had por and I didn't know what a poro at the time. And I'm like sipping on it, and I never drank coffee without cream or anything like that. And I was like, whoa, this is amazing. Is this coffee? So we're chatting, and he's like, Yeah, this is you know my favorite spot out of all the areas. I was like, okay. So then after that, as a teacher on the East Coast, I didn't know this about snow days, but you literally don't have to go to work.

SPEAKER_00 33:49

Oh yeah. I had them when I was a kid in Michigan. Yes.

SPEAKER_01 33:54

And that was a God moment because uh the first snow day I had, everybody's making fun of me. All my my teacher friends drove in the snow to work. And I got there and I was like, Where is everybody? I mean, I'm a diehard, like, you know, you show up. I never had sick days. I rarely called out, I never missed a day as a teacher. So I get there and then they're like, Oh, we didn't add you to the phone tree. They're like, Okay, it's like a two-hour delay. So then you gotta learn that. I got two hours in the morning sometimes. So then I was like, oh, these snow days, I can strategically map out a coffee journey. So I went on the internet, went to Thrillist or whatever and sprudge and looked up all the best coffee spots in DC, Maryland, Virginia. And every snow day I got, I would visit a new one. And it started to become my new LA where I was like, okay, I'm just gonna spend time, but now I'm gonna look at it through the lens of like, what if this becomes a real thing? But I didn't get a real, like long snow day because uh Vigilante Coffee at the time would close at two, and so it was rare if I could make it there by two. But finally I got an all-dayer and I walked down to Vigilante because I lived in the neighborhood too of it, and then had my first experience there. And I was like, you know what? What if I just worked as a barista for fun on the weekends, right? I got my only family out here is my brother, his wife, and Sammy. So I've got time if I need to, you know, explore this. So then uh, and as a teacher, I was always looking for other things to inspire the stuff I was doing in the classroom. So I was doing improv in Virginia and flag football with my friends, and then I was like, bracing will just be another interesting thing. And and I think this is where it says a lot about how God works. A lot of people, and I've helped a lot of people launch coffee shops and worked in wholesale with vigilante and got to analyze other people's businesses. And I really admired the people who started at the bottom. You know, a lot of people come in, maybe they got all this cash, and they're like, I'm gonna do this big luxurious thing. And then they realize after a while, oh, this is a lot harder than I thought. So when I came in as a barista, it was so cool because it was basically their earlier years of operations, and so they didn't have all the time. You know, it I know how it is now being an owner. You're trying to run things and you're trying to train people and you're dying, you're tired. You're just hard to grow a team when you're like doing all the things.

