This entire project grew out of faith. One of the most remarkable stories is that of the first satellite dish. Mother described a dream in which the Archangel St. Michael showed her where the dish should be placed. When the professionals arrived to survey the land, they selected a particular spot for best transmission. (Keep in mind, Mother had no training in satellite transmission). She showed them the location shown to her by St. Michael and asked them to place it there. They told her it would not work; the surrounding mountains would block the communication. Mother held her ground.
Then, just before the first satellite dish arrived, one of her sisters, Sr. Regina had a vision in which she saw a black sky, a white satellite dish, and a flame emerging from the center. She heard God say, "This is my network, and it will glorify my Son."
Two trucks carrying the unassembled 33' satellite dish rolled onto the monastery grounds in March 1981. Before they could unload the equipment, the driver told Mother he needed to collect the $600,000 down payment required by the contract. She stalled for time. She did not have the money. She retreated to the chapel and prayed. "I blew it, Lord". There was nothing left to do but send the delivery men away. As she approached the driver, one of her staff, Bill Steltemeier grabbed her and said there was a man who needed to speak with her. She said ... 'later' ... but Bill persisted. On the other end of the phone was a guy on a yacht in the Bahamas. He was having problems with his kids and one of Mother's mini books had resolved the problem. He wanted to send her a donation for $600,000! "Can you send it right now?", Mother asked.
On March 8, the satellite dish dangled from a borrowed crane. The nuns stood on the sidelines praying as each piece of the uplink was lowered into place. A photograph taken while it was being installed reproduced Sr. Regina's vision: a black sky, the white dish, and a red flame emerging from its center. Professional photographers could not account for the red flame. Mother Angelica called it a miracle.
