History of the Statue

In 1982 a Charles Parks' statue of Our Lady of Peace was commissioned by Father John J. Sweeney, pastor of the Our Lady of Peace Parish in Santa Clara, California. Mr. Parks' studio is located in Wilmington, Delaware, and because of the tremendous interest in the Madonna, the statue was displayed in Rodney Square which is located in center city Wilmington before it was moved to a permanent site in California. Thousands of people from up and down the East Coast came to view this awesome statue of Mary and were saddened when She left the Wilmington area.

Then in 1998, a man from Chicago commissioned Charles Parks to build another breathtaking statue of Our Lady of the Millennium. This time the Madonna was again temporarily exhibited on the newly developed Riverfront in Wilmington where throngs of people viewed Her before She was taken to Her permanent site in Chicago.

The desire to have a sculpture of Our Lady by Charles C. Parks grew in the hearts of many people who viewed the statue in Rodney Square and the Riverfront and culminated into an organized commitment to have a "Mary of our own" in Delaware.

In the Fall of 1999, several people met to discuss a Parks' statue of Our Lady for Delaware. The decision to have a statue was an easy one, and spiritual guidance was sought from Mary the Mother of God for direction to make this statue a reality.

Since Father Sweeney was successful in his efforts through the power of prayer, the committee decided to follow his example and use "Rosary Checks". These "Rosary Checks" were used to record the number of rosaries that an individual prayed and were dedicated for the intention of building a statue of Our Lady. The goal was for 500,000 prayed for the intention of the statue before any fund raising began.  Not only did the number of rosaries prayed exceed the 500,000, but unsolicited donations came in before any formal fund raising began.

The next step was to meet with Charles Parks and to discuss the details of his creating another statue of the Blessed Mother. At that time, the cost to build the statue was $450,000.  However, the face of the statue was changed and is fashioned after the face Our Lady of Medjugorje.   This change cost an additional $50,000.00.

The Committee for Our Lady's Statue then met with Bishop Salterelli of the Diocese of Wilmington and received his blessing to go forward with their efforts in May of 2000.   

Members of the Marian Groups and The Blue Army, organizations dedicated to honoring the Mother of God, were contacted and asked to act as coordinators for their parishes. They helped distribute the "Rosary Checks" and communicate the project throughout their parishes.  

Bishop Salterelli recorded the recitation of the rosary for CDs and tapes, and he donated the proceeds from the sale of these CDs and tapes toward the statue of Our Lady.  The marketing and sale of these items was handled by the Knights of Columbus.

Father Thomas Flowers was appointed the spiritual adviser for the committee.

The Knights of Columbus are committed to this project.  Many individuals volunteered their help in getting out the information on the "Rosary Checks" and fund raising for the Statue of Our Lady.  

Children and some entire classes in parochial schools prayed the rosary and dedicated their prayers for the intention of the statue. 

The statue of Our Lady Queen of Peace is finished; however contributions are still needed for site improvements and maintenance of the statue.  Contributions can be sent to Our Lady's Statue, P.O. Box 2849, Wilmington, DE 19805-0849.  These donations are tax deductible.

The generosity of people for the statue is unbelievable! Many individuals have volunteered their time, services and expertise to make it happen. Through this love and devotion to Mary, this shrine to honor Mary has become a reality.