SPEAKER_02 36:09

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 36:10

And uh Chris Vigilante and Ashley Bodino forever be grateful for them. They're the owners of Vigilante Coffee, and they're now married too, which is amazing. But they were like, Hey, we would love for you, you know, to be on staff. You're I was kind of a beloved customer at this point, which was really nice. And they were like, but we're gonna just give you the key to the shop. And after hours, when we close, you come in and you train from like four to six. And they knew I was a teacher, so they could trust me, and they're like, just you know, here's some videos. They gave me a few intro courses. They're like, we just need you to practice. Once you get to this level, we're gonna do like an exam, and then you can be on bar. And I was like, Oh, it's like school. This is cool. I'm learning something, and there's something to check that I'm qualified to now be a full-blown barista. So me and one of the other baristas, Anna, we would uh, who we called Franna actually. But anyway, we would uh she'd meet me there and she'd give me, you know, pointers and feedback. And what was great about these people is like they were so good at being the people who are barista for me. They were incredible. And I didn't know about this world. I didn't know that specialty coffee, baristas, it's like when you see a fancy bartender who does tricks and can pour seamlessly without spilling. So there's like a whole world of that. It's like Barista Olympics inside of coffee. Yeah. So they really hard on me. They're like, oh, that's terrible. Try that again, you know? And I love that. I was like, yeah, let's get good at something. Okay. So I was, I mean, I literally was just like, who knows how long this is gonna last. I'm having a good time, I'm making some extra cash. Cool. Um, and then at the end of that first year of teaching, um, which happened, I ended up choosing a Catholic school when I got out there because you know, state to state it's easier to transition that way. And the Catholic school's name was St. Anthony de Padua, which happens to be the same name of the parish I grew up in, San Antonio de Padua. So like another Yeah. So after a year of teaching there, and I was doing bat bracing simultaneously, I I decided, okay, this would be the time in which I make a lateral move if I want to try this out in a real way. And let's say it blows up and it's not cool or it doesn't work out, it's okay, I'll just move back home, you know, eventually. And, you know, I I know with teaching, I can do anything, I can work anywhere, it's gonna be fine, right? So it was kind of this idea of like, I know I can always go back, or I have like a backup plan kind of feeling. But then what happened is I told the owners, you know, I would love to go full-time, and they were amazing. They were like, okay, we're gonna create a position. And basically, they were like, we would benefit from your teacher skills. We would love to bring you on in that way. Um, and again, started small. Like I was humbled in so many ways. Even though I was a great teacher and I was as professional in the outside world, I did not know coffee as well as they did, right? So Chris, um, personally, basically he trained me, like took me on every wholesale visit. And I look back and I just appreciate that so much because I mean you put so much time into the people that they that really mattered to them. And um, they really held the bar high for you. And I I love that because that is what like high quality, you know, genuine products or businesses do. Yeah. And so yeah, I started with wholesale, then I eventually was the director of training. So I would train all of our in-house and all of the wholesale and then go by and do quality checks. There's like a whole bunch that goes to this. And we did pop-ups, we did events, and then eventually they built a specialty coffee lab, like a classroom, which for coffee in the back of the road street. And it was, it was a I remember he was like, Ski, we built you a classroom. And I was like, Oh, this is great. I can't believe it. So I would teach these classes all day. I would teach our team, and it was very much like God kept telling me, like, you're doing it. You are teaching, you are a teacher. It's just a different subject. It's just a it's the same thing, it's just like a school. And so as I exercised that more, I realized, well, just like how I did in the teacher world, you know, the literal teacher world, I wanted to be the best for myself. Not that I was like competing against other people, but I wanted to do right by my students and the communities I was working in. So in the specialty coffee world, they have competitions. And um, you basically compete locally, regionally, then nationally, and then globally. And I was already following some of these competitors, and I was locally competing, like through they call them latte art throwdowns and aeropress competitions. And once I got a taste of the Aeropress competition, that was really rad in DC. And you you get put together with people from all over, like all over the country, all over the coast. Um, met people from LA, it was great, like all these connections. And then I was like, oh, this competitor thing is rad. You get to kind of prove to yourself where you're at in this industry and how serious you want to be. And most of those people who won, especially nationally, people would invest in them and they'd set up shops and restaurants. And I mean, like amazing concepts too. So I got to be around some of the best of the best. And Vigilante gave me that opportunity to like really see it through. But all the while I kept telling them, like, hey, I still have this concept for myself in my head. And I just know eventually I believe that I am feeling called back to California. And since I was teaching confirmation out there as well on the East Coast and still living my ministry life while working in coffee, and I would see the two worlds come together all the time. And I was like, man, it would be so rad to combine everything, but also not have it be just for the Catholic world. As much as I'm Catholic, I'm a Catholic, I'm being myself wherever I go, just like how it was with me teaching in a public school, not in a Catholic school. God is for everybody. And when I was in the road street with Vigilante, I had that opportunity to exercise that love on everyone and analyze interactions and analyze receptivity and really get to know people the way I was getting to know students and their families on a vulnerable level. And that's when it like it, my mind just blew. I was like, it's gonna work. A classroom for the world is totally a thing. And now I just got to get used to interacting with adults, which is where the coffee classroom helped me. I was able to practice that with people, you know, and it didn't always have to be like verbatim. I wasn't walking up to people and being like, I'm Catholic, you know. I was just showing genuine, vulnerable love, accepting people for who they are, meeting them where they are. And then later that relationship can grow into something where I share more deeply when people ask me, Why are you so happy or why are you so this or whatever? It's like, oh, well, I go down to the basilica and pray on my break. You know, and people are like, What? And at first, sometimes they might be like, ew, you're religious. You know, they might have that actual response.

unknown 42:39

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 42:40

And then I go into it more deeply and I share. And this isn't just like a thing I do. This is this is a part of this is my life's substance. This is how I operate. And this is what's infused into every little thing that I feel called to be a part of.

SPEAKER_00 42:56

Well, they'll know you by your fruit and they know it is something, right?

SPEAKER_01 42:59

Yeah, yeah. You know, and the humor is a big one. Like I think God is so funny, like he has so many sides. Um, but I think a lot of vulnerability and truth can be conveyed through humor too, especially. When you get to know someone and you have that bond, you can joke in a way that reaches someone's heart. And uh, I mean, that these are things that I got to share with people, all my favorite regulars on the East Coast who I miss deeply. I send them Milagros gifts and stuff because when I launched my thing, they were like, oh my gosh, can I have one? You know, it was really cool. I met so many amazing people on that journey and it really fulfilled the whole spectrum using the teacher gift in the classroom with kids. And then yeah, I worked with like youth and teens, but I had never really got to exercise that with adults and analyzed, oh, okay, what's blocking them? Why doesn't this person meet me in this vulnerable place? Kids will meet you in vulnerability really fast. And there were things that I did in the classroom to remove those wounds or blocks and stuff, and I had ways of unlocking that so that they could learn and be present and all that, or just be on good behavior. But with a Adults, like you really have to come in with it with real authenticity, authenticity, and zero judgment. That's what I think is the two most important things just as a person, but also as a Catholic. It has to be like a bar where no one's judging you. You know, no one's gonna be like, hey, why'd you drink like eight drinks? We should wear our sins on the forefront and not feel like we're being judged because that's the way we can meet people where they really are and really hear their story. And and I mean, be like Jesus, be compassionate and women at the well status, right? Where someone could share their story and feel absolutely no judgment from me, just listening and love. And out of that, you had no idea what could happen after that. Like so many things can come out of that, you know, that foundation that you've laid just by being open and loving to somebody.

