National Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help
New Franken, WI
June 15th & June 16th
"It was a wonderful visit. We had thousands of people from Illinois, Minnesota and of course, Wisconsin," said Father John Broussard, Rector of the National Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help. "Here in Champion, Wisconsin, Mary, the mother of Jesus appeared to Adele Brise, a Belgian immigrant woman, in 1859."
"Adele was instructed to 'make a general confession, pray and offer communion for the conversion of sinners and to gather the children in the wild country to teach them what they needed to know for their salvation.' In additional apparitions, she further instructed Adele to 'teach the children their catechism, how to make the sign of the cross and how to approach the sacraments. That is what I wish you to do. Go and fear nothing, I will help you.' ", continues Father Broussard.
Adele was dedicated to her mission, walking in a radius of 50 miles to teach the children. She would offer to do their housework in exchange for the privilege of teaching the children.
"It was very special to have two visionaries here, together," says Father Broussard. "There are striking similarities in what our Blessed Mother instructed Bernadette and Adele to do, beginning with penance and prayer. And the humility and simplicity of each young woman was very striking."
"We had over 8500 pilgrims come to the two parishes and the National Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help in the Diocese of Green Bay," says Walter Fountain, Vice Chair of the Board of Directors of the National Shrine. "It was such a blessing to have St. Bernadette with us. The love and faithfulness that was pouring out was amazing. I saw people coming closer to our blessed Mother and her Son. Just an incredible experience."