Chicago radio icon Kevin Matthews joined Chicago’s Morning Answer to announce the nationwide, one-night-only release of his documentary, “Broken Mary: A Journey of Hope,” in theaters Tuesday, October 7. The film chronicles Matthews’ improbable faith odyssey that began in 2011 when, at a low point after leaving radio and receiving a life-altering MS diagnosis, he discovered a damaged statue of the Virgin Mary near a flower shop. Hearing what he describes as a nudge from the Holy Spirit—“Buy your wife flowers”—he spotted the statue discarded by a dumpster, retrieved it despite resistance, and kept it broken as a mirror of his own condition. That moment launched a lay apostolate: a statue passed among the suffering in hospitals and hospices, a bestselling book, parish talks across the country, and a movement now known as “Our Lady of the Broken.”
Matthews recalled the 2019 candlelit procession that drew nearly 10,000 people from St. John Cantius down Chicago Avenue—an event that cemented the statue’s place in the city’s civic and spiritual life and symbolized its journey from refuse to a bed of roses. He described how the film captures the ordinary miracles that followed: families reconciled, the terminally ill consoled, police and firefighters embraced in prayer, and parishes revived by a simple invitation to the wounded to come forward. The former Loop mainstay also spoke candidly about conversion and suffering, saying his MS has become an offering for others—“use your pain for the conversion of sinners”—and emphasizing that God did not “punish” him with illness but met him in it with purpose.
The documentary weaves Matthews’ Chicago radio past with his present vocation as a self-described “shepherd dog,” guiding strays back to the fold through the humble witness of a broken statue and a second chance. Tickets and theater locations are available at BrokenMary.com, with Matthews urging longtime listeners and newcomers alike to fill theaters across Chicagoland for the October 7 showing.