SPEAKER_00 44:53

Yeah, giving them that space because they you may be the only person that has really taken time to listen to them in that.

SPEAKER_01 45:00

Yeah, and that's that's the mission, like what we do with Milagros, uh, is based on that. And there's ways in which we facilitate that uh when a customer approaches the pop-up, like comes to our shop. So uh I don't know, would you like me to go into that?

SPEAKER_00 45:16

Yes, maybe you can help us transition into how you went from vigilante to milagros. And then I love the I love what you guys do with your condiment station and your prayer station. So maybe tell us a little bit about how you went from vigilante to milagros. Okay.

SPEAKER_01 45:34

Um, so I I was sharing about the competition uh chapter and I had reached a level of kind of like the same thing that happened with teacher world. I was like, all right, I've kind of reached a level that I know I'm skilled in this world enough to like I could help them run their shop, right? I I am at that point where I am qualified and an expert of some kind. And it was, it was more like, do I really want to get serious and bravely carry out my concept, which means, oh my goodness, starting all over again. Like, you know, you realize you gotta have the endurance and you gotta discern it again. It's gonna take time. And as much as I love uh following the Lord and taking step after step, I take time in between. So during this time, like I had just finished the last competition. Oh yeah, and I didn't make it to the nationals. I missed it by like a few spots. So I was pretty bummed, but I also was like, it's probably for a reason. But you like gotta start telling yourself that when you lose. And uh, but I really was like, man, I was really proud of my performance. I represented really well. And part of my performance, I had already kind of shown a glimpse of what my lagros would be. I dressed up in a florico dress and I shared, um, I connected my presentation and my drinks that I had created for the judges to growing up in my grandma's, my grandma Irene's house and like growing up Mexican. So I was already putting the two together. Um, and then when I I went to uh this is where the love story starts. Sorry. So Justin, my husband, is a big part of why I really was able to see Milagros too as a real thing and why I ended up going back to California. So to explain the veg to the milagros chapter, it actually has to do with a 54 a day novena I was doing. Love it. Yeah, right. So I go in hard on this one because the whole time I was out there, which I haven't shared yet, part of my calling, since I loved, I was uh I loved Mother Teresa and I loved certain saints that I that were walking with me in my life, like St. Monica, St. Ignatius, St. Teresa d'Avila. And so part of my move to the East Coast was I was like, ooh, I'm not that far from where Mother Teresa's um order is. If I ever really want to go that route, you know, I could go and spend time in New York too. But what happened is there was a convent in DC called Servants of the Lord that was just like 10 minutes away from where I lived. And the Franciscan Monastery, Capuchin Monastery, Basilica, um, the Shrine of Immaculate Conception, and where I taught were all within like two minutes of each other. So I spent time in all these places. This is where I did a lot of my discerning. But also when I went to the convent, Servants of the Lord, I was actually trying out for myself whether I wanted to go down the religious life. Because I was like, as much as I'm doing this coffee thing, like a big part of what I'm trying to connect is my love for God and my love for how we carry God's love out into the world. So I thought, well, missionary, like, you know, that'll probably be just what I do. You know, that makes sense, right? And so I was spending so much time there. I really loved the servants of the Lord. I had many a good nights there and connection. And I I really felt like it would actually be an easy decision for me. I was like, oh, this is too easy though. This fits my contemplative nature too well to where I think that that's a sign that I'm giving into something that's easy and not hard. Meaning to imagine being married was much harder for me. And the reason for that is I was I was married actually right after college. And it uh it was a really hard chapter in my life. And um, you know, I this is a public episode, so I don't want to share too many details, but it was the type of relationship where I was afraid. And so I had to discern leaving the marriage um within the first year. And um, I went through some pretty hard stuff, you know, that year. And it was also during the first year of teaching. And so uh that path changed the way I looked at getting married one day. I was I didn't take marriage lightly. Like I was somebody that never imagined getting divorced, especially being a Catholic and Mexican. I worried about all the same things many people worry about before they get divorced. And I sought out spiritual direction and priests, and during that time frame, which I can expand on later, but I started returning back to scripture. Each of these scripture verses sort of prepared me for what was gonna come. Uh and basically from that moment, I had it on my heart that I would always entertain the idea of being a religious life as well. Because I knew how much I love the Lord and how much he helped me through that time. I just wanted to give back to him for everything he did for me and help me through in that really