Jan. 4, 2026 | Carrying grace Into the new year

As a new year dawns, Rita Buettner sits down with award-winning Catholic author and columnist Laura Kelly Fanucci for a thoughtful conversation about faith, reflection, grief and hope in times of transition. Fanucci reflects on how moments such as the turn of a calendar year invite us to pause, take stock and ask where God has been present in our lives — and where God may be calling us next.

Laura shares how practices such as choosing a “word of the year,” memorizing Scripture and naming both joy and sorrow can shape spiritual growth. She offers moving insights on gratitude, mortality and the grace found in everyday family life. She also reflects on how her twin daughters, who died shortly after birth, remain a living presence in her family through prayer and the communion of saints.