On an October morning in 1859, a twenty-eight-year-old Belgian immigrant named Adele Brise was walking along a forest path northeast of Green Bay, carrying wheat to a gristmill, when she saw a woman clothed in dazzling white light standing between a maple and a hemlock tree. The figure vanished without speaking. Days later, on October 9th, as Adele walked the same path to Sunday Mass with her sister Isabelle and a neighbor, the lady appeared again. Her companions saw nothing. After Mass, her parish priest told her to ask: "In God's name, who are you and what do you wish of me?" On the walk home that afternoon, the lady appeared a third time and spoke: "I am the Queen of Heaven who prays for the conversion of sinners. Gather the children in this wild country and teach them what they should know for salvation."
Adele obeyed. For the next thirty-seven years until her death in 1896, she walked hundreds of miles through Wisconsin's forests and prairies, teaching catechism to pioneer children, caring for the sick, and establishing a school at the apparition site. The small wooden chapel her father built over the spot in 1861 grew into the National Shrine of Our Lady of Champion — the only Marian apparition site in the United States to receive official Church approval.
That approval came on December 8, 2010, when Bishop David L. Ricken of Green Bay declared the apparitions "worthy of belief" after a two-year canonical investigation. Champion joined the company of Lourdes, Fatima, and Guadalupe as a Church-approved site of Marian apparition. On January 30, 2026 — the 195th anniversary of Adele's birth — Bishop Ricken formally opened her cause for canonization at St. Francis Xavier Cathedral in Green Bay, declaring her a Servant of God. It is the first cause for sainthood in the history of the Diocese of Green Bay.
📜 History & Spiritual Significance
Adele Brise was born on January 30, 1831, in Dion-le-Val, in the province of Brabant, Belgium. (Some sources spell her surname "Brice," matching her Belgian gravestone; "Brise" appears on her U.S. legal records and in USCCB documents.) Blind in her right eye from a childhood accident, she immigrated with her family to Wisconsin in 1855, settling on 240 acres in the Town of Red River. The Belgian immigrants carved farms from dense forest, maintaining their Catholic faith despite the scarcity of priests and churches on the frontier.
The three apparitions occurred over several days in early October 1859. During the first, Adele was alone and the figure was silent. During the second, on the morning of October 9th, Adele was accompanied by her sister and Marie Theresa VanderMissen; they saw nothing. During the third, on the afternoon of October 9th as Adele returned from Mass, the Blessed Virgin spoke. She appeared in dazzling white robes with a yellow sash, a crown of stars, and flowing blonde hair surrounded by bright light. The shrine celebrates October 9 as the Solemnity of Our Lady of Champion — a date approved by the Vatican's Dicastery for Divine Worship on December 15, 2022.
Adele immediately began her mission, walking barefoot through the forests regardless of weather, gathering children wherever she found them. Her father built the first small chapel at the apparition site in 1861, inscribing the door "Notre Dame de bon Secours" — Our Lady of Good Help — a devotion Adele brought from Belgium. She established a school nearby and gathered a small community of women dedicated to teaching, though they never formally constituted a religious order.
On October 8, 1871, the Great Peshtigo Fire swept through northeastern Wisconsin. It remains the deadliest wildfire in recorded American history, killing an estimated 1,500 to 2,500 people and burning approximately 1.2 million acres. As flames advanced on the chapel, Adele organized a Rosary procession around the five acres of consecrated ground, leading refugees in prayer through the night. Rain came early the next morning. The chapel, school, and surrounding grounds stood untouched. The wooden fence around the property was charred on the outside but did not burn through. All who had sheltered on the grounds survived. Father Peter Pernin, an eyewitness, described the site as "an emerald island amid a sea of ashes."
Adele died on July 5, 1896, aged sixty-six, and is buried on the shrine grounds. The brick chapel was built in 1880; the current Shrine Church was dedicated in 1942 by Bishop Paul Peter Rhode.
The formal recognition of Champion proceeded through several distinct milestones: Bishop Ricken opened a canonical investigation in 2009; declared the apparitions worthy of belief on December 8, 2010; the USCCB designated the site a National Shrine on August 15, 2016; the Vatican approved October 9 as a liturgical solemnity on December 15, 2022; and on April 20, 2023, Bishop Ricken announced the official name change from "Our Lady of Good Help" to "Our Lady of Champion."
☩ Pilgrimage Sites in Champion
National Shrine of Our Lady of Champion
The only Church-approved Marian apparition site in the United States
The shrine complex includes the Apparition Chapel built over the exact spot where Mary appeared, the larger Shrine Church, and Adele's grave. The original wooden chapel has been enclosed within a brick structure, with the spot of the apparition marked by a small crypt chapel accessible by descending several steps. Pilgrims kneel at the iron grate marking where Adele stood when she received Mary's message.
The Shrine Church, completed in 1942, seats 400 and features stained glass windows depicting the apparitions. The grounds include outdoor Stations of the Cross, a rosary walk, and the original school building where Adele taught. The Oratory of the Immaculate Conception serves as a perpetual adoration chapel.
