ShareThisThe Mission of Nombre de Dios and Shrine of Our Lady of La Leche is at 27 Ocean Ave. St., Augustine, FL 32084; 1-904-824-2809 or 1-800-342-6529; www.missionandshrine.org. It is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. Visits to the grounds and gift shop are free but donations are welcome.
This year, construction has started on a 3,000-square-foot museum that is projected to open late next spring. It is intended as a place to celebrate and study the history of the Catholic faith in Florida from Sept. 8, 1565, until now. Among its permanent exhibits will be the coffin of Pedro Menendez de Aviles, which now sits in an alcove by the shrine gift shop.
Each year the city's founding on Sept. 8 is celebrated with much pageantry, including cannon fire, a mayor's proclamation, speeches by historians and Mass at the Rustic Altar. A grass-roots group and city commission have been set up to plan festivities to celebrate the city's 450th anniversary in 2015.
(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)
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