Brenda Garcia, GIVEN ’21

Please share a little about yourself – feel free to include a fun fact!

My name is Brenda Garcia and I have been blessed to work as a SAG-AFTRA Stuntwoman and Actress for the past several years; I also happen to be a former award-winning journalist. I studied at Cal-State University Northridge where I graduated with a degree in Journalism and a minor in Spanish Language Journalism. I went on to work for Telemundo 52 in Los Angeles (a Spanish NBC affiliate) and while I was still a student and working professionally, I did a news story on the “Abortion Controversy” which had earned me four awards (unexpectedly). Glory to God!

Describe your professional work. How were you led to this? What are you passionate about?

Because I have always had a desire to “help people” with my life, after graduating from C-SUN, I went on to study and graduate with my Master’s degree in Counseling Psychology from Loyola Marymount University in 2015.

Since then, and having had people take interest in my career, academic background, my service to those in need, a recent reversion and my zeal for life, I have since been invited to speak at many public speaking events. This includes, conferences, award shows, schools and even speaking for seasoned leaders in the faith, such as the “Simposio Catolico Virtual” (in which I had more than 20-thousand people attend my conference in Spanish) and the Eucharistic Congress in the Diocese of Raleigh, North Carolina, in which I was also the Emcee and one of their keynote speakers.

I have since gone on to be featured in various shows, radio, podcasts, newscasts, networks such as EWTN and my most recent featured essay for Bishop Barron’s “Evangelization & Culture Journal,” for their Summer “XX” Sport Edition.

What are the personal strengths that you’ve been given and how do you utilize them?

To this day, I continue to remain passionate for souls. As a daily communicant (Daily Mass goer) my deepest desire has always been to bring the love of God everywhere I go, but of course, in a way that’s unique to me—to the way that God made me.

Some of that was revealed to me in the fruit of the silence of prayer, in which I know I’m called to live out what Pope St. John Paul II refers to as, “The Feminine Genius,” in the Hollywood grounds that God has generously placed me in.

One of my truest gifts is that I have always been an astute observer of the human condition (hence, the counseling psychology degree) in which I see our broken humanity at an incredibly deep level and desire healing and the love of Christ for all. Though this makes me much of an empath, it also happens to be my strength because it has led me to live a life of service for others in this special way.

What women inspire you, and why?

Our Blessed Mother inspires me. In her perfect obedience and humility to God, I wish to be able to imitate such precious docility and receptivity. I pray that I, as well as all who encounter me in this lifetime will somehow come to understand her great role in salvation history by her simple “Fiat” and beautiful “Magnificat” which I strive to follow daily by emulating her (at least attempt to).

Are there friends and mentors that you depend upon? How do they support you?

I have been blessed with friends and mentors who are more like a spiritual family to me. My mentors are also like spiritual guides; I depend on their abundant prayers for me to keep going strong everywhere I go and focused on my mission! My friends are amazing because sometimes they will even show up to my public speaking events (at times without prior notice) just to surprise me and send their loving and prayerful support. It’s a love that I am beyond, deeply grateful for. We pray and care for each other in ways that I know are pleasing to Our Blessed Lord.

Prayer is essential for everyone, but especially for women who are active in the life and mission of the Church. Do you have any favorite devotions or prayers?

Because I am a consecrated member of Opus Sanctorum Angelorum, some of my favorite prayers and devotions (besides Daily Mass/Adoration) include: my Guardian Angel prayer, the Liturgy of the Hours, the Angelus at 6am/12N/& 6pm, the Divine Mercy Chaplet at 3pm (St. Faustina and Pope St. JPII being some of my great heroes), the Chaplet of St. Michael the Archangel and the Most Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary (which I usually pray before going to bed).

Do you have a favorite inspirational quote?

I have a number of “favorite” quotes from so many great saints, it’s tough to narrow it down to just one; but the one that has recently been resonating deeply in my heart lately has been this one from the Liturgy of the Hours:

“May God make our work today benefit our brothers and sisters, — that with them and for them we may build an earthly city, pleasing to the Lord Our God, and may we give glory to His Most Holy Name in all that we do!”

What were your key takeaways from the GIVEN Forum?

My key takeaways from the GIVEN Forum was the importance of community! No one gets to heaven alone, and the GIVEN Forum has blessed me with a number of new friends, who are more like sisters to me, who have been prayerfully supporting my journey ever since!

What was your GIVEN action plan? Describe its mission, audience, and impact.

My Action Plan with GIVEN was to develop a community-based production &/or fellowship among Catholics in Hollywood. The mission is to create projects which specialize in narrative storytelling (rather than simply telling Catholic stories) that are based on truth, beauty and goodness. The vision is to have a network of like-minded Catholics (and Christians alike) in Hollywood come together to make such wonderful collaborative works of art that ultimately Glorifies God.

Could you tell us a bit about what motivated or led you to develop this action plan? Was this something that you had on your heart prior to this past year or was it something you developed through the GIVEN program?

It was always in my heart to have something like this done in Hollywood—it has been slowly developing and taking some time to do. But, this idea came to me when I saw the need for the soldiers of Christ to work together to put even more creative works out for the world to see. The first time I felt this inspiration was probably about two years before GIVEN.

How did you grow throughout this year as you worked with a mentor on your action plan? Were there any moments where you had doubts or felt like you had taken on too much of a challenge? If so, how did you overcome them?

With the help of my GIVEN, I was able to fine-tune my action plan and have a more clear vision of what I wanted to do. At times, I did think that there was “too much” going on with my action plan, but, having another professional (such as my mentor) be there, hear my thoughts and give me feedback has been the most helpful gift after my GIVEN Forum attendance. I will always be so grateful!

What were some of the fruits you saw from your action plan? What did you find most fulfilling in this process?

Some of the fruits from my action plan has been seeing a sense of community developing in ways that I had always hoped. Since building a community (and production partners) like this takes time, everything is still currently in development. However, it is because of organizations like GIVEN that I was able to even see the true value of a solid (Christian) community within Hollywood—because where two or more are gathered, we know Christ is among us (Matt 18:20); Amen!