NBC is reporting that the image once hung on the wall of the Farmer's Market building on Imperial Avenue. Part of the iconic store was torn down to make way for the new Walmart, a move that caused so much controversy among the local citizenry that the project was halted for a time; however, a Superior Court judge eventually ruled that construction could begin and the Walmart was completed last year.
In an effort to appease local residents who were disturbed by the loss of the Farmers Market, the new Walmart decided to retain the mosaic of Our Lady of Guadalupe which had hung on the Market wall. The company restored, reframed, and installed the image on the outside front wall of the new store.
“It’s something the community members asked for, the business owners asked for,” said store manager Luciano Villela to NBC. “We’re very happy to please the community by doing this.”
He added: “I grew up not too far from here, a few miles south of here, in a community similar to this. I understand the importance Our Lady of Guadalupe has in Hispanic Catholic communities."
Father Richard Brown, senior priest at Our Lady of Guadalupe parish in San Diego, blessed the restored image on Dec. 11, the day before the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
"It’s the only Walmart in the world with a plaque of our Blessed Mother,” Fr. Brown said.
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