PENNSYLVANIA
Washington Post

Story by Karen Heller

WILLOW GROVE, PA.

A statue of the Virgin Mary, bordered by mums, graces the verdant lawn of the McIlmail residence. In the driveway and on the suburban street are three Chevy Impalas, one of them formerly owned by the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, long the family’s spiritual home and refuge.

The split-level is crowded with crosses, over doors and beds, and a swarm of butterflies adorns everything from shower curtains to a changing table. These are symbols of the McIlmails’ abiding faith, the cross from their decades as cradle-to-grave Catholics, the butterfly an emblem of comfort adopted in the wake of catastrophic loss.

Each night, Debbie, 59, a former hospital administrator whose employers included Catholic-run medical centers, spends 40 minutes reciting her prayers from a worn folder of cards. There is always a prayer for Sean, her middle child, who had a tattoo…