In the days leading up to the start of Lent Madness 2022, we're taking a moment to highlight the amazing Celebrity Bloggers who will bring alive our 32 saintly souls. Our talented stable of writers have their laptops at the ready and are amped up for an exciting battle for the Golden Halo.

The only thing we ask is that when you run into them in the grocery store or in church, please respect their privacy. It's hard to believe, but they're human beings just like the rest of us. When you meet them in public, you may notice they're wearing masks -- this is mostly to hide from the seasonal adulation.

This exercise is intended merely to humanize these paragons of the penitential. We've asked for three items: a photo that shows them doing something they love; a brief answer to the question, "What most excites you about Lent Madness 2022?"; and whether there's anything they'd like to promote? (broadly defined).

To read their full bios, click here.

Here's Anna Fitch Courie with one of her therapy dogs for first responders.

What most excites you about Lent Madness 2022? I am most excited about winning Lent Madness for the third time and finally becoming a Celebrity, Celebrity Blogger. I plan to celebrate wth pizza and champagne.

Anything you'd like to promote? I’d like to promote mental wellness: My current ministry surrounds mental health and wellness with public safety. It's been an incredibly difficult series of seasons for so many different people for so many different reasons. If you are struggling, reach out and get help. Your life matters and you are here for a reason.

While Emily McFarlan Miller would normally share a picture of her curling (she's kind of obsessed, even in non-Olympic years), she had to take a break from the sport to have a baby. Here she is with Asher George Miller, born in December.

What most excites you about Lent Madness 2022? This year, I'm particularly excited about my saints: St. Kateri Tekakwitha, who is one of my favorite saints, and St. Cecilia, who was one of my late grandmother's favorites. And I'm always excited to read the comments, which is the only time that is true.

Anything you'd like to promote? Emily covers mainline Protestant Christianity and alternative faiths for Religion News Service. You can read more about her work here.

Here's Megan Castellan conversing with a cat at the Dead Sea. This photo captures several of Megan's favorite things: cats, Israel/Palestine, and constructing Imaginary narratives wherein domestic animals are all devout revolutionaries.

What most excites you about Lent Madness 2022? I am most excited about Lydia of the Purple Snail Squish, part 2. What more can we glean from snails? SO MUCH. I already have learned more than I knew last time.

Neva Rae Fox loves ice cream. But, with heroic self-restraint, she refrains from eating it every Lent.  So, here she is unabashedly digging in, enjoying ice cream daily, in the run up to to Ash Wednesday.

What most excites you about Lent Madness 2022? I thoroughly enjoy the interactions, discussions, and participation of so many people from so many locales. I get charged up learning about the saints - their lives, tidbits, and little-known facts. Lent Madness is an avenue for a unique way to observe a penitential season. And for 2022, it's a pleasant pastime and relief from the day-to-day headlines that besiege us.

Anything you'd like to promote? While we go through our daily toil, our daily work, our daily prayers, remember to care for yourself - pause, breathe, refresh. It's not an easy world out there, and our own inner strength will help face each day, each challenge, each step.

One thing freshly minted Celebrity Blogger Eva Suarez loves doing is wearing her fluffy coat!

What most excites you about Lent Madness 2022? I’m new to the highs and lows of celebrity blogging, so I’m excited to root for my underdog saints as they battle it out for the Golden Halo. But in all seriousness, even though I had never even heard of the saints I was assigned to write about, I ended up fascinated by their lives and inspired by their faith. So I’m most excited to learn more about every saint in the bracket, and see how their witness to the Gospel deepens my own Lenten journey.

Anything you'd like to promote? The only thing I ever have to promote is Jesus!

Shockingly, Laurie Brock is with a horse. And, yes, that's Nina, The Official Horse of Lent Madness.

What most excites you about Lent Madness 2022? Tim and Scott have done a great job of finding lesser known saints, so I’m really excited about learning  the quirky, odd, loving, and holy ways saints of our church have glorified God.

Anything you'd like to promote? I’m really excited that my new book, Grace, God, and Horses: Life Lessons from the Saddle is available to order from Amazon, directly from Paraclete Press, or from your local bookstore. It’s been over two years since I’ve gotten to speak to people in person about the holy wisdom horses share with us, so I’m looking forward to these opportunities.