BRAINTREE -- When Maureen Heil heard the news that Venerable Archbishop Fulton Sheen would be beatified, she jumped out of her seat and yelled, "Yes!"

"Literally that's what I did," said Heil, director of programs and development for the Pontifical Mission Societies of Boston. "I've been waiting for this news for six years."

The Diocese of Peoria, Illinois, announced on Feb. 9 that Archbishop Sheen, who brought Catholicism into millions of homes with his smash-hit '50s television show "Life is Worth Living," will be beatified. His beatification was supposed to take place in 2019, but the ceremony was put on hold for investigations into his assignments of priests who were later accused of sexual abuse. According to the Diocese of Peoria, the archbishop was not found guilty of any wrongdoing, and the Vatican has approved the beatification. Along with his books and television appearances, Archbishop Sheen was the national director of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith from 1950 to 1966.

"For me personally, Fulton Sheen is someone who has inspired me greatly in this ministry," Heil said.

Heil said that when she was a little girl, she would watch "Life is Worth Living" with her mother. She thought his name was Shush Fulton Sheen, because his mother would always say "Shush, Fulton Sheen" when he came on TV. She has read his books and watched his shows. When she spoke to The Pilot on Feb. 10, she was wearing Archbishop Sheen-themed socks from Sock Religious, a Catholic novelty apparel company. Heil said that his powerful preaching inspired people of all ages and backgrounds, including her.

"If I can be a 10th, a little bit, of who he was as an inspiration to people, to help support the missions, I feel that I will have done well in this world," she said.

"Life is Worth Living" made Archbishop Sheen a household name at a time when many in the U.S. viewed Catholics with suspicion or even contempt. Often referred to as "the first televangelist," he won an Emmy and competed with celebrities like Milton Berle and Frank Sinatra in the ratings.

On her purse, Heil has a tiny figurine of Archbishop Sheen holding his Emmy.

"There's something about him when you watch him," Heil said, adding: "Even when watching him on TV, the intensity, the look on his face and his eyes when he speaks draws you so deeply that, you know, here is a man of deep conviction. Here is a man of incredible faith, and you want to know more about what he's saying."

As director of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith, Archbishop Sheen raised $200 million for the Catholic Church's missionary efforts. He gave $10 million of his personal earnings from his radio and TV appearances to support the missions. He also established the World Mission Rosary. Each decade on the rosary is a different color, representing a different part of the world that the Church has spread to. Cardinal Richard Cushing, a close friend of Archbishop Sheen, invited him to be the keynote speaker at the World Mission Exhibit held at the Boston Garden in April 1953. Bishops and religious orders from around the world came to the exhibition to educate the public about their work.

"That was a really important way of promoting a missionary vocation, which is really the duty of every local bishop," Heil said.

Twenty years later, Archbishop Sheen returned to Boston and presided over an ecumenical service at the John Hynes Auditorium, where he reflected on Christ's last words on the cross.

"He did the whole thing on his knees," Heil said.

She has a signed copy of the program from that day's service and an autographed photo of him, both from the estate of Msgr. Andrew Connell. She hopes that Archbishop Sheen will be canonized in her lifetime, meaning that the photo and program will become second-class relics. She also hopes that when she dies, she will "meet him on the other side" and that he will be proud of her work with the missions.

"I hope that more people can come to know him and be inspired by him," she said.