terrible and scary time. And so on the East Coast, when I was, you know, with these nuns and I saw how awesome this life would be, I was like, oof, but I know the Lord's trying to show me something over here. You know, like he wants me to imagine a life being married, imagine receiving an annulment. You know, I have to consider that. So the 54-day novena was actually to help me discern which path I was gonna take, and also allowed myself to say in the prayer for my future husband. And it was really hard to say those words at the time. Um, and so I'm like halfway into the novena, you know, the first half is petition, and then there's Thanksgiving. And I had gone on this cool trip with my friends to Greece, you know. So even though I was there for fun with my friends, I was like, whoa, this is like a pilgrimage. You know, you get to Greece and you're like, St. Paul, he's so real. Um, so I was at the second half of the novena while in Greece. And I come back and I I told my mom, I think I'm gonna intentionally start dating and consider marriage. My mom got really excited and she was like, You should smile at guys more. Like, okay, like whatever, like, you know, that sounds terrible. And then uh, so I was going to this this bar called Town Hall, which God rest, it's not there anymore. I was like, no. But anyway, so Town Hall uh is a beloved dive bar in the college park area, and it's around all the local bars. And my husband today, Justin, was a bartender there, like since after college. So he had his normal nine to five HR staffing recruiting job, and then he would go bartend. And I was running the specialty coffee world. And basically, I went to go play pool at their bar all the time. But when I play pool, I don't drink like half the time. I'm just there to play pool and walked all the the old towny people and look at their story and connect. And um, on one of these nights, I for the first time saw Justin. I hadn't, it's like I hadn't seen him before, even though he was been in my world the whole time. And I did what my mom said. Like he had he was looking at me and I looked up and I gave the cringiest like forced smile. And uh and I decided in my head, I was like, oh no, like I don't want him, I don't want him to like approach me right now, so I'll just leave. So I left, like I finished the game and left, got in my car, and like I don't know why, like sat there for a second, like thinking about what just happened, and then he walked out and knocked on the window of my car and opened the door and get out because my car wasn't even on. And I was like, uh, anyway, he introduced himself. And I mean, it's just wild how that journey began because I didn't expect to meet someone more or less date somebody, right? When I was already thinking of moving back to California and kind of like, where's this, you know, coffee shop concept going and how's it gonna work? Uh so we meet and we kind of went on like a three-month hiatus where it was like we didn't, I just was discerning like, what is that? You know, and and I was sort of speaking finishing my competition chapter. And then in January, I told one of my barista friends, I'm gonna give it a real go. If I see the sky when I go to play pool tonight, I'm gonna go for it. I walk into the bar. I saw him and I was like, oh man, he's here. I gotta live up to what I said. So I walked over and asked for a drink, I think. And then he grabbed my hand and he's like, I'm not letting you go this time. Oh, that's so sweet. It was like an actual love story. And I thought to myself, like, wow, this guy is actually really genuinely seeing me and allowing me to be vulnerable, which for in that uh context, like I was not able to be vulnerable. Like it was really hard for me to open up to men after everything I went through. Um, yeah, I mean, it was wild. It actually progressed pretty quickly because uh since I didn't have a lot of time, I was like helping run, you know, Vigilante Coffee and all the different hats I was wearing there. I was like, well, I have time on Sundays uh to date. Uh I go to Mass at the Cathedral Matthew Apostle in DC. Time I could make it because St. Jobs doesn't have one at that time. And and then I grabbed dinner after. So if you want to do that. So our first few dates, we went to Mass and I had no idea, you know, I didn't know what his religious background was. We barely knew each other, but at dinner he shared more and he had an early introduction to the Catholic faith, even though he grew up Baptist. So he has a whole conversion story that's really amazing. And then throughout that time, I decided to seek spiritual direction from the pastor that I had taught, the school that I had taught at, and he helped me begin the annulment stage. Um, and then fast forward. So basically, since God sends me this gift of this man who I can see like, oh, this is real, and and I am now very much open to marriage and you know what that means. And I told him my backstory and everything too. I was like, well, you know, like I have to get an annulment before we ever go down that route. And I had been kind of low-key working on annulment process since Santa Monica, but it just never happened and I just wasn't there yet. And so um, he started looking for jobs in California, basically. He knew he was like, Oh, this is happening. Where he was listening to kind of me discerning and process and work things out. And I think in a way he catapulted us that way too, because he knew what was on my heart without me being able to admit it, basically.

