WINTER PARK  |  As sun shone down over phase two of Queen of Angels Cemetery, Bishop John Noonan, followed by a procession of faithful, staff, and benefactors blessed the property and Marian statues which delineate the four sections surrounding the Rock of Our Salvation Garden.

The new phase boasts a committal shelter for services prior to interment, more than 3,000 full body sites including monument spaces and family estates, more than 500 underground cremation spaces, and two future granite columbarium columns to flank the Rock of Our Salvation fountain.

Bishop Noonan sprinkled holy water and said prayers at each Marian statue — Our Lady of La Vang, Our Lady of Guadalupe, Blessed Virgin Mary Our Lady of Mercy, and Mother of Christ. Peaceful religious music filled the air facilitating a serene atmosphere in which to honor the corporal works of mercy of burying the dead.

Among those who came to celebrate the blessing was Nenette Saclolo from Sts. Peter and Paul Parish in Winter Park. Her cousin died this past December. He will be moved to the Mother of Christ section soon.

“It’s so peaceful and quiet and serene. It is very important to have a Catholic cemetery so close by,” she said noting she and her sister-in-law, Norma Bacani and niece, Anne Marie Bacani of Good Shepherd, meet at the cemetery almost every week to visit. Anne Marie said the family was grateful to find a Catholic cemetery in which to bury her father near their home.

Also present was Marlena Solomon, of St. Joseph Parish in Orlando. She came with her extended family of 12 relatives to partake in the ground blessing and visit her grandmother, Maria Quintanilla’s, gravesite on what would have been her 83rd birthday. “It was extra special since it is her birthday,” said Solomon. Her brother, William, spoke of the difficulties of the past year and the comfort of being there together with his family. The family participated in Mass together and then came for the blessing. “She was the glue, the rock, the nucleus that held everything together. We’re making the adjustment,” he said of Quintanilla. “She was the best.”

Bishop Noonan, who spoke to the families there acknowledged their relatives interred at Queen of Angels. “It’s a day to visit your loved ones,” he said, describing the expansion as beautiful. “We remember it is our duty to provide for the needs of our people in life and in death. We give witness to the sacredness of a Catholic cemetery where the dead are laid to rest with prayerful Christian dignity on grounds that foster devotion, reverence and respect of our Catholic faith.”

Closing the ceremony, cemetery director David Branson assured those present, “We are humbled by the love of the families we have the opportunity to serve.” n

To learn more about Queen of Angels Cemetery, located next to San Pedro Spiritual Development Center in Winter Park, click here.

Click here to watch BTS of the blessing.

By Glenda Meekins of the Florida Catholic staff, May 08, 2025