It's no coincidence what Officer Federick Yap was praying shortly before all three calls came in.
Federick Yap was born and raised by his single mother in the Philippines, where he was baptized Catholic and attended Catholic school — but he never really considered himself very devout, nor did he have a lot of experience with praying the Rosary. But one memory from his youth has always lingered under the surface, even years later after he immigrated to the US in 1987.
And it took some 20 years for him to discover why.
Every day after school he’d go running. His route took him passed his Catholic high school, where he’d usually stop to get a drink from the water fountain. As it was usually the same time each day, he’d always see one of the nuns, Sister Sophia, walking the hallway praying the Rosary. He would say hello, they would talk a little, and he would return on his run. Not a big deal. He couldn’t say why, but he always felt “close” to Sister Sophia after witnessing that, day after day.
Fast forward to Reston, Virginia, where Yap is now a police officer for Fairfax County. One night early in his police career, Yap pulled into the lot of St. Thomas Church to park his cruiser and write up his reports — only to find himself parked in front of a faded statuette of the Blessed Virgin. He decided to offer up a simple prayer in three parts: one Our Father, one Hail Mary, one Glory Be. The habit became routine, always ending with “I love you, Lord, I love you, Mama Mary.” Eventually he began to pray the entire Rosary.