2023 came with an abundance of graces and a whole lot of fun at the Our Lady, Patroness of America Center! We want to take a moment to share all the great blessings and highlight some events that made 2023 one for the books!
One of the greatest joys of our mission is welcoming our pilgrims. This year we welcomed more pilgrims than ever! We love to see generations and people from all different states and countries receiving the devotion of Our Lady of America. We expanded our outreach this year: welcoming school children on field trips, hosting some religious sisters, hosting parishes in the diocese, hosting retreats like the Flame of Love Conference and the Divine Will Conference, and having our first exhibit table at the Investiture for the Knights of Holy Sepulchre (read more about that here). We also had the joy of hosting some larger events which you can read about below!
The highlight of the year was when Bishop Kevin Rhoades returned to dedicate the Altar of Sacrifice, which was damaged just before the 2022 blessing and renaming of the chapel.
You can read more about the day and watch the livestream here.
As the Church continues its Eucharistic Revival focusing on parish revival in 2023, we were blessed to host Saint Gaspar parish for their Corpus Christi procession. Parishioners walked a little over half a mile from Saint Gaspar to the Oratory of the Holy Family following the Blessed Sacrament carried by their pastor and our chaplain, Father Louis Fowoyo.
We continued hosting our First Saturday Masses every month, and added a Friday night rosary this year as well. Every Friday night, pilgrims gather to pray all twenty mysteries of the Holy Rosary. We also added First Friday devotions during the warmer months this year including a few Masses. The First Friday and First Saturday devotions are a vital part of our life here at the center.
In September, we held our Second Annual Walking Pilgrimage to honor the 67th anniversary of the start of the devotion to Our Lady, the Immaculate Virgin, Patroness of America. This is quickly becoming an annual favorite amongst pilgrims. You can read more about our beautiful day together here.
In September, we held our Second Annual Walking Pilgrimage to honor the 67th anniversary of the start of the devotion to Our Lady, the Immaculate Virgin, Patroness of America. This is quickly becoming an annual favorite amongst pilgrims. You can read more about our beautiful day together here.
Many renovation projects have been underway in 2023, with many more still to come. For 2024 we are looking to complete projects like restoring the nun’s chapel and the Bishop’s suite, finishing the new vesting room and the attached bathroom, making the former vesting room into a Eucharistic chapel, and adding HVAC to the rooms that have been restored this year.
We also have begun the early stages of design for the sanctuary wall, thanks to the guidance of Bishop Rhoades. A long term goal is also to add a convocation center to host larger events and free the Oratory for prayer and Sacraments.
We have had a glorious Advent and Christmas season at the Oratory. At the end of November, we hosted an open house as part of Lakeside Holidays in Rome City. It was amazing to hear people share their own memories and stories of our campus. We welcomed many pilgrims who had never been before or hadn’t seen all the many renovations!
At the beginning of December, we hosted Lessons and Carols to prepare our hearts for the Advent and Christmas seasons. Lessons and Carols is a great tradition of walking through salvation history via Scripture and song. Our choir did a stunning job!
And so concluded another incredibly grace-filled and fruitful year at Our Lady, Patroness of America Center! We wait with expectant hope for the coming of our Savior, and for more of His goodness and blessings in 2024.