Parks & Public Spaces
LA LOMA de MADRE GROTTO
Rose Hills Memorial Park
Whittier, California
Located in the 400 acre Sycamore Valley master planned area at the Park, La Loma de la Madre is a tribute to Our Lady of Guadalupe, the patron saint of Mexico. In 1531, it is said she appeared in a vision at Tepeyac hill, imprinting her form and red roses on an Indian's shawl. Miracles and cures are attributed to her, making her basilica in Mexico City the 2nd most visited Catholic shrine after the Vatican.
La Loma de la Madre Grotto was built to meet the needs of the rapidly expanding Hispanic population in the Los Angeles basin. The project provides a variety of burial choices in the large boulder walls and grotto. Our Lady garden and lawn areas are situated on an oak and sycamore hillside with a panoramic view of Sycamore Valley. The large boulder grotto houses 3 niche walls created by a Romanian tile artist and recesses for memorial candles and benches. A boulder fountain designed as a "spring" and the Garden of Our Lady, a setting for a future artist competition for the Our Lady statue, provide destinations for visitors. Extensive beds of red roses and the Our Lady of Guadalupe pink rose are planted within the stone walled planters.