Encountering Mother Teresa

Linda Schaefer began her career as a journalist for CNN in 1985 but found she couldn't abandon her first love -- photography. She met and photographed Mother Teresa for the first time on June 15, 1995, while on freelance assignment for The Georgia Bulletin, the newspaper for the Archdiocese of Atlanta.

Less than two months later, Linda found herself in Calcutta, where she had the rare opportunity to document the work of Mother Teresa and the Missionaries of Charity. Linda took thousands of photographs, and through this experience she began to feel that this work might be her calling in life.

Linda attended both the beatification and the canonization of Mother Teresa, and she has returned to Calcutta twice in her quest to learn as much as possible about the saint and the work of the Missionaries of Charity. Through these experiences, Linda met and interviewed six of Mother Teresa’s closest friends, confidants and coworkers in the vineyard of Christ.  These interviews laid the groundwork for her newest book, "Encountering Mother Teresa."

Linda's first book, "Come and See: A Photojournalist's Journey into the World of Mother Teresa," was published at the time of Mother Teresa's beatification on Oct. 19, 2003. She appeared live on CNN, BBC and Sky News. It was also the moment that she was inspired to convert to the Catholic faith.

Since that time she has authored two more books, "Prophetess of our Time" and her latest, "Encountering Mother Teresa," which is set for release in October 2019. This most recent book contains more than 200 rare and never-before-seen photos of Mother Teresa and the Missionaries of Charity.

The Oklahoma resident is coming to Medina to visit friends and promote her book. She will share her presentation three times: 

• Wednesday, Oct. 9, at 7 p.m.  -- St. Paul's Episcopal Church, 217 E. Liberty St., Medina
• Thursday, Oct. 10, at 7 p.m. -- Guardian Angels Catholic Parish, 1686 S. Cleveland-Massillon Road, Copley
• Friday, Oct. 11, at 7 p.m. -- St. Francis Xavier Catholic Parish, 606 E. Washington St., Medina

 All presentations are free and open to the public.