Adele Brise's Grave
Servant of God Adele Brise is buried in the small cemetery adjacent to the Apparition Chapel. Her grave, marked by a white cross and surrounded by flowers brought by pilgrims, lies near those of her parents and the early settlers who first gathered at the shrine. Pilgrims visit to pray for her intercession and for the advancement of her cause for canonization, formally opened in January 2026.
The Crypt Chapel
Beneath the Apparition Chapel, pilgrims descend stone steps to the crypt where the exact spot of Mary's apparition is marked. This intimate space, with walls of rough stone and a simple altar, preserves the atmosphere of the forest clearing where a young immigrant received her mission. Kneeling where Adele knelt creates a direct connection to the events of October 1859.
🕯️ Annual Feast Days & Celebrations
Solemnity of Our Lady of Champion — October 9
The principal feast of the shrine, commemorating the apparitions of October 9, 1859, when Mary spoke to Adele Brise. Elevated to a solemnity by the Vatican's Dicastery for Divine Worship in December 2022. Special Masses, rosary processions, and the blessing of religious articles.
Assumption of Mary Pilgrimage — August 15
The largest annual gathering at the shrine, drawing thousands for outdoor Mass, processions, and vigils. The tradition of night-long prayer recalls the October 1871 vigil when pilgrims prayed through the Peshtigo Fire.
May Crowning — First Sunday of May
Traditional crowning of the statue of Our Lady of Champion, preceded by a procession through the shrine grounds with children in white carrying flowers.
First Saturdays Devotion
Monthly observance with Confession, Rosary, and Mass in reparation to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, following the devotion requested at Fatima.
🛏️ Where to Stay
Comfort Suites Green Bay ⭐⭐⭐ — Modern hotel 20 minutes from the shrine with indoor pool and hot breakfast. Website ∙ Reserve this hotel
AmericInn by Wyndham Green Bay East ⭐⭐⭐ — Family-friendly option with easy access to Highway 57 toward Champion. Reserve this hotel
Tundra Lodge Resort ⭐⭐⭐⭐ — Full-service resort with waterpark, 25 minutes from shrine. Popular with families combining pilgrimage with vacation. Website ∙ Reserve this hotel
Bay Motel (hotel) — Simple, clean accommodations in Algoma, 15 minutes from the shrine. Family-owned. Reserve this hotel
🚗 Getting There
By Air: Green Bay Austin Straubel International Airport (GRB) is approximately 20 miles from the shrine. Chicago O'Hare (ORD) is 220 miles south, about 3.5 hours driving.
By Car: From Green Bay, take Highway 57 north to Champion. The shrine is on Chapel Drive, well-signed from the highway. From Milwaukee, take I-43 north (approximately 2.5 hours). From Chicago, take I-94 W to I-43 N (approximately 3.5 hours). Free parking at the shrine.
By Bus: No direct public transit. Greyhound serves Green Bay; rental car or taxi required for the final 20 miles.
📚 Further Reading
Books:
Fr. Edward Looney, Our Lady of Champion: A Holy Encounter — Detailed account of the apparitions and their significance by a priest of the Diocese of Green Bay.
Michael O'Neill, Exploring the Miraculous — Comprehensive survey of Marian apparitions worldwide, with coverage of Champion.
Roy Abraham Varghese, God-Sent: A History of the Accredited Apparitions of Mary — Scholarly examination including the Champion apparitions.
Online Resources:
Diocese of Green Bay — Official site of the diocese that issued the 2010 declaration approving the Champion apparitions as worthy of belief.
EWTN: Our Lady of Good Help — Detailed history and theological significance.
🎥 Recommended Videos
Our Lady of Good Help Documentary — EWTN documentary on the apparitions and their approval.
Bishop Ricken Announces Approval — Historic press conference declaring the apparitions worthy of belief.
Pilgrimage to Champion — Catholic News Agency visit to the only approved Marian apparition site in the United States.
🔗 Useful Links
National Shrine of Our Lady of Champion — Official shrine website with events and pilgrimage planning.
Diocese of Green Bay — Diocesan information and resources.
Wisconsin Way Pilgrimage — 156-mile walking pilgrimage from Champion to Holy Hill, inspired by the Camino de Santiago.
Door County Visitor Bureau — Tourism information for the scenic peninsula north of Champion.
🧭 Nearby Pilgrimage Destinations
Holy Hill (200 km south) — Basilica and National Shrine of Mary, Help of Christians. Discalced Carmelite monastery atop a glacial hill, drawing over 500,000 visitors annually. The southern terminus of the Wisconsin Way pilgrimage route.
De Pere (30 km southwest) — The National Shrine of St. Joseph on the St. Norbert College campus, home of the only papally crowned statue of St. Joseph in the United States. The Walk to Mary pilgrimage begins here each May.
Chicago (340 km south) — Major Catholic center with historic churches, shrines, and the tomb of Cardinal Bernardin.
🪶 Closing Reflection
"Gather the children in this wild country and teach them what they should know for salvation. Teach them their catechism, how to sign themselves with the Sign of the Cross, and how to approach the sacraments." — Our Lady of Champion to Adele Brise, October 9, 1859
