The Shrine of Our Lady of the Ozarks - A Tribute to Our Lady of the Smile - Winslow Arkansas

The Shrine of Our Lady of the Ozarks - A Tribute to Our Lady of the Smile - Winslow, Arkansas

by a.d. elliott | Take the Back Roads – Art & Other Odd Adventures

Dear Henry,

I decided to take another small pilgrimage, this time to the Shrine of Our Lady of the Ozarks in Winslow, Arkansas.

The shrine sits just off Highway 71, near the top of Mount Gaylor in the Boston Mountains. It would be easy to miss if you weren’t looking for it, and yet, once there, the space feels quietly set apart.

The parish traces its beginnings to the early 1940s, when two women, Ann Gulliott and Elizabeth Sublett, grew weary of the long journeys required to attend Mass in Fort Smith or Fayetteville. They petitioned the diocese to establish a parish for the rural Catholic families of the mountains. The land was offered by Clara Muxen, a retired nun and teacher, who had raised funds to purchase an abandoned gas station as the site.

The first Mass was celebrated on October 25, 1942, by Father Lawrence Schaefer, who traveled from St. Joseph’s Parish in Tontitown. Though the parish existed in spirit long before, the church itself would not be completed until 1945 and was formally dedicated by Bishop John Morris on August 25, 1946. The parish’s first resident priest, Father Francis Matkin, arrived in January 1944, before there was even a finished church waiting for him.

The statue that anchors the grounds was created to honor Our Lady of the Smile.

The devotion originated with Thérèse of Lisieux, who, as a very young, gravely ill child, experienced a vision on May 10, 1883. She saw a beloved statue of the Immaculate Conception smile at her. According to her own account, her recovery began almost immediately.

The statue at the Ozarks shrine was produced by the Daprato Studios of Chicago, modeled after a small replica of the Immaculata from Thérèse’s childhood. It was placed and blessed on August 27, 1944. This shrine became the first in the United States dedicated to Our Lady of the Smile.

Despite its proximity to the highway, the grounds are remarkably peaceful. The statue itself is astonishing in full sun. Our Lady of the Ozarks reflects so much light that she seems to shimmer, almost to glow, against the surrounding trees. The effect is not subtle; it is radiant.

A dear friend of mine, Betty, whose patron saint is Thérèse of Lisieux, often reminds me that the Light of the Lord comes through Mary. Standing there, watching sunlight blaze off the white stone, that idea felt suddenly clear. The statue does not produce the light. She reflects it. And because of that, she is nearly blind.

I hope Our Lady will smile upon me and teach me how to reflect even a fraction of that light.

And I hope she smiles upon us all.

xoxo
a.d. elliott

_____________________________________________________________________________

About the Author
a.d. elliott is a wanderer, photographer, and storyteller traveling through life

She shares her journeys at Take the Back Roads, explores new reads at Rite of Fancy, and highlights U.S. military biographies at Everyday Patriot.

You can also browse her online photography gallery at shop.takethebackroads.com.

✨ #TakeTheBackRoads

Enjoyed this post? Support the adventure by visiting my sponsors, shopping the gallery, or buying me a cup of coffee!