The statue of Mary marks the entrance to the Our Lady of Lourdes Shrine. (Facebook)

By Nigel Maxwell

Vandalism

Vandals target religious statue

Jan 23, 2024 | 5:13 PM

The treasurer of the board that looks after the Our Lady of Lourdes Shrine near Duck Lake, says she is saddened by the fact someone would take the effort to vandalize a statue of Mary.

Referred to as the “Roadside Mary”, it is located just off the highway, and her hands are held up in prayer. Both hands have been snapped off. Celine Perrilat told paNOW she was made aware on Monday what happened.

“I find it very sad that someone would have that kind of emotion,” she said.

While there are no security cameras at the site, the statue is easily visible to passing traffic and Perrilat acknowledged the thousands of vehicles that travel each day on Highway 11.

“You could say it’s checked on a daily basis,” she said.

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While unsure why someone would target the hands, Perrilat explained she does not believe it’s connected to residential schools, noting that even with the extra attention given to the issue in the past couple years, nothing has happened at the statue or at the shrine site.

However Perrilat was able to confirm something similar has happened in the past to Mary.

“We were able to repair it the first time but there’s only so many times before we can’t anymore,” she said.

The Roadside Mary stands at the entrance to the larger Our Lady of Lourdes shrine and heritage site. Around the same time in 2011, when construction was being done to twin the highway, a new statue of Mary was erected. The statue is lit year round and through the night to serve as a beacon of faith and call to prayer.

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nigel.maxwell@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @nigelmaxwell