Katie and Matthew Raad are members of St. Philip Neri Church in Fort Mill. They have given this witness throughout their nine years of marriage — in sickness (endometriosis, cancer, NICU/ICU visits) and in health.

The couple first met at a Catholic high school retreat that combined youth from St. Anne Church in Rock Hill, where Matt attended, and St. Philip Neri, Katie’s parish. They were part of the same small group and, providentially, a year later they each volunteered with HomeWorks, a nonprofit that provides repair services to low-income homeowners. Katie and Matt ended up at the same work site. They began dating after that and remained together even though they went to different colleges. They were married soon after both graduated.

Katie was diagnosed with Stage 4 endometriosis, so they decided to try to begin a family immediately as the likelihood of pregnancy with this diagnosis decreases with age. Katie and Matt were blessed in those first years with two girls, Anna Rose (now 6) and Madelyn (now 3). Matt started school to become a nurse practitioner while working full time; their days were joyful and full.

When their younger daughter was 8 months old and Matt was three weeks into nursing school, Matt got very sick. He sought medical care due to the intense pain and, after a CT scan, his doctors determined that he would need immediate surgery to remove tumors, his appendix, sections of his colon and several lymph nodes. Doctors diagnosed Matt with Burkitt lymphoma, a very rare and aggressive, but treatable, cancer.

“During that time, I had a very deep knowledge that God was going to get us through it,” Katie said. “We saw God’s hand in many of the events that led up to the diagnosis and treatment.”

Matt went to church to receive an anointing of the sick after surgery. There were still so many unknowns. But thanks to early intervention and the surgical team’s decisions, Matt only required three rounds of chemotherapy. Each round was difficult and required a five-day hospital stay.

After one of his treatments, Matt went to adoration. He realized that the red, blue and white colors of the chemo infusions resembled the rays coming from the heart of Christ in the Divine Mercy image in the chapel. He said seeing this connection helped him never to feel alone and that the Lord was by his side.

“I learned there are two choices to suffering. You can let it hurt you and bring you down, or you can let it sharpen you and let you grow stronger,” Matt said.

When they received the news that chemotherapy was successful, the couple also learned of its negative effects on his fertility. They had hoped to have more children, but it would be highly unlikely that the Raads would be able to naturally conceive again. Matt underwent fertility tests that confirmed the diagnosis.

Katie said the day they received this information was the very day something incredible happened. Matt had begun practitioner school again after being away for a year. And, after the difficult news, they decided to “throw caution to the wind.” Four weeks later, she began to feel some familiar symptoms and took a pregnancy test with an old kit that she had. It immediately indicated that she was pregnant. Katie and Matt would confirm the results with another test.

They’d conceived triplets.

“I had an adrenaline rush. I was relieved that I could get pregnant, yet I was a little nervous but so excited. We had just hit the one-year mark of remission,” Katie said. Five weeks into her pregnancy, she experienced severe pain and went to the doctor. The words of the attending physician did not help: “You might have triplets, but for your sake, I hope not.”

She did not receive any encouragement and was led to doubt the viability of her pregnancy. Once a radiologist reviewed the scan to confirm they had triplets, she was required to see a maternal-fetal medicine specialist at around 10 weeks. Fortunately, Katie had researched online that it was standard practice for maternal-fetal medicine to explain all the risks of carrying multiples and to recommend “reduction” — aborting one or two of the triplets.

“I’m glad I was prepared for the appointment because it prevented me from thinking something was wrong with one of the babies,” Katie said. She never considered abortion and did not understand why the specialist did not give more complete Information.

At 35 weeks, she gave birth to Gideon, Charles and Lucy on Dec. 21, 2023. The babies were healthy but required a NICU stay for two weeks. Unfortunately, by February, the family caught influenza, and the infants were admitted to the hospital. Each child was placed in a separate room, so Katie and Matt had to rotate to all three. Matt was still in school at this point and even took an exam from a hospital room.

Then in March, his third trip to the hospital, Gideon had serious respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). He was getting worse by the day. Matt called Deacon Steve Rhodes, who serves at St. Philip Neri.

“When I arrived at the hospital room and saw the limp little body, I remember thinking, ‘Lord, we need a miracle.’ We prayed the rosary with the rosaries I had brought them,” Deacon Steve said.

The deacon gave Gideon a blessing and asked the Raads if they would like the baby to be baptized right away. Katie’s answer was immediate.

“No. He is going to pull through this and be baptized in two weeks with his sister and brother,” she said.

Deacon Steve returned the next day.

“When I walked into the room, it was a completely different scene. Gideon was moving and making noise. He was on his back while the doctor was taking his vital signs. When I said hello to Katie, Gideon turned his head to the side, and he just looked straight at me … I almost lost it,” he said.

“We always had hope and faith in God’s plan. We believe the triplets were a gift from God because during these difficult times we were never angry with God. It would have been normal or understandable, yet we remained hopeful and our faith grew,” Katie said.

She said that all these events were a wakeup call to give more attention to her faith.

“Don’t let your busy-ness prevent you from praying and doing more with your children and family. Don’t wait for a Bible study or for something that is convenient. Learn about the faith on your own, incorporate daily study and pray the rosary,” she said.

Matt reflected on how much he has grown in his faith, and especially in his prayer life, he said. Katie said we must “welcome the Lord into each day and in every moment of the day.”

The Raad family is a beautiful example of the words of St. Frances de Sales: “The same everlasting Father who cares for you today will care for you tomorrow and every day.”