SPEAKER_00 55:22

Wow.

SPEAKER_01 55:22

Yeah. And so he looked for jobs and he got his first job near my parents' house, near where I grew up. And I was like, oh man, it's really happening. So once we came out back to California, you know, then it became like, well, let's put our relationship first. Let's, you know, really hone in on who we are. So I really put Milagros on the back burner. I kind of was like, eh, we'll get to this when we get to it. And then COVID happened. And I was like, oh man, you know, and we were in a bubble basically with my parents and a lot of good conversations during COVID, right? A lot of good reflection, a lot of hard times too. And we lost Justin's mom during COVID. And but we also got married during COVID. And and I got my annulment during COVID. So many, you know, things happen. And it made me realize that Milagros was not just a thought or a thing that, you know, helped me get through things, or it wasn't just a journey. And with Justin's bar background too in hospitality, like both have this love for bringing people together and letting Milagros happen. But in order to do that, right, um, you have to bring people into a space like that. And and you also have to know how to design it and cultivate it so that you can facilitate, you can kind of like not facilitate those moments, but just invite people into the moment. So once we got married in 2021 and um we wanted to put kids first and our marriage first. So, you know, immediately we just start trying for children and, you know, focusing on where we're gonna live. And during that process, God kept putting Milagros on my heart. It wouldn't stop, it was incessant. And um, and I went through a lot of humbling moments too in that early journey, you know. Of course, not conceiving yet, you know, you start to realize, like, okay, well, how do I want to offer up my suffering? Or how do I want to look at this? How does God want me to see this? And I saw Milagros as kind of like a baby. This is gonna be our gift, but it's gonna be the thing that helps us also work through waiting for children, and it's gonna be the thing we offer up for our future children. And so why don't we do what we say we do? We say expect Milagros, no matter the circumstances. And many people don't know, but of course we're, you know, in pain and suffering waiting for children. Who isn't? But because of the things we've gone through in life and because of the ways God's worked in our life, I know to listen to what he points at first. And he was very much like, don't worry, I know that's happening and that's something you feel deeply on your heart. But look at this and the milagros that are coming out of this and let that pave the way for everything to come. So milagros was really like, even though it was birthed out of my past and the things that I went through and the things I realized and developed as a Catholic and just a person in the world. Um then when I met Justin and I realized what a great team we made. The gift of hospitality really is in our veins. And it's the way both our family, his family is African American and Native American, and my family is Mexican, and the way our families operate in terms of family parties and you know, inviting people over and being together and growing in relationship and never losing touch. These are things that are just ingrained in us. And we love, we love that. We love that feeling of hosting, but not being the center of attention. Like people over and letting them explore and connect and you know, like in a bar, like bringing people together and you don't know what's gonna happen. Um, and I say bar as much as I love coffee shops, the future Milagros brick and mortar is actually not gonna be like a typical coffee shop, but we have plans for it to be actually more open space and interactive.

SPEAKER_02 59:00

Um I love that.

SPEAKER_01 59:02

Yeah, like and and I'm back to my roots of healing and going through things in LA and then coming to the East Coast. It was so comforting to be able to go to these local places where I didn't have to know anybody. I could just walk in, meet someone new, or just have a genuine conversation or learn something from someone else. You know, it's a classroom for the world. It really is. If you see it that way, and and if if people can kind of guide you into that too when you meet those angels or the right people in your life.

SPEAKER_00 59:28

Yeah, it's like what the phrase that comes to my mind is like a little retreat for the soul. Totally. Yeah. Yeah. Love that. Well, tell us a little bit about how Milagros is unique. I I love this concept that you guys have with the saint cards when people get a coffee and just how you help develop that that sense of community and that feeling with the prayer station. And also, I love what you say about pray while you wait and just how you guys really promote and inspire the virtue of patience.

