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Devotion to Our Lady of La Salette spread throughout Spain soon after the La Salette Apparition was 
La Salette Shrine in Siador, Spain (Photo Copyright © BGZ)approved by the Church. This was primarily due to the faith and efforts of two people. The first person was Count Narciso Peñalver from Northeastern Spain who became Maximin’s very good friend, paid for the nine bronze statues depicting the Apparition on the Holy Mountain in France and had people translate and print thousands of copies of materials that had been published in France.
The second person was Don Florencio Sanz from Pamplona, who published a translation of a book by Canon Pièrre Rousselot, “The Truth of Apparition” in 1863. He was also in contact with Fr. Sylvan-Marie Giraud, M.S. and thereupon regularly received the newly-begun French publication, “Les Annales”, from the Holy Mountain.
The First La Salette Shrine in Spain
The Siador Shrine owes its existence to Mr. Francisco Taboada Maria Rivas, a native of nearby Santiago de Compostela. He lived in Siador and knew about the Apparition from articles by Florencio Sanz Pamplona. In 1862, Francisco Taboada María Rivas was also invited to pray a Novena to Our Lady of La Salette. Several people from Siador and a neighboring parish met despite the frigid temperature. The two men then corresponded by mail.
Francisco Taboada María Rivas decided to offer money for the production a group of statues of Our Lady and the two shepherds. "In doing this in the Parish Church of Siador,” he said, “I am giving Mary a worship place worthy of herself".
The sculptor, Magarinos Manuel Santiago, fashioned the work. And on the evening of May 25, 1864, after being blessed by the Cardinal Archbishop of Santiago, six young people left for Siador, carrying on their shoulders the beautiful La Salette statue. They arrived the next day, and with a great joyful procession entered the Chapel of Francisco Maria.
Shortly afterwards, his statue was brought to the Church in Siador, making this the first Shrine of Our Lady of La Salette in Spain. In Galicia there are now 45 other sites where a statue of Our Lady of La Salette adorns their churches.
La Salette Missionaries in Spain
A youth gathering at Shrine in Siador (Photo Copyright © BGZ)The small Siador Shrine was officially entrusted to the Missionaries of La Salette on March 4, 1984. Pope John Paul II in the year 2000 made the nearby Shrine of Santiago de Compostela a Central European Pilgrimage Center. The Shrine is naturally beautiful, with majestic views of the mountains and surrounding farmland. The Feast of La Salette is celebrated each year in Siador from September 10-19. Festivities include torchlight processions, daily Masses, and the La Salette Feast Day Solemnity on September 19th celebrated in the Shrine’s outdoor amphitheater.
After a few years of living in two small houses lent by parishioners, the La Salette community now lives in a large house opened on September 2, 1995, called the "La Salette Residence and House of Spirituality". This new home provides not only a real home for the La Salettes Community but also includes facilities to offer Retreats, Days of Recollection, and places for family gatherings. It is also the headquarters of the Spanish La Salette Laity Group.
