Father Wilfred, “Willy”, Raymond, C.S.C., is the President of Holy Cross Family Ministries, a worldwide family of Catholic ministries founded by Father Patrick Peyton, C.S.C., in 1942 as Family Rosary, and later in 1947 as Family Theater Productions. Holy Cross Family Ministries continues the legacy of Venerable Patrick Peyton, the “Rosary Priest” and Catholic media pioneer. Father Peyton spent all 51 years of his priesthood (1941-1992) serving the spiritual needs of families, particularly encouraging them to pray together daily, especially the Rosary.  Today, Father Raymond leads and oversees all ministries of this international organization, focused on promoting prayer life and family prayer. With 26 ministry centers in 17 countries, the organization helps families pray in the manner reflected in the founder’s famous credo, “The family that prays together stays together.”

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Father Willy was born in Old Town, Maine to Joseph and Lydia Raymond and is one of 12 children. In 1964, at the age of twenty, he entered the Congregation of Holy Cross.  After receiving a Bachelor of the Arts in Philosophy from Stonehill College and earning a Master’s in Theology from the University of Notre Dame, he made his solemn vows in 1970 and was ordained a priest in 1971.

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In 2014, Father Willy Raymond, C.S.C., answered a call to move from Family Theater Productions on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood to lead the late Father Peyton's international family of ministries central offices in Easton, Massachusetts.

Passionate about helping families pray and grow spiritually, he serves with a team of professionals pioneering innovative ways to benefit 21st century families. Guiding all Holy Cross Family Ministries' efforts is the concise statement of belief that "A world at prayer is a world at peace.”

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Building on Father Peyton's rich legacy, Holy Cross Family Ministries uses mass media, social media, and live events to accomplish its mission across five continents. Father Willy is committed to helping build ‘God’s Masterpiece: The Family,’ one home at a time. He believes that Pope Francis’ boldness in calling the family “God’s Masterpiece” he can hear strong echoes of Venerable Patrick Peyton’s own belief about the family: “The family is our most prized possession.”

Prior to his current role as President, Father Raymond was the National Director of Family Theater Productions for fourteen years. Since 2000, Father Willy led a dynamic staff that produced dramas and documentaries for broadcast on television, film and the internet; produced Spanish-language radio dramas, documentaries and public-service announcements; released 500-plus digitally re-mastered classic radio dramas from the golden age of Hollywood; managed a nationwide public-service outdoor advertising campaign with spiritual messages; and created and managed “Hollywood Prays,” a series of outreach efforts to young Catholics and others in Hollywood that included a monthly “Prayer and Pasta,” RCIA, Going Deeper and Theology of the Body. 

 

Prior to joining Family Theater Productions, Father Raymond served in the leadership of the Eastern Province of Holy Cross as Vice Provincial and later Provincial of the Eastern Province of the Congregation of Holy Cross. He supervised the lives and ministries of 120 priests and brothers, visiting each one and their ministries every year.

 

Father Raymond was also Assistant Dean of Students and later Director of Campus Ministry at Stonehill College in Easton, Mass., a Holy Cross College. In addition, he served on the Board of Trustees at King’s College and Stonehill College, and on the Board of Directors of Holy Cross Family Ministries.

 

Father Raymond received the Genesis Award for outstanding service on the Board of Trustees of Stonehill College in 2000. He also was presented with the Magis Award from the Loyola Marymount University and Religious Education Congress in Anaheim for outstanding service to the film community in Hollywood and Los Angeles.

 

In addition to his service and leadership at Holy Cross Family Ministries, Father Willy has over 30 years of volunteerism, as well as civil rights and social action experience. He has worked with various community leaders and organizations including the Brockton Interfaith Community in Massachusetts, and Catholic Detention Ministry in California, where he and other community leaders provided religious services for teens in detention centers in Malibu and downtown LA.

Father Willy has made numerous appearances on the CatholicTV Network and EWTN Live, as well as been featured in a variety of Catholic-centered magazines, livestreams, and podcasts – including interviews with Ave Maria Press, Jonathan Roumie of the series “The Chosen,” and Authority Magazine.

 

As President of Holy Cross Family Ministries, Father Willy aims to share Father Peyton’s message with the world, that “The family that prays together stays together.”

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for more information on the Holy Cross family Ministries visit their website by clicking on the icon below.