What a fantastic weekend! Kim
-Loan Ngo and I took a drive down to Pierre Part to visit the Virgin Island. The drive was beautiful - the sun shining and Kim and I were excited about meeting new people and learning about the Virgin Island.
We arrived at the Pierre Part Branch Library and quickly settled in to some reading. We found the Catholic Church Directory which had a FANTASTIC history of the church and of the Virgin Mary that inhabits the Virgin Island.
Here is how the story goes....
After the flood of 1882, the statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary survived undamaged in the Catholic Church. It was deemed a miracle because of the flood water and destruction around her. She was then placed lovingly in the chapel sacristy.
In 1902, Father Pillian decided that it was a miracle that the statue survived and had the statue moved to where everyone could see it and pay homage. That's when she was moved to the Virgin Island.
In 1909, a larger statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary replaced the old smaller one, which was buried on the islands.
At the time, the only way to the island was by boat. Once a week, the Priest and parishioners would row their boats to the little island and say the rosary. Imaging that! All of the little boats floating around a small little island with the Blessed Virgin Mary standing there - protecting the people of Pierre Part.
The island was restored in 1976 and again in 2011. According to the two librarians who shared personal stories with us, during the great flood of 2011, people would gather there every day to pray the rosary. According to them, "You can't discount the power of prayer".
Today, you can visit the Virgin Island by foot - the Army Corp of Engineers build a small foot bridge (apparently some local controversy arose around that project). They gather once a week to pray the rosary and know that the Blessed Virgin Mary is watching over them.
