“I jump out of bed at 4 am every Saturday morning excited to go!”
–Peter Paquette, Core Team Member
That Man is You and Ese Hombre Eres Tú are run together at St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception in Fredericksburg, Virginia, every Saturday morning. They started TMIY last year as a new parish, and this year they expanded the group by running the Spanish translation of the program, abbreviated as EHET. Today, about 150 men gather weekly on Saturday mornings to attend both programs!
The Spanish translation of TMIY has allowed St. Mary’s to serve both communities. Domingo Bautista and Peter Paquette help run That Man is You and EHET. Peter helps on the core team for both the English and Spanish program, and Domingo leads one of the Spanish-speaking small groups.
“When we heard TMIY was being translated, we were excited to use it immediately,” Peter explained. They already had bilingual speakers attending TMIY who were watching the video in English and then breaking off in small groups in Spanish. Domingo, a native Spanish speaker who leads a small group, shared that having the videos translated has definitely allowed more Spanish-speaking men to attend the program. “Some Hispanic men have become very committed and involved both in the EHET group and beyond in other parish activities.”
Photo credit: Ashleigh Kassock
“There is no other content like this available in Spanish.”
– Domingo Bautista, Small Group Leader
“At St. Mary’s we wanted to accommodate both groups but also not separate them completely,” explained Peter. The meeting begins with breakfast as an entire group, then the men split up to watch the English or the Spanish videos, have small groups, and finally come back together to close in prayer in front of the Blessed Sacrament.
“The final blessing is my favorite part,” said Domingo. “The reverence and beauty of the priest coming back with the Eucharist to give the blessing is very impactful. It is impressive to see so many men gathered and united in prayer even if we do not speak the same language.”
In speaking of the men’s experience in EHET, Domingo shared, “Men are amazed by the content and formation. EHET has not only impacted the men but also the lives of their children and families.” Domingo added, “There is no other content like this available in Spanish. There are prayer groups and other activities but no other Spanish program gives this kind of formation and speaks so clearly of the reality of living family life.”