Podcast Summary: Called (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)

Episode: "Called to Care for the Vulnerable"

Date: January 9, 2026
Host: Fr. Mike Schmitz
Guest: Elizabeth Marcolini (Catholic leader, speaker, co-author of Bella’s Gift and the Pocket Guide to the Works of Mercy)

Overview

This episode explores the Christian call to care for the vulnerable, particularly those with special needs, and the redemptive power of love in service. Fr. Mike Schmitz is joined by Elizabeth Marcolini, whose family journey with her sister Bella (born with trisomy 18) and her adopted daughter Zelie (special needs) illuminates themes of suffering, trust, and the everyday invitation to mercy. The conversation moves from deeply personal stories to practical suggestions for living out works of mercy, underlining that true charity involves presence, receptivity, and surrender—not self-sufficiency.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Family That Formed a Witness

• Elizabeth’s Background ([03:07])
  • Oldest of seven, grew up in a highly public political family.
  • Sister Bella was born with trisomy 18, "incompatible with life" according to doctors, yet is now 17 years old.
  • Personal experience with infertility, fostering, adoption, and eventually a miraculous natural pregnancy.
  • CEO by day, mother and advocate by vocation.

The Impact of Bella’s Life ([06:56])

• Value of Every Human Life

  • Bella’s prognosis was dire, but family’s fight for her care revealed the failings and hopes in the broader medical and social system.
  • Bella has taught the family deeper meaning of love and sacrifice, refocusing daily life and priorities.
  • "You step out of yourself. And…I think this is a true reflection of all special needs children. And the blessing they are is you step out of yourself." [08:37, Elizabeth]

• Faith Tested & Strengthened

  • Suffering and crisis did bring temptation toward doubt, but was met primarily with surrender:
    • “Lord, I don't have to know what you're doing, but I know who you are.” [10:35, Elizabeth]
    • She was able to process her grief and anger openly, both within prayer and her family.

• Family’s Shared Journey

  • Grief within the family manifested differently; counseling and open discussion helped.
  • Bella was never seen as a burden: "It wasn't a burden, it was a gift." [16:05, Elizabeth]

On Suffering, Dignity, and Love ([16:56])

• Countering a Culture of Convenience

  • Discussion of assisted suicide/euthanasia.
  • False mercy is often mere convenience:
    • "That's not...the merciful thing. That's the convenient thing." [19:05, Fr. Mike]
  • "Love always involves sacrifice. It has to. Because if it doesn't, then it's convenience, it's not love." [20:25, Fr. Mike]

• Seeing the Face of God in the Vulnerable

  • Bella is a model of total dependence and receptivity; a living saint whose presence teaches others just by existing.
  • Elizabeth describes how her own son sees Bella not as limited but as a beloved celebrity figure:
    • "The only boundary we know is love, that kind of just freedom..." [24:47, Elizabeth]

Adoption & God’s Miraculous Timing ([25:48])

• Zelie’s Story – Providence in Action
  • Adoption journey began through a sequence of unlikely connections and years of prayer.
  • The birth mother had received Elizabeth’s book, “Bella’s Gift,” and prayed her child would be loved like Bella.
  • Zellie’s diagnosis mirrored Bella’s (but different: partial deletion vs. extra chromosome).
  • "We met in person... and she asked us to be her parents." [02:02 & 28:22, Elizabeth]
  • Adoption supported by the Gabriel Project after a providential “accidental” phone call from a broken phone.