SPEAKER_01 1:00:01

Oh, yeah. That's if anyone works in hospitality, you know, you know that customers have zero patience. Just the way it is, right? Like a lot of people are like that. Um, so the the beautiful thing about our set our concept is uh like we integrated a few different ways in which we can um crack open someone's heart when they approach the pop-up. So from my teacher world, you know, we call these stations. Like when you teach first grade, you set up stations for the centers. Yeah, centers, exactly. So it's literally like that, but for adults. And even if people know straight up that that's what we're doing, it's so fun to watch them kind of work through these little, and this is small because we're a pop-up, but like the future concept, we're excited to like share more of what we're we're working towards. But so when you come up and you order, uh, you get the menu, and the menu already kind of sets the tone too because it says, like everybody sees our saint lattes, and the saint specialty lattes are all handcrafted by us. Um, you know, my love for cooking, my grandma's recipes, my mom's recipes. So we infuse a lot of culture into these lattes. So they're unique, they're one of a kind, like nobody has them. It's it's that fun kind of handcrafted stuff, right? So people genuinely get a Saint Latte for that reason. Um, but they're all named after specific saints who've interceded in our life. So we've got Saint Augustine, um, Saint Carlo, who we had as blessed Carlo when he was uh serving before, um, Saint Theresa de Avila, who's my same name. She's our lavender latte, uh, you know, and we relate it to their personality, their gifts, or their background as a saint. So, like, for example, Saint Theresa, you know, she was known to be a mystic and she suffered a lot of the repercussions of migraines and being attacked, spiritually attacked. And when you go into their diaries and you read more about the saints, you really learn about the things they were going through when they before, and also once they, you know, accepted the Lord into their heart in that amazing hundred percent shift of a way. Um, and I'll share more another time about Saint Teresa and me, but we have a we have a tight bomb. So a lot of people love her for the lavender, and then we get to expand and kind of talk about the saints with people. And then we have Saint Ignatius of Loyola, and it's funny because we made his kind of, he's like our karma macchiato. So people go to Starbucks and get caramel, you know. We have like a it's not the same drink, it's just we call it that because it's like the trendy thing that everybody loves. Um but it's made from scraps from spices, and it cracks me up every time because you know, Saint Ignatius like has this whole thing in his books about like being vain, how he was vain and like the vanity behind it. And we're like, well, then he gets the caramel macchiato, you know, like you can play on these things and yes. We use like a bourbon uh raw sugar for his, and you know, he was party animal and he like he was, you know, had a child out of wedlock, and he went through a lot of different pasts and some drinking. And so, you know, it's like we want people to see the reality of what it means to really say yes to the Lord, and that like we all have pasts, everybody has some kind of past. I mean, you have to have a past, right? To have the contrast too. And so, and so we honor those pasts and we want people to see saints in this very real, vulnerable, you know, people we're we want to kind of repaint the idea of holiness because a lots of times within the church and outside the church, we get kind of a superficial definition of holiness. And so through Milagros and through the menu, we kind of go into that a little bit already. And then our Holy Spirit syrup is actually serrano chili. So you can technically spice up any drink with that or have it by itself. So we call that in fuego, and it says come holy spirit, right? Oh, I love that. And then Saint Monica, who's our it's like our mocha, and we use Ibara Mexican chocolate as part of our recipe. So it's a nice ode to us growing up with uh Ibara hot chocolate our whole life, and just the motherly comfort of Saint Monica and her praying for Saint Augustine. I mean, when you think of hot chocolate, right? You're comforted by that moment. So there's a lot of depth there too. But anyway, that's the Saint Latte's, and then we have a lot of other kind of special things on the menu. And then when somebody orders, we have basically every quarter, we ask the Holy Spirit to give us saints that the world needs that anybody might need. So we started with 16 saints. It's like a stack of order cards. And like when you go to get your food and they give you a ticket, like a ticket number. So they get a saint name. And everybody who picks a saint name, like in the beginning, we used to just give people a saint name because we were in a hurry and we were still getting used to having a long line. Now we just hold the deck out or the cards or whatever, and we just say, you choose, and the Holy Spirit will choose for you what saint you're going to receive. And sometimes we don't even explain it. We're just like, choose a card, this is your order name, you know? Because the Holy Spirit's gonna work no matter what. So they pull a card and when they flip it over, because we don't let them see the name, they have to choose it blindly. They look at it and then they're like, Oh my gosh, I got Saint John Bosco. This happens to be my son's saint name, or oh my gosh, I got Padre Pio. This is the saint my mom prayed to before she was dying, or the thing she was working through with cancer. And everybody has some kind of vulnerable connection to the saint. And the most amazing thing is the reason why we chose saints is because in the secular world, people know saints and they understand the milagros concept. They might not know if it's related, they might think it comes from something else, but that's where we're able to affirm this is the Holy Spirit, this is God, this is what we believe, or this is what we're sharing with you. You know, we can have those conversations. We can go into ministering if someone is open to it. So that's just the very first moment when you order a drink, you get hit with that moment. Um, and so, and this is where it's fun because this is where I'm excited to train our staff. And um, right now it's like my parents help me out and help us out, my husband, and then we have um two to three barisas that we've hired over the years. One of them is Christian, and two Are Catholic. So it's kind of wild how like it doesn't matter. Like if you work with us, you don't have to be Catholic. You don't have to, you know, like we're just exposing you and showing you the things that we're doing, though. So even milagros are happening under the tent as well as outside the tent, which is so cool. And so training people when somebody orders and then they have that moment, you know, we all go into different roles after that. Like sometimes you read a person as they're walking away and like they had a milagros moment, but they're like afraid to share it. So we we we like start to talk to them. One of us chimes in. After they order, we tell them you're invited to pray while you wait. We have a condom station over here that's also a prayer station. So if you feel like it or you're open to it, you're able to write an intention, something you're going through, or anything you need prayer for, you can put it in the bucket. And we have clergy, religious life, prayer ministry, healing ministry, all kinds of groups and you know, Catholic, basically people who are devoted to this type of prayer praying over this bucket throughout the months. You never read them. That's all just going up to the Lord, right? And you would not believe how receptive and awesome people are who are not even related to Christian or Catholic. I love it. The cathartic feeling of you're gonna let me write this and offer it up, and you're gonna pray for me is like one of the most loving things I realize that people feel when we say that to them. And we've never had somebody be disrespectful, or we've never had anybody knock the idea. So many people use the bucket in their own way and really say, Are you really gonna pray for me? You know, not just our personal prayers and daily rosaries, but we have many other people praying over and offering up these intentions. Um, and then one of our favorite things to do next to the prayer bucket is uh scripture from today's readings. So this is where it's fun. We get to explain more of our Catholicism when when people are open to it, but uh and also to fellow Catholics, which is kind of funny. Uh so Justin and I do Lexio Divina together with the readings of that day's reading. So if we pop up tomorrow, we read tomorrow's readings three times and we choose only the verses that God highlights. We discern it, you know, for ourselves and we picture like who we're serving because it's for them, right? And then those scripture strips get put in the station and we translate to for um Spanish communities, you know, we have different languages too. So when you put your hand in to get the scripture, it's random. It's whatever the Holy Spirit gives you. And that's awesome because especially when someone's going through something and their heart has been cracked open from the saint heart, then we're able to go meet them in the prayer station. And, you know, we can offer prayer, we can also pray over them, we can also just hear their story, we can also pull a scripture strip together and talk about it, discern it, or they pull it, they come over to us. Look what I got. I got this scripture verse, and this is helping me through the thing that I'm going through with the saint card. So there's a lot of different ways that that the Lord works in those very small moments. And to be honest, when we first did it, I thought to myself, because as a teacher, I was like, oh man, we need more stations. I know exactly what I want to do for the future of the brick and mortar. And it God was just like, nope, keep it simple. It's a pop-up. This is just a taste. It's not overbearing. It's enough for someone, Catholic or not Catholic, or whatever background you have, to just feel the love and to actually experience a milagro. And that's the beauty of it, right? It's a small, small, which is why we use Mother Teresa's motto, you know, we can do small things with great love because like when people walk up, they know like this isn't, you know, we're not like trying to be some trendy thing. Even though I have like an extensive background, especially coffee, and Justin like legit worked in hospitality with bar life. You know, it's like, even though we are those things and we have those backgrounds, like the the authenticity of what's happening in the moment is just beautiful. So I mean that that we weren't even ready for. Like we weren't didn't even expect Milagros to be, I mean, like every transaction, every interaction, like exactly.

