Plaque
— Michael R. Fleet. Mission Nombre de Dios & Shrine of Our Lady of La Leche. Saint Augustine, FL. Jun. 2010.
This Shrine of Our Lady of La Leche was the first ever to be dedicated to Our Blessed Mother in the United States. Established about 1620 by the devout Spanish settlers, it honored Mary as the Mother of Our Saviour. The statue showed her tenderly nursing the Infant Jesus during the moths of his human helplessness.
Nuestra Señora de la Leche y Buen Parto – Our Nursing Mother of Happy Delivery – was her title. Spanish mothers asked her protection before, during and after the birth of their children. The original statue, brought here about 1620, was destroyed during the Spanish-English wars.
Thousands of modern mothers and mothers-to-be have knelt here and asked Our Lady of La Leche to send God’s blessing on them, their husbands and their children. Thousand of letters come yearly from all over the world asking for remembrances in our Masses and prayers. Remember them now as you kneel here.