Our Lady of the Good Council (Skaro, Alberta)

Marian Advocation of Skaro (Alberta)
Popular devotion (not officially recognized by the Church)

The parish of Our Lady of Good Counsel is located in Skaro, near Lamont, in the east of Alberta, within the diocese of Edmonton. The well-known Marian Grotto of Lourdes (Skaro Grotto / Skaro Shrine) was built in 1919 by Polish and Ukrainian settlers. The universal vocation of the Good Council comes from the shrine of Genazzano (Italy) and was spread by religious orders like the Augustines.

Main data

Origin and history

The parish of Our Lady of Good Counsel is located in Skaro, near Lamont, in the east of Alberta, within the diocese of Edmonton. The well-known Marian Grotto of Lourdes (Skaro Grotto / Skaro Shrine) was built in 1919 by Polish and Ukrainian settlers. The universal vocation of the Good Council comes from the shrine of Genazzano (Italy) and was spread by religious orders like the Augustines.

The image and the sanctuary

The parish Our Lady of Good Counsel welcomes the local rock and stone grotto with the image of the Virgin in the style of Lourdes, one of Alberta's oldest Marian shrines still in use. The place is officially recognized as a site for diocesan pilgrimage. There is no canonical coronation of the image of the parish.

Sponsorship and coronation

Invocation of popular devotion; there is no official recognition of the Church as the patron of the town. It is a rural Marian sanctuary frequented mainly by faithful of Polish and Ukrainian origin. No canonical coronation.

Party and devotion

The annual pilgrimage is held around the feast of the Assumption (August 15), with candle vigil on August 14 and outdoor mass on August 15. According to local tradition, many faithful who contributed to the construction carried stones from their farms as a sign of gratitude and confidence in the protection of the Virgin. The diocesan chronicles mention the attendance of hundreds of pilgrims each year, with testimonies of favors and graces, although without an official record of recognized miracles.

Link to the Rosary

During the vigil of the Assumption, the Rosary is usually prayed with candles around the grotto, according to pastoral and chronic notes of the sanctuary. The Rosary is part of the devotional identity of the place, in continuity with the spirituality of Lourdes.