SPEAKER_00 1:10:10

Yeah. I mean, and that's the beauty of following what God is calling and putting onto your heart that you couldn't stop ignoring, right? Yeah. And Diane, as you're talking about this, one I'm so inspired. I'm like, I cannot wait to get down to Ondi County and experience this because our world has so much darkness right now. And what you're saying is, yeah, like every every part from the intentionality of the ingredients that you're using to, you know, praying and asking for the Holy Spirit's intercession for which saints people need right now, offering the prayer bucket for people who may this may be their first experience, someone offering them prayer. Everything about it is just filled with authenticity and fun and holiness and wholeness, you know, and that's the ministry that that odd has called me to is living whole and holy. And as you're as you're mentioning all of this, I'm like, I wonder what it means to her to live whole and holy. Because I love to ask all of my guests that. So I would love for you to to tell me what how you live whole and holy or what that means to you.

SPEAKER_01 1:11:20

It's funny, like so many things come to mind when you with like the words whole and holy. I love how you did the play on words, like the pun, because I think this is actually where our deepest weakness is today. Like I realize this through Milagros, actually. Like people think holiness is like something else. And and I'm not saying that, you know, in a bad judgmental way. It's just from we have so many interactions through Milagros, and so much of my brain, the way I just watch people constantly observe and like see how they respond and do things and and live out their life, right? And as a teacher, I mean, that's all you're looking at. You're just constantly analyzing like what is this person, how are they receiving or how receptive are they? And what I realize is with like holy and holiness, and I'm nowhere near some good example of this, but I think what I've discovered is if your heart is always in a place of surrender, always okay with the adventure that God is putting in front of you, that technically is a disposition of the heart, you know, that's always listening to the Lord first. And I don't mean that like that's gonna be perfect in every interaction or with family, right? It's always so hard when it's someone in your life like that close. But what I mean is like if you're actually daily spending time with God, you're really just sitting and listening to Him, or you're you know, as a Catholic, for me, I have to go to daily mass a few times a week. I have to go to adoration a few times a week. I can't not go because I can feel myself in a sense falling apart, not clinging to the right things. And that dissonance or that um that contrast is good. The only thing that's gonna revitalize me to a complete place of grace is if I go sit in front of the monstrance and receive Jesus. Amen. Yeah, and so daily prayer, the sacraments, that's a fast way to say it. But I think the other half has to be there too, which is I've never believed in being in a Catholic bubble ever. I mean, I went to Catholic school my whole life. And then when I went and taught, you know, in a public school and secular school, I was, you know, God is with me everywhere I go, no matter what. And I mean, I've hung out in the wildest of bars in LA and I've had the craziest of nights in my 20s, and I always found a way to connect with someone in a loving, God-loving way, no matter what. And I I think sometimes when people get too focused on what am I doing as a Catholic, they forget about the part that's just the realness of being in the world. We're supposed to be 100% in the world, just not of the world, right? For me, in terms of being uncomfortable, I make myself go into those uncomfortable places. And then sometimes it's hilarious. If somebody told me, oh, you shouldn't go there because they're gonna treat you that way or whatever, it's like, oh, I'm gonna go there. Why wouldn't I? If you tell me that, then that means something needs to change in that place. And I'm gonna go put myself in the center of it and just see what happens. Some of my closest friends, you know, that I grew up with since grade school, we all went to Catholic school together. We all have the most amazing memories and nostalgia of being in Catholics together. And actually, one of my friends I've gone to Catholic school my whole life with, all the way through college. They are my sisters. They are, and people who I've traveled with in life, my gems, these people are my family. And not all of them are Catholic, you know, some of them believe in completely other things. But what I see that happens, this is where I feel I see God's love the most, is when you're in those exact interactions. Like when I get to love my friend's kids and they get to see where that love comes from, right? Like that is us living in a holy way in the world. And they get it, they know, they know what it is, and they love that. They love that about me. They don't say, Oh, Diane's Catholic. Like, you know, like they're like, oh, we like that about Diane. Yeah, and it opens up a conversation. Yeah. And I mean, if anything, I think in that whole way of like being uncomfortable, that's what makes it authentic. And because people can tell when you're not being real, you know, especially people who've been through stuff. They're like, oh you could tell someone all day long about the faith, and it's not gonna mean anything unless they are compelled to just go and try it out themselves to like to dig deeper in that place for themselves. So I guess in that way of like holiness, I also don't worry about when people aren't like jazzed about it. Like I don't lose sleep at night over that, you know. It's like the Lord's working in ways all the time. It doesn't have to be like flipping a house or something, you know. I'm like, I don't, you know, it's like that's not the intention.

