Mural at Our Lady of Guadalupe

Our Lady of Guadalupe Church
9108 S. Brandon
Chicago, Illinois 60617

Many churches provide comfort in time of loss; Our Lady of Guadalupe Church provides more than that for the families of 12 parishioners who died in Vietnam.

On Sunday, September 24, 2000, Our Lady of Guadalupe dedicated "Remembrance and Acceptance" a memorial mural created by artists from the National Vietnam Veterans Art Museum. The parish lost more young men in Vietnam than any other church in the country.

The mural includes portraits of each of the 12 men, as well as two helicopters, a cobra and a Huey Medi-vac. They hover over a POW in a prison camp and a medic caring for a wounded man. The mural also includes representation of the equal sacrifice of male and female, Hispanic, African American and Caucasian Soldiers surrounding a white cross.

Other wars and conflicts are honored here with an American soldier who is encircled by four helmets and rifles from World Wars I and II, Korea and the Gulf War.

Along the bottom of the mural is a complete listing of Illinois soldiers killed in Vietnam, including the twelve honored by this mural; Joseph A. Quiroz, Antonio G. Chavez Jr., Edward Cervantes, Alfred Urdialdes, Jr., Charles Urdiales, Jr., Peter Rodriguez, Raymond Ordonez, Michael S. Miranda, Dennis J. Rodriguez, Joseph A. Lozano, Thomas R. Padilla, and Leopoldo A. Lopez, Jr.