Freelance blogger and Campus Minister Patti Murphy-Dohn has become a member of the Catholic Press Association (CPA). Murphy-Dohn has been maintaining a blog on The Catholic Review for a year and a half, which has been getting noticed across the country.

“I’m very proud of my blog and my association with The Catholic Review,” Murphy-Dohn said.

The CPA recognizes writers who speak out about the Catholic faith in their writing. “You have to be legitimate and accepted to be part of it,” Murphy-Dohn said. “I’m pretty fired up.”

Murphy-Dohn is also a part of the National Catholic Education Association (NCEA), a similar organization to the CPA which recognizes educators of the Catholic faith. “So [the CPA] is for the press side of it,” Murphy-Dohn said.

Her blog has been getting national attention. Murphy-Dohn posted about the death of Holocaust survivor Leo Bretholz and was contacted by a distant relative of his in New York. The relative, Bretholz’s cousin’s daughter, emailed Murphy-Dohn a reflection of what Bretholz meant to her.

Murphy-Dohn was also contacted by a promoter for the movie Son of God. The promoter asked her to use her blog to host a contest in which the winners would receive a pair of free tickets to see the movie on the big screen. Murphy-Dohn used her Twitter account to tweet about the contest, and it was retweeted by Roma Downey, an actress in the movie.

Titan Books, the publisher of the book Noah: Ila’s Story has also been in touch with Murphy-Dohn. Titan Books sent her a copy of the book for her to read and blog about before the upcoming movie release of Noah, the movie connected with the book.

The recognition of Murphy-Dohn’s blog led to other opportunities for her. “I was invited to speak in October at the Maryland Catholic Women’s Conference,” Murphy-Dohn said. She will be giving a talk at Mount St. Mary’s University entitled “Setting the world on fire: Spiritual and practical habits for making a difference in your world.”

“It’s an honor, and it’s also humbling,” Murphy-Dohn said. “You need to deliver a message that’s important to hear.”

Lauren Glase is a News Editor for The Patriot and jcpatriot.com.