Mother Cabrini Shrine in Golden, Colorado

Last summer my husband and I finally took a ride up to the Mother Cabrini Shrine in Golden, Colorado. For years we had seen the statue in the distance on the top of a foothill, that you see in the photo above, from Interstate 70 whenever we returned home from a trip to the Rocky Mountains, and we'd both say: "someday we have to take a ride up there!"  Mother Cabrini, officially known as Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini, was well known to us as the "Patron Saint of Immigrants," and was revered in New York City for her work as a missionary sister working to help Italian Immigrants in the late 1800s. In 1889, New York seemed to be filled with chaos and poverty, and into this new world stepped Italian-born Mother Frances Cabrini and her missionary sister companions. Cabrini organized catechism and education classes for the Italian immigrants and provided for the needs of the many orphans. She established many schools and orphanages despite tremendous odds.

You can read more about her on the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus web site--the religious order which she founded in 1880.

Mother Cabrini also loved the mountains of Colorado and the foothills west of Denver held a special attraction for her. During her journeys in 1902 to visit the Italian workers and their families in the Clear Creek, Argentine, and South Park mining districts, Frances X. Cabrini discovered a property on the east slope of Lookout Mountain owned by the town of Golden. No reliable source of water was known to exist on the property at that time, although there were two fine barns and a springhouse built in the 1890s. In 1909-1910, she negotiated the purchase of this property as a summer camp for her charges at the Queen of Heaven Orphanage in Denver, Colorado. A farming operation, with poultry, other livestock, and dairy cows, was established and maintained by three of the Sisters of the Sacred Heart who set up living quarters in the loft of the larger barn. During the summer months, groups of about twenty girls, according to age, would spend several weeks at the summer camp. They enjoyed the freedom of the outdoors and recreational activities in addition to tending the animals and performing farm chores.

Please click on photo to enlarge

Mother Cabrini had established Queen of Heaven Orphanage in North Denver in 1902 to take care of orphans of Italian miners killed in accidents in Central City and Blackhawk.  It functioned for over 70 years.

In 1912 during Mother Cabrini’s last visit to the foothills, she and a builder, Thomas Eckrom, drew up the plans for the Stone House that would serve as a dormitory for the girls.  It was completed in 1914. Upon the closing of the Queen of Heaven Orphanage in 1967, the summer camp became a year-round retreat facility and a place for small prayer gatherings.

Moved by faith this land was bought by Mother Cabrini for the orphans but after her canonization as a saint in 1946, and her declaration as "Patroness of Immigrants" by Pope Pius XXII in 1950, it was also turned into a shrine to honor her.  It is now a peaceful place for people of all faiths to gather and reflect and enjoy its serenity.

To reach the top of the shrine one has to climb 373 steps on the Stairway of Prayer.  There are benches along the way in case you need to rest...

...and there are the 14 Stations of the Cross along the step's path on the ascent.

The stairway follows the path Mother Cabrini, the sisters, and the children took to the top of the mountain.

Each station's picture is made of stone mosaics made in Italy.

As one climbs the steps the city of Denver, can be seen in the distance!

It is quite a view! 

At the top of the hill is this beautiful 22-foot (6.7 m) statue of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, designed by Maurice Loriaux and mounted on an 11-foot (3.4 m) base, which was erected at the highest point of the site in 1954.

Inside the base of the statue is a statue of Mother Cabrini

In front of the statue of the Sacred Heart of Jesus is a heart made of stones enclosed in glass. On her last visit to Colorado in 1912, Mother Cabrini took several sisters and a few of the children from the orphanage by horse and buggy along a cow path to the foot of the highest hill. Leaving the buggy at the base, they climbed to the top where they gathered white stones and arranged them on the mountain in the shape of a heart surmounted by a cross; with the smaller stones, she formed a crown of thorns on the highest promontory, overlooking the city of Denver. Frances X. Cabrini dedicated the hill to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, naming it the “Mount of the Sacred Heart”. Those are the stones still present beneath the glass case and preserved for all to see.

This magnificent statue now looks down on the city of Denver in the distance ...

...and is surrounded by this natural beauty! If you look closely at the photo above or click on it to enlarge it, you can see the snow-capped Rocky Mountains in the distance.  Many people have placed benches at the top in the area around the statue as memorials to their loved ones.

After some prayer and reflection, we walked back down the steps. 

There is a chapel dedicated to Mother Cabrini on the grounds over the water grotto, As you can see by the sign by the altar her birthday is this week--July15th.

At the time the summer house was built for the orphans all of the water needed for drinking and cooking had to be brought up to the summer camp from the stream at the bottom of Mt. Vernon Canyon. In September 1912, the sisters complained to Mother Cabrini that they were dying of thirst and there was no water to be had. She answered, “Lift that rock over there and start to dig. You will find water fresh enough to drink and clean enough to wash.” The spring, which is housed in an 8,000-gallon tank, has never stopped running. Many pilgrims, through their faith, believe the water has brought healing and peace to their lives.  You can see the spigots where this water can be drawn in the photo collage above.

Please click on photo to enlarge

Also, on the grounds is a small museum filled with mementos of Mother Cabrini, including some of her clothes, her writing desk, and some letters.

The work of Mother Cabrini continues in her order.

Last fall my husband and I were invited to attend the 41st Jefferson County Historical Society's Hall of Fame ceremony, as we are members of our community's historical society.  We were pleased to see that Mother Cabrini was one of two "Hall of Fame" award winners for last year, for her good works in Colorado and the fact that her shrine attracts visitors from around the world.  A member of the Legendary Ladies group portrayed Mother Cabrini and told her life story at the ceremony.

This biography of Mother Cabrini and the Hall of Fame plaque will be displayed along with past winners at the Jefferson County, Colorado, Jefferson County Administration and Courts Facility in Golden Colorado.  It is a wonderful and well-deserved honor!

* Edited on 9/30/20 to add that the Colorado Legislature passed Frances Xavier Cabrini House Bill 20-1031 into law, establishing Frances Xavier Cabrini Day as a Colorado State Holiday. The first paid state holiday in the nation that recognizes a woman, Cabrini Day will be observed in Colorado annually on the first Monday in October.

PS: Thank you to all who offered their condolences on the loss of my blog friend, Shelagh, last week.  It was hard to lose a friend who I've known so many years of blogging and who always had a pleasant and uplifting word for me. She will be truly missed!

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