As the final countdown begins for the 2023 #weGiveCatholic campaign, the Sisters of the Most Holy Trinity are hoping this year’s event will help them raise the needed funds to replace the steps at Our Lady of Lourdes National Shrine in Euclid. The sisters have operated the nearly century-old shrine on the grounds of a former orchard and farm since 1952.
#weGiveCatholic is Northeast Ohio’s online day of Catholic giving. It supports more than 230 Catholic organizations throughout the eight-county Diocese of Cleveland. Its purpose is to raise awareness and to inspire the Catholic community to generosity in support of Catholic parishes, schools, Catholic Charities sites/programs and Catholic nonprofits throughout the diocese. The Catholic Community Foundation provides support for the campaign but each participating organization runs its own campaign.
Among this year’s participants is Our Lady of Lourdes Shrine.
Sister Phyllis Ann Lavelle, OSST provincial superior, said the outdoor Mass season at the shrine is over, but many people still stop by to pray, visit the grotto, light outdoor candles and to walk the beautiful, spacious grounds.
In the sisters’ WGC campaign materials, they wrote the following:
“In 2023, a few weeks before Thanksgiving, Santa came to Our Lady of Lourdes Shrine to thank the Lord for all his gifts. On his way to light his candles at the grotto, he noticed that the steps leading to the candle house were in bad shape. Santa sighed, looked at the Blessed Mother and said, ‘Mama, next year at this time, the steps and the surrounding area will be fixed. I promise.’”
Sister Lavelle said they are hoping the campaign will raise $72,000 for the project. She described the steps as looking like a set of bad teeth.
“If you look up toward the candle house, you can see the missing and crooked stones,” she said. The steps have become such a trip hazard that the sisters put caution tape and orange cones around the area to prevent visitors from tripping and falling. The candle house is accessible by walking closer to the grotto. Funds from WGC will help to ensure the integrity of the steps and the surrounding area, Sister Lavelle said.
The sisters had to regroup this year because Sister Mary Donald Guertal, whom Sister Lavelle described as “the driving force of our #weGiveCatholic campaign,” died recently.
“As a Trinitarian community member, when we die, the rest of the members continue our legacy of good work,” she said. “#weGiveCatholic was very close to Sister Donald’s heart. We need your support to help us fulfill her dreams for our shrine and community,” Sister Lavelle added.
In addition to the steps project, Sister Lavelle said WGC would help continue needed work on plumbing in the convent, which was built in 1964.
“Any amount you contribute will make a huge impact on our mission here at the shrine. The shrine is approaching 100 years old and like any mature lady, some repairs and replacements are always required,” Sister Lavelle said. She and her fellow sisters are asking the faithful to “join us in making the shrine a prayerful and safe oasis for all pilgrims for years to come and to make our convent (living spaces) more functional.”
She invites everyone to stop at the shrine for Mass, prayer or just to visit and pray with the Blessed Mother. “Come and place your needs at her feet and she will present them to her Son. Come and spend some quiet time with her. Come and receive the peace that the world cannot give. Come and give thanks for all that God has done in your life,” she added.
Sister Lavelle said she and her community are grateful for the support they receive. Their WGC campaign – thanks to a generous benefactor – has a $1,200 matching donation. She said the first $1,200 donated to the shrine’s WGC campaign this year would be matched by the donor. Early donations can be made prior to the daylong Nov. 28 event.
The shrine, which opened May 30, 1926, is a replica of the grotto in Lourdes, France where St. Bernadette Soubirous saw the Blessed Mother in a series of visions in 1858. Two stones taken from the stone upon which Our Lady appeared in Lourdes are incorporated into the grotto and water from the grotto flows freely over one of the relics.
The sisters said hundreds of spiritual and temporal favors have been granted or reported by those who visited and prayed at the shrine. For more information on the shrine, click here.
In addition to Our Lady of Lourdes Shrine, more than 230 other entities are participating in WGC this year. Many are raising funds for special projects while others are seeking ongoing support for scholarships, upkeep and other needs.
Learn more about #weGiveCatholic here.