Walking With Our Grandchildren: San Gabriel Valley Chapter Prays the Stations of the Cross
February 15, 2026 | Mater Dolorosa Passionist Retreat Center, Sierra Madre, California
There is something profoundly beautiful about walking the path of Christ’s Passion alongside the ones we love most. On Sunday, February 15, 2026 — the day after Ash Wednesday ushered in the sacred season of Lent — the San Gabriel Valley Chapter of the Catholic Grandparents Association gathered with their grandchildren on the sunlit grounds of the Mater Dolorosa Passionist Retreat Center to pray the Stations of the Cross together.
Seventeen families answered the call, making their way through each of the stations in an atmosphere of reverence, tenderness, and quiet joy. For the Grandparents present, it was more than a devotional walk — it was an act of intercession, a grandmother’s prayer and a grandfather’s hope made visible, offered up for the souls of their grandchildren.
Sacred Grounds, Sacred Purpose
The Mater Dolorosa Passionist Retreat Center — dedicated to preaching the Passion of Jesus Christ — provided a fitting setting for this family pilgrimage. Its beautiful grounds, nestled in the foothills of the San Gabriel Valley, offered a space of peace where hearts could quiet themselves, and where the prayers of the Stations could be prayed with renewed meaning.
For many of the grandchildren, it may have been their first time praying the Stations in this way — walking slowly from station to station, pausing to meditate on each moment of Our Lord’s Passion. And what greater gift could a grandparent offer than to walk beside them, hand in hand, through that sacred journey?
Praying for Our Grandchildren
The Grandparents of the San Gabriel Valley Chapter came together with a specific and beautiful intention: to offer their prayers for their grandchildren. In a world that can feel increasingly loud and uncertain, Grandparents have a unique and irreplaceable vocation — to be persistent, faithful intercessors for the next generation.
The Stations of the Cross are a particularly powerful prayer for this purpose. In meditating on Christ’s suffering, death, and the hope of the Resurrection, we are reminded that no burden is too heavy when carried with Him — and that our prayers for those we love are heard by a God who Himself knows what it is to love beyond measure.
Fellowship and Refreshment
Following the Stations, the families lingered together over refreshments — sharing laughter, stories, and the simple, irreplaceable blessing of time spent in community. These moments of fellowship are no small thing. They are the living fabric of what the Catholic Grandparents Association is all about: Grandparents and grandchildren, bound together by faith, building memories that last a lifetime.
“We enjoyed a beautiful Sunday afternoon walk on the lovely grounds of the Mater Dolorosa Passionist Retreat Center,” shared chapter coordinators Danny and Landie Lopez. “Afterwards, we enjoyed refreshments and the blessings of sharing the afternoon with our precious grandchildren.”
Mark Your Calendars: Third Annual Retreat — April 29, 2026
The joy of February’s Stations of the Cross gathering is already pointing toward something even bigger. The San Gabriel Valley Chapter’s Third Annual Retreat is scheduled for April 29, 2026. If this February afternoon is any indication, it promises to be a day of deep prayer, family joy, and lasting grace.
We encourage Grandparents everywhere to look for similar opportunities in your own parishes and communities this Lenten season. Whether it is praying a Rosary with your grandchildren, attending a parish Stations of the Cross, or simply sitting with them and sharing your faith story — every moment of connection is a seed planted in eternity.
Thank you to Danny and Landie Lopez and all the families of the San Gabriel Valley Chapter for this beautiful witness. May God bless your continued work, and may your grandchildren always know the depth of the love — and the prayers — that surround them.
Contributed by Danny & Landie Lopez, Coordinators, San Gabriel Valley Chapter, Catholic Grandparents Association.