By Jason Seton Lanham
(50 for 50 series) The Lanham family has been richly blessed through the intercession of Mother Seton. Our story begins around the time of her canonization in 1975. At that time, my parents, Helen and Richard Lanham, were in their 40s. Though they had been blessed with two sons, ages 13 and 14, they had been unable to conceive any more children.
Someone suggested to my parents that they ask Mother Seton to intercede with God on their behalf. In September 1975, Helen and Richard traveled to Emmitsburg and prayed before her tomb. They asked for another child and promised that, if blessed with one, they would bring that child to the Seton Shrine every year until their 18th birthday.
That fall, my mother became pregnant. In their joy, my parents planned to name the baby Elizabeth Ann, believing it would be a girl. Their parish priest, however, asked, “But what if it’s a boy?” On July 2, 1976, my mother went into labor and, due to complications, required an emergency C-section. Again, they prayed to Mother Seton, and a healthy baby boy was delivered. My parents named me Jason Seton Lanham. True to their promise, we journeyed annually to Emmitsburg to give thanks to God for Mother Seton’s intercession.
(I was even present at the 25th anniversary celebration of Mother Seton’s canonization. I was the only boy processing in with the many girls named after her.)
At age 21, I proposed to my wife, Irene, in the small chapel in the cemetery. Incredibly—and entirely unplanned—as we stepped outside, the noon church bells began to ring throughout the valley surrounding the shrine.
But Mother Seton’s loving care for our family did not end there.
My eldest brother, Rick, and his wife, Lee, also struggled with infertility. They, too, visited Emmitsburg to seek Mother Seton’s intercession. They were subsequently blessed with two children.
In 2004, Irene and I were expecting our first child—a girl—when she developed bleeding late in the pregnancy. She was diagnosed with complete placenta previa and was told she would need to remain in the hospital for the remainder of the pregnancy. Once again, we turned to Mother Seton in prayer. The very next day, during an ultrasound to monitor the previa, the doctors discovered a previously undiagnosed and severe congenital heart defect—something missed on earlier scans. Thanks to this discovery, and we believe through Mother Seton’s intercession, the doctors were able to safely deliver our daughter via C-section. We named her Kathryn Elizabeth Lanham, in honor of Mother Seton.
Kathryn would go on to have two open-heart surgeries—one at five months old, and another at ten years old. Throughout those times, we continued to ask Mother Seton to protect her. It was during that second surgery that we most deeply felt her intercession. Immediately after the procedure, Kathryn began to bleed uncontrollably and had to be rushed back into surgery. She was unstable, and Irene and I begged Mother Seton for help. Our parish priest came to the PICU and anointed Kathryn Elizabeth as we prayed. Shortly afterward, Kathryn woke up, and over the following days, steadily improved.
There are many other small but meaningful ways Mother Seton has continued to protect and guide our family. Today, I serve as a deacon in the Diocese of Savannah, and Irene and I have just celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary. We are blessed with seven children.
I feel a closeness to Mother Seton as she too was a spouse, a parent and a religious.
50 for 50 is a series of stories, quotes, clips, photos, and/or devotional statements from ordinary people to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the canonization of Elizabeth Ann Seton as the first native-born American saint.