Shrine History

The Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Des Plaines, Illinois, began its journey of life with very humble beginnings.

It so happened that in 1987, a community of faithful Guadalupan Catholics organized to form the group "Friends of Our Lady of Guadalupe" and began a mission to bring a statue of the Virgin from the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City. With the leadership of Mr. Juaquin Martinez and the "Friends of NSG," the image of Our Lady was acquired from the Basilica in Mexico City, and they began making pilgrimages with it to various parishes and family homes to foster Guadalupe devotion in Chicago.

On June 14 of the same year, this mission began, which coincided with the Marian Year proclaimed by Pope John Paul II. The Rev. Robert Harne, a friend of the Friends of NSG, blessed the statue during an outdoor Mass at Lake Opeka Park.

Because of the success in fostering faith and fervor among Guadalupan devotees, Friends of NSG began searching for a permanent place to venerate the pilgrim image of Our Lady of Guadalupe. In June 1988, the Rev. John P. Smyth, executive president of Maryville Academy (an orphanage and rehabilitation center located in Des Plaines, IL), welcomed the image and its faithful devotees. On July 4, 1988, the image was delivered to Maryville Academy with the blessing of the Most Rev. Placido Rodríguez, O.C.M., Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Chicago, where, for seven years, the community enjoyed the support of Maryville Academy in celebrating the patronal feast of the Virgin of Guadalupe in its humble chapel.

In 1995, Rev. Smyth and the Friends of NSG encouraged the construction of a replica of the "Cerrito del Tepeyac", which would become the main devotional area for the veneration of the Virgin of Guadalupe in Maryville, and which was inaugurated and blessed on December 12 by priests Fr. John Smyth, Fr. David Ryan, and Fr. Rafael Orozco.

On November 24, 1996, a digital replica of the sacred “ayate”, the original image of the Virgin of Guadalupe, was received, the first to officially leave the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico to foreign lands. Rev. José Quintana, priest of the Diocese of Grand Rapids in Michigan, and a great devotee of the Virgin of Guadalupe, accompanied the people in receiving the image.

In June 1997, the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe bestowed an extraordinary blessing on the Cerrito via the Rector of the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Monsignor Esteban Martinez, who came to visit Chicago with the Basilica Choir and was present to bless and name this place as the "Cerrito del Tepeyac of Chicago." During the ceremony, Msgr. Martinez brought a portion of earth from the Cerro del Tepeyac in Mexico City, blessed and enthroned the replica of the Virgin in the new Cerrito. This significant visit cemented the relationship between this site and the Basilica of Mexico, granting the Cerrito of Chicago the faculty to offer this sacred place as a sanctuary where pilgrims who make their pledge to Our Lady of Guadalupe can fulfill it as if they were present in the Basilica of Mexico.

In 2001, a replica of the famous sculpture in the Basilica, known as "The Offering," by sculptor AGD Mendoza, was brought to Cerrito and solemnly blessed by Most Rev. John R. Manz, Auxiliary Bishop of Chicago. The dimensions of these bronze statues are: the Virgin of Guadalupe statue is 3.7 meters tall and weighs 998 kg, and the San Juan Diego statue is 1.8 meters tall and weighs 363 kg.

 With all this growth and need to formally organize the Hispanic ministry and spiritual life of this campus, not only for the Maryville Academy orphanage, but for everyone, Cardinal Francis George O.M.I., Archbishop of Chicago, decided to appoint Rev. Miguel Martínez Figueroa as the first director of the Cerrito del Tepeyac in Des Plaines in 2008. During that same year, a large sculpture in the form of a crucifix called "The Cross of the Apostolate" was added to the Cerrito, a symbol received by the great Mexican mystic Concepción Cabrera de Armida and the formator of the spirituality of the Missionaries of the Holy Spirit. On May 3 of the same year, Msgr. Gustavo García Siller, MSpS, Auxiliary Bishop of Chicago, blessed the cross. In that same year (September 3), Cardinal Francis George O.M.I. formally allocated 62.5 acres of Maryville property to establish the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Realizing the significant growth in the number of pilgrims visiting El Cerrito, on January 1, 2013, the Cardinal formally and canonically established that what was our beloved "Cerrito del Tepeyac" would be designated as the "Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe of the Archdiocese of Chicago". The Rev. Marco Mercado was appointed the first Rector of the Shrine and tasked with developing the facilities dedicated to the Shrine. Under his administration, the first steps of creating a strategic development plan began, raising the profile of the Shrine.

 In 2014, Pope Francis appointed Msgr. Blase J. Cupich as the ninth archbishop of Chicago. During the Guadalupe Festivities on December 12, 2015, the Archbishop celebrated for the first time at the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe, where more than 300,000 pilgrims visited to pay tribute and venerate the Mother of God. The media carried the Guadalupe message throughout the country thanks to the manifestation of faith and dedication of our immigrant people and devotees of the Lady of Tepeyac.
On March 1, 2016, there were changes in administration, and the Very Rev. Esequiel Sánchez was appointed the new Rector of the Shrine, which he currently holds. Father Sanchez arrives at the Shrine with more than 20 years of priestly life and experience in pastoral ministry.

Immediately upon his arrival, he began his work by taking the reins of the projects established by Father Mercado and the leaders of the Financial Council and the Pastoral Council of the Shrine. Projects carried out by Fr. Sanchez's leadership and the community include:

• Transforming a gymnasium, which traditionally housed parishioners for Masses during the wintertime, into a beautiful chapel dedicated to St. Joseph, where more than 1,200 parishioners will be able to celebrate the Eucharist, and was consecrated by the Archbishop, Cardinal Blase Cupich, on April 18, 2016.
• Erect the new and beautiful entrance of arches, making it the new face of the Shrine to receive hundreds of thousands of pilgrims. 
• The arches were inaugurated on December 4, 2021, by the Auxiliary Bishops of Chicago, Msgr. Juan R. Manz and Msgr. Jeffrey Grob.
• In March 2023, the Chapel of the Risen Christ was remodeled. An arsonist destroyed the chapel.
• In 2024, the Marian Chapel was renovated. This chapel was the main chapel where the community and Maryville celebrated the Eucharist. With the help of the Italian community, St. Ambrose Parish, and the parishioners of the Shrine, this project was completed for the glory of God and in honor of our Blessed Mother.
• In February 2026, the new Shrine Retreat Center was consecrated by Most. Rev. Timothy O'Malley, Auxiliary Bishop of Chicago, and Fr. Sanchez. This new edition the ministry of the Shrine will help our work of evangelization with families and couples. 

These are the beginnings of the development of the land that is the Shrine of Guadalupe. Father Sanchez's skills and experience in administration and pastoral care have strengthened the Shrine's efforts and ministry, enabling it to reach more people who consider this holy precinct truly theirs.

The history of the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe is young, and we invite all pilgrims to be part of this living history that proclaims faith in our Lord.