A STROKE survivor and La Naval devotee will read this year’s Act of Consecration to Our Lady of La Naval de Manila on its feast day on Sunday, Oct. 12, at Santo Domingo Church in Quezon City.
Jeanne Frederique Medina, a 26-year-old nurse from Pasay, will recite the solemn final prayer offered to the Blessed Virgin Mary at the end of the grand procession on Sunday.
The Act of Consecration, a prayer of devotion and gratitude by the devotees to Mary, “re-consecrates” the faithful, the city, and the country to La Naval’s maternal protection and guidance.
“I felt blessed. Privileged [to read the prayer] would not be the term na gusto kong gamitin, because it felt like a blessing,” Medina told the Varsitarian.
In February 2024, she experienced a hemorrhagic stroke after her pons, a part of the brainstem, ruptured, leaving half of her body paralyzed.
An angiogram confirmed the presence of an AVM in her brainstem, or Arteriovenous Malformation, an abnormal tangle of blood vessels.
“Each morning, we attended livestreamed Masses, the Holy Rosary, and the Office of Prayers from La Naval de Manila. At 3 p.m., we prayed the Divine Mercy Chaplet. We ended every day with another Rosary and evening prayers. These devotions became more than a routine — they were my lifeline,” she wrote in a testimonial.
She began physical, occupational, and speech therapy and was hospitalized for 33 days.
Medina said she felt broken, physically, emotionally and spiritually, but still saw hope and grace through faith and constant devotion to Mary.
She recalled that after being discharged from the hospital, she attended Mass at Sto. Domingo Church, and even in a wheelchair, offered a candle during the offertory.
“I hesitated at first, but I wanted to give thanks to the Lord and Mama Mary. That simple act was my way of saying, ‘Thank You. I’m still here,” she wrote.
She added that while undergoing the gamma knife treatment, a specialized form of noninvasive radiation therapy, she clung to the rosary, recited the Divine Mercy chaplet, and called on Mary’s intercession.
By October 2024, she had gradually stopped using a wheelchair, and by December, she was able to walk without assistance.
Earlier this year, an MRI revealed that her AVM had decreased in size, and in April, she was cleared to return to work as an emergency room nurse in a clerical capacity.
“Through it all, her [La Naval] presence never wavered. She was there in my darkest nights and in every small victory,” she added in the testimony.
“I may not be able to join the grand procession dahil sa kalagayan ko, nabigyan naman po ako ng chance na maging bahagi ng malaking selebrasyon sa pagpupuri sa Mahal na Birhen ng La Naval,” she said.
Medina added that, despite her hesitation due to difficulty speaking, she agreed to recite the prayer.
“Mahirap at masakit man po ang pinagdaanan namin, mas lalo po nitong pinalalim ang aming pananampalataya sa Panginoon at sa Birheng Maria. Naging magaan para sa amin ang pinagdaanan namin dahil ipinaubaya na po namin lahat sa Panginoon at Mahal na Ina,” she said.
The Act of Consecration begins with an address to the “Queen of the Holy Rosary, Our Lady of La Naval,” invoking themes of thanksgiving, mercy, protection and grace throughout the prayer.
