More than 100 women gathered at the Manhattan Beach Pier in Southern California for a public rosary walk this month organized by a Catholic fitness influencer, highlighting young Catholic women’s appetite for faith-based community.
According to a report from Angelus News, the Jan. 17 event, called the “Rosary Girl Walk,” was organized by Melanie Meza, a Los Angeles-area influencer who describes herself on social media as a Catholic women’s fitness coach and shares content focused on faith, fitness and daily routines. Her Instagram account has nearly 10,000 followers.
“I don’t want anyone to feel alone,” she said at the event. “I want women to feel like they have community, that they belong, and that they’re loved.”
Meza told Angelus News the idea for the walk grew out of conversations with Catholic women she connected with through social media and in person. After a day of prayer at St. Michael’s Abbey, a Norbertine monastery in Orange County, she said she recognized that a lack of community was a common concern.
Meza then posted an invitation for the walk on social media, saying she expected a small group and was surprised when more than 100 women arrived.
Participants traveled from across Los Angeles and Orange counties, some commuting more than an hour to attend, according to Angelus News. Several attendees said the gathering offered something they struggle to find at their local parishes: an active community for young adult women.
“I’ve been looking for a women’s community, especially for my age,” said Marriah Amador, 29, who traveled from Hacienda Heights. She noted that most of the women she is closest to at her church are older or married with children.
The Angelus report situated the gathering within broader demographic shifts, including Americans marrying later than previous generations. In California, the median age for women at first marriage is now in the 30s, according to U.S. Census Bureau data.
According to the Angelus report, several of the young women who attended the walk said they struggle to find a sense of community in parish life. Paloma Usquiano, a recent USC graduate who traveled to attend, said she was drawn to attend because of her search for a Catholic community.
Others said the appeal was a combination of movement, prayer, and social connection.
“I get to walk, I get to meet other people, and then I get to pray,” said Maria Jose Gomez of Downey, who attended with a friend.
Many women described the experience of praying publicly along the beach as both evangelizing and personally affirming. Some said they noticed passersby stopping to watch, take photos or make the sign of the cross as the group passed.
One attendee said she welcomed seeing social media used to connect women who pray together.
Meza noted that she hopes to organize additional walks in the future and sees the event as part of a broader effort to build an in-person community among women who often first connect online.
