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BRECKSVILLE, Ohio — When Karen (nee Zemba) Griffith was diagnosed with cancer, she was determined to do everything in her power to defeat it.
During a visit with her niece in Oregon, they stopped to pray at the St. Peregrine Shrine located in the National Sanctuary of Our Sorrowful Mother in Portland.
St. Peregrine is the patron saint of cancer patients. He was cured of cancer himself, after having a vision of Jesus. He is also the patron saint of people suffering from other serious diseases, such as AIDS. He was canonized by Pope Benedict XII in 1726.
Griffith died a short time after having visited her niece; she was 58 years old. The year was 2013.
The family had established a Go Fund Me page to help with her efforts to seek a cure.
Money remained in the fund after her death and most of those who had donated did not want any money back. Rather, they wanted something done in her memory.
The family started thinking about having a grotto built locally. The natural location was at St. Joseph Byzantine Catholic church, where many of the Zembas belong.
The church has a pavilion area in the back property that was deemed ideal for such an endeavor. As discussions ensued, Mickey Zemba, Karen’s brother, died of Parkinson’s Disease.
The desire of the family for a grotto intensified and plans were made to have an artist in Portland, come up with the design for a mosaic icon.
It was completed this past June and shipped to Brecksville. A grotto was constructed on the church grounds, and the icon was installed and blessed during a Divine Liturgy, followed by a picnic, July 15.
Members of the Zemba family were among the more than 200 people present for the occasion.
It is hoped that the grotto will be utilized by the community at large and efforts are being made to make its availability known.
Caption: Father Bruce Riebe, pastor of St. Joseph Byzantine Catholic Parish, poses by the new grotto of St. Peregrine, patron saint of cancer patients, on the parish grounds with the late Karen Griffith’s nieces, Amy Gigena and Kristen Kovac. (Photo courtesy of St. Joseph Parish)
As published in Horizons, July 22, 2018.
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