SPEAKER_00 1:16:07

Yeah, absolutely. I love that. That's that's so beautiful. Well, Diane, I I feel like we could, I feel like we could spend so much more time talking. And maybe I'll have to have you and Justin on to talk a little bit more about all the milagros in your marriage. But um, I just love what you're doing in the world and the way that God is using you both and just your heart and love and authenticity towards people. So thank you for doing all that you're doing. I would love for you to share where people can find you so they can come to one of your pop-ups and any other places that people can reach out to you, please feel free to share that with the listeners.

SPEAKER_01 1:16:52

Yeah, so right now um you can find us on Instagram. That's where we pretty much are. Uh, we post all of our upcoming events and where we'll be on there. Other than that, we're working on a website. But honestly, Instagram's been so great. It's it's such a social place uh for a lot of people. So yeah, just look us up on there and check us out. And if you look in the highlights, you can kind of see more of the history of the company too and like our mission. Um, we post all of those things on our pop-up wherever we go to, explaining like who we are and why we're here. So it's at Milagros Coffee Company. Yes, at Milagros Coffee Company. Yes, sorry about that. No, that's fine.

SPEAKER_00 1:17:30

That's actually how we met because we didn't even talk about this, but you are an encounter school of ministries graduate, and I just finished year one as of this week. So we didn't even talk about that, but um, I can tell that you you're infusing encounter into milagros and milagros into encounter.

SPEAKER_01 1:17:50

So yeah, I mean, just the the best thing about encounter, I grew up, so to speak, already experiencing prophetic prayer and receiving images from the Lord and and healing, which is another conversation, just supernatural moments. And my parents are are big encouragers of that, our whole family, being Mexican Catholic, that kind of just comes with uh the faith. But it wasn't until I went to Encounter that I got time, the just the one-on-one time to really hone in and learn more extensively and also, you know, just be in communion with other people who understand, who, who get it, who know what that, what that feels like, what that looks like. Because yeah, that is a part of Milagros that, you know, when people experience that, what's great is um they don't question, they're not worried about like, oh, I can't believe that just happened. You know, they they are able to receive the God moment immediately. Whereas if if that might have come out of left field for somebody, they might feel uncomfortable or there might there might be a hesitation to understand like how God works in that way. So going through encounter allowed me to make sure and structure it to where I want to always take it back to the Lord, to God. This isn't us, like we are not the the people making this happen. Um, this is just how God works and how his love infuses into people and into those moments.

SPEAKER_00 1:19:09

Amen. I will link encounter into the show notes as well for anyone they are accepting applications for fall. I can't recommend it highly enough. Hey, definitely.

SPEAKER_01 1:19:18

Yes, I tell everybody about encounter.

SPEAKER_00 1:19:20

And I love what you just said because encounter really teaches us to discern the difference between our voice, God's voice, Satan's voice, and when we're doing things and we're starting businesses. I started my podcast soon after joining Encounter and building my coaching practice, and it has been so helpful in really honing in on hearing God's voice. So we could talk forever about that. But Diane, this was such a pleasure and thank you for the work that you're doing in the world. And I would love if you would lead us into a prayer as we close.

SPEAKER_01 1:19:53

Oh, yeah. Okay. Father, son, holy amen. Lord, thank you so much for just this moment, this interaction, just getting to know Carrie and all the listeners and and hearts um who are opening up to this episode and her podcast. We just ask you to continue to infuse Carrie with your grace and your love and your wisdom as she carries out her own mission and her own devotion to you. And we just ask for prayers for anyone who needs it, who's listening, um, for any heartache or relationships or physical injuries or ailments or mental capacities that have have hindered being able to receive joy or just go on with your day. We just ask the Lord to rain down his love and his comfort and his his just fatherly embrace for each of each of these people listening and any anyone who needs that prayer today. And just prayers of gratitude, Lord, for everything you've done in our lives in the big and small ways and the challenges that you brought on and the ways in which you bring us through those challenges. And and then give us the courage to invite more and be ready for this adventure and to see it as our way of growing closest to you and keeping you at the center of our hearts. In Jesus' name, we pray.

SPEAKER_00 1:21:18

Amen. Thank you so much, Diane. God bless. God bless. Thanks so much for tuning in to the Living Whole and Holy podcast. If you're ready to dive deeper into life coaching from a Catholic perspective, I have a few spots available for one-on-one coaching. This is an amazing opportunity for you to work with someone who will empower you and support you to dream again with God, find more alignment, peace, and confidence in your life, and be the greatest version of who God is calling you to be. I would be so honored to support you on this journey. Send me a DM on Instagram at LivingHole and Holy for a free one on one call to learn more. If this episode blessed you, please subscribe, leave a review, and share with a friend. And remember, instead of doing what makes you happy, do what makes you holy. Until next time, God bless.