National Shrine Grotto of Lourdes visitor center dedicated

A dedication Mass and blessing ceremony for the Richard and Mary Lee Miller Family Visitor’s Center at the National Shrine Grotto of Lourdes in Emmitsburg was April 27.   

The dedication included the unveiling of the new visitor center with special honors presented to Richard Miller, a 1977 Mount alumnus, and Mary Lee Miller who provided the lead gift to the Grotto, giving them naming rights for the visitor center, according to Mount St. Mary’s University in Emmitsburg.  

The visitor center, which opens June 1, will serve the more than 400,000 visitors who visit the Grotto annually, according to information from the university. The 4,000-square-foot facility houses administrative offices, a gallery, gift shop and museum depicting the history of the Grotto – the oldest known American replica of the Lourdes Shrine in France.

“We have a glorious National Shrine on our campus here at Mount St. Mary’s University and now we are blessed to welcome visitors with this new, top-notch center,” said Thomas H. Powell, university president, in a statement. “The generous gift from the Miller family not only enhances the Grotto’s historical landscape but also makes it a year-round destination spot for the community.”

Richard Miller is the chief executive officer of Virtua, a nonprofit, multi-hospital healthcare system in New Jersey.

In 2011, Miller received Mount St. Mary’s President’s Medal in recognition of his leadership in health care. He consulted with faculty from the Mount’s Richard J. Bolte, Sr. School of Business on the curriculum design of the university’s Master of Health Administration program, and participated in the 2011 Presidential Lecture Series, speaking at the Union League in Philadelphia.

For more information, visit msmary.edu/grotto.