The Role of Faith and Practical Mercy ([35:19])

• ** seeing Dignity Without Faith**

  • You don’t have to be a person of faith to value people with special needs.
  • But faith radically illuminates care:
    • "When I was caring for her, I was caring for Jesus." [35:51, Elizabeth]

• Parenting the Dependent

  • Asked about parents’ fear of perpetual dependence:
    • "Your joys as a parent and your fears will be none of what you thought they would be." [40:24, Elizabeth]
    • Infuses encouragement: "Your child is loved, your child is wanted, your child has a purpose." [41:10, Elizabeth]

Practical Ways to Live Mercy ([46:14])

• From Etiquette to Works of Mercy

  • The Pocket Guide to Works of Mercy began as an etiquette project but became a practical call to charity in action.
  • “Take something you’re doing already and...don’t overthink it.” [48:06, Elizabeth]
  • Examples: Bring extra dinner to an overwhelmed family, fill a friend’s gas tank without being asked, show up for a lonely parent.

• Don’t Overcomplicate: Just Do the Thing ([49:32])

  • Over-analysis leads to missed opportunities.
  • Fr. Mike: "Sometimes, just act now. Could be—gosh, that's so important." [55:08]

• The Freedom to Make Room

  • The biggest impediment to mercy is a life with no margin—too busy to notice or respond:
    • "We're our call in this book is make room...to live [the works of mercy], to want to practice them, but then to give room in your life." [54:18, Elizabeth]

On Generosity and Saying Yes ([56:12])

• Where to Start?

  • "Be generous with the Lord because He can't be outdone. Whatever you feel he's calling you to do, do it." [56:12, Elizabeth]
  • Many of the best things in life begin with fear but require a small, trusting yes.

• Difference Between Detachment and Surrender

  • "Detachment is like this...Surrender is have an empty palm that wants to be filled." [58:30, Elizabeth]
  • Fr. Mike: "I'm willing to say yes to whatever you want me to say yes to." [59:19]

Memorable Quotes (with Timestamps)

• "You don't have to be sufficient. Jesus never once calls us to sufficiency. He calls us to surrender."

  • Elizabeth Marcolini [00:52, 37:35]

• "Love always involves sacrifice. It has to. Because if it doesn't, then it's convenience, it's not love."

  • Fr. Mike Schmitz [20:25]

• "If God is love and we're made in God's image and likeness, then we're made for love."

  • Fr. Mike Schmitz [24:47]

• "Your child is loved, your child is wanted, your child has a purpose."

  • Elizabeth Marcolini [41:10]

• "Just do the thing."

  • Elizabeth & Fr. Mike [49:32]

• "Be generous with the Lord because He can't be outdone."

  • Elizabeth Marcolini [56:12]

• "Surrender is having an empty palm that wants to be filled."

  • Elizabeth Marcolini [58:30]

Timestamps for Important Segments

• Elizabeth’s background & introduction: [03:07–06:35]
• Life with Bella / Impact of her diagnosis: [06:56–12:17]
• Processing suffering, faith in hardship: [12:17–15:26]
• Grief, hope, loss, and family unity: [15:26–16:09]
• Value of life vs. convenience culture: [16:56–22:05]
• Living examples of dependence and sanctity: [22:05–25:48]
• The story of adopting Zelie: [25:48–29:48]
• Providence and support networks (Gabriel Project): [30:47–33:49]
• Seeing Christ in the vulnerable / communal impact: [35:19–41:10]
• Practical works of mercy—serving in daily life: [46:14–54:18]
• Final encouragement—starting with generosity: [56:12–59:35]

Tone and Language

• Warm, candid, spirit-filled; deeply personal while practical.
• Honest about the pain and sacrifice, but suffused with hope, encouragement, and gratitude.
• Emphasis is not on heroic self-sufficiency, but humble trust, presence, and love.

For Listeners

• Anyone discerning how to serve others—especially the vulnerable—will find this episode encouraging and concrete.
• The message: Ordinary acts of mercy, done with love, are the path to holiness.
• Whether adopting, fostering, or simply noticing and responding to need, there is a role for everyone.
• Takeaway: Don't wait until you're sufficient or certain. "Do the thing," surrender the results, and God will do more than you can imagine.

"The Gospel is more than words. The Gospel is a way of life. When we serve the least of these, we serve Him."
– Fr. Mike Schmitz [Ending]