SIOUX CITY | On a recent Tuesday, two buses rolled into Sioux City from Nebraska. Some 90 tourists stepped out for a tour once the units rolled up to the Queen of Peace, a centerpiece of sorts at Trinity Heights, at 33rd St. and Floyd Boulevard in Sioux City.
Sue Grieve, assistant to the executive director at Trinity Heights, noted that around 100,000 visitors stop here annually to attend Mass, receive confession, have a meeting, or simply to stroll the grounds that became a Sioux City fixture on the grounds of the former Trinity College and Trinity High School, facilities that would later serve as a seminary until the mid-1960s.
Trinity Heights, the dream of the Rev. Harold Cooper, opened in 1992.
"We host visitors from many different countries," Grieve added.
Unknown to planners -- and perhaps by divine intervention -- the 30-foot-tall Immaculate Heart of Mary Queen of Peace was placed precisely on the spot where the Trinity College Chapel had been located. It was dedicated in 1993 and began drawing visitors immediately.
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The college was opened in 1913 by Franciscan priests, and was later a high school, educating Catholic boys for 50 years. The aging buildings were razed in 1989 to make way for Trinity Heights, an 80-acre campus perched atop a hill near 33rd Street and Floyd Boulevard on Sioux City's north side.
More than 100,000 visitors flock each year to the grounds, which offer more than two dozen shrines, memorial garden spots and quiet corners for prayer and reflection. While this place is Catholic in its theology, it remains ecumenical in intent and appeal.
The other dominant statue on the grounds is a 33-foot tall Sacred Heart of Jesus, which invited visitors to place their burdens at His feet. This statue presides over the "Outdoor Cathedral," the Eight Beatitudes, St. Francis, shrines to the Blessed Virgin and a Veteran's Memorial honoring loved ones who have served the U.S. military.
World-famous sculptor Dale Lamphere created the statues of Mary and Jesus.
Award-winning carver Jerry Traufler, of Le Mars, Iowa, used Leonardo da Vinci's classic "Last Supper" as inspiration for a life-size wood carving of the Last Supper inside the St. Joseph Center at Trinity Heights. Traufler, who used local models for this creation, devoted seven years of his life to complete the basswood and pine project.
In addition to tours throughout the week, Mass and confession are observed three times per week at Divine Mercy Chapel, with Mass taking place at 11 a.m. Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Confession occurs just before each Mass.
Mass cannot be observed on a daily basis here, as Trinity Heights is not a parish. Additionally, Mass may not be celebrated here on a holy day of obligation.
"People must go to their own parish on a holy day of obligation," Grieve said.
The International Traveling Statue of Our Lady of Fatima came to Trinity Heights on June 1, six days prior to the start of the organization's Summer Series which, this year, focuses on the Mystery of the Holy Rosary. The series concludes as Trinity Heights welcomes The Holy Relics of Our Lord's Passion. Nine Relics, including pieces of the cross and pieces of the crown of thorns, will be on hand to visitors to see.
On Aug. 5, Trinity Heights Queen of Peace and the Diocese of Sioux City will hold a one-day Our Lady of Fatima Anniversary Conference at the Sioux City Convention Center. The Immaculate Heart of Our Lady of Fatima traveling statue will be on-hand for that conference as well.
