Braving the December cold in Chicago every year, thousands of people walk miles in a pilgrimage to pay homage to Our Lady of Guadalupe, a Mexican icon of Catholicism who is celebrated on Dec. 12 at a shrine in Des Plaines.
In recent years, more than 200,000 devotees have attended the celebration throughout the night of Dec. 11 and into Dec. 12, according to the Des Plaines Police Department. There are at least 20 pilgrimages and processions to Cerrito de Tepeyac in Chicago registered this year. Each one departs from a different church in Chicago and includes some devotees who come from neighboring states to join with the local pilgrims, helping to make this the largest celebration for the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe after Mexico City’s, Sanchez said.