Buyers of the former Cedar Lake monastery work to restore grottos, history

Chicago Tribune

31-05-2025

Scott and Cheryl Filler have made many discoveries as they delved into restoring the 61-acre former Lourdes Franciscan Friary in Cedar Lake since purchasing the property in January 2024.
As they worked to clear the brush and overgrowth that once crowded the grottos this past February, they stumbled upon a large piece of wood covered in a layer of leaves and dirt.
'From the side, it looked like a large railroad tie,' Scott Filler said. 'I was in my tractor about to dump it into the fire but I hesitated and dropped it to the side.'
When they rolled it over, they were shocked to find it was a nearly life-sized hand-carved relic.
'There was moss grown over it, so we couldn't see the whole carving at first,' Scott Filler said. 'It was a miracle finding it in a way, and that it didn't end up in the burn pile.'
From there, the couple researched and matched the statue with representations of Our Lady of Guadalupe, which depicts a divine sighting of the Virgin Mary chronicled in the 1500s in Central Mexico. The carving shows a woman standing with hands clasped in prayer, in a cloak covered in stars. She is standing on a crescent moon, which symbolizes the Aztec serpent deity Quetzalcoatl, showing that she triumphs over the ancient gods. Another connection scholars have made is Revelations 12:1, which refers to a woman who has 'the moon under her feet.'
Currently, they are working on restoring the carving and will display it inside the main building.
'The condition that it's in is crazy, for being out in the elements for who knows how long,' Scott Filler said. 'We still haven't been able to find out about where it came from or who made it. It makes you wonder what else is out there.'
Cleaning, preserving and renovating the property at 12915 Parrish Avenue has been the couple's continual labor for the past year and a half.
Married for 22 years with a son, the Fillers are Region natives who met at Plaza Lanes bowling alley in Highland when Cheryl, a nurse, was a secretary for a men's league that Scott Filler was a part of.
In 1989 Scott Filler started a small renovations business, Apex Construction and Remodeling based out of Highland. As the company grew larger, the couple were regularly on the lookout for new projects and interesting properties.
One day while driving on Parrish Avenue, a 'for sale' sign caught Cheryl Filler's eye. The grottos were visible through the trees and rolling hills, and it peaked her interest.
'I thought we should check this out, I had no idea what it is but it looked cool,' Cheryl Filler said. 'Growing up in Lake County, we had no idea this was here.'
They put in an offer, but it was promptly declined by the developer who owned it at the time.
'When the developer purchased it from the sisters (Catholic religious organization), he purchased it with the intent of completely demolishing everything and flipping it to another developer to build a subdivision,' Cheryl Filler said.
Scott Filler said they had to move on after learning the seller's desired price was too high for them. However, as time passed, the property came back into the couple's lives with the announcement of an auction in 2023.
Levin & Associates, in partnership with real estate broker CBRE, facilitated the auction that was set for Dec.19, 2023. The property had a suggested opening bid is $975,000, with the property previously being valued at $3,800,000.
The space includes five buildings, wooded areas, walking trails and two ponds. The main building is about 16,944 square feet and dates back to the 1920s when it was a hotel. Several artifacts linger from the land's religious significance including statues, multiple grottos, altars, crosses, and stations of the cross depicting Jesus's last days.
The Fillers' findings have ranged from historical photos to artifacts from the property's past. Some of the more personal things discovered has come with their restoration work on the grottos, which are manmade cave-like structures made to house altars.
One of them includes a life-sized Jesus statue lying down at rest in a tomb. Another grotto is teepee-shaped to honor the first Native American saint, Saint Kateri Tekakwitha, known as 'Lily of the Mohawks.'
'People still sneak in and light candles in them,' Scott Filler said. 'Three weeks ago, they found still-lit candles in the Jesus grotto.'
In the winter, he found footprints leading to and from the grotto, where he found someone had lit a candle and wrote their prayers inside a notebook on the altar. The spiral notebooks and loose papers, some weathered but still legible, include the stories, hopes, pleas and struggles of countless people who sought spiritual refuge on the grounds.
Their nonprofit, 'Friends of the Friary,' is aimed at restoring the 50-year-old grottos and statues and inspiring community interest.
'We started the Friends of the Friary Facebook page because the town people of Cedar Lake were up in arms that it was sold, and they were worried someone was going to tear everything down,' Cheryl Filler said. 'We wanted to calm their fears.'In honor of the property's spiritual significance, the Fillers opened up the exterior property to the public on Sundays during Lent and on Easter.
Cedar Lake Historian Scott Bocock has aided them in research efforts. One of the projects the Fillers have been working on is displaying history of the grounds in the main building, showing 'how the Franciscans of Pulaski, Wisconsin impacted Cedar Lake historically and religiously.'
'I think the next step was to attempt to contact some of those still living who served here and have them write memoirs of their experiences at Cedar Lake,' Bocock said. 'From this perspective, I think this is a great endeavor because it continues to preserve, tell and promote an important part of our local history. It also continues to give community pride and encourage others to visit all of the historical and cultural resources that we have in town. Ultimately, it helps the town to grow in these respects.'
Clearing brush from the grottos was just the first step, in which masonry and other reparative work is being done to keep the structures sound. They have also identified several name plaques throughout the property, many of which were Polish families from the South Side of Chicago.
'I hope to track down the names and try and find their great grandchildren,' Scott Filler said.
The Fillers have spent all of 2024 and 2025 so far picking up 80 years of garbage and buried rubble inside and outside of the buildings.
Some of their less historical discoveries include finding 40 La-Z-Boy chairs in the main building's attic, believed to be hoarded by former friars. They also found that at some point in its vacancy, individuals had broken into the main building and sprayed fire extinguishers in many of the rooms.
On top of uncovering what is already there, the Fillers also procured other pieces of Region history to add into the mix.
'We bought pews from Salem Methodist Church in Hebron they were going to tear down; they're about 120 years old,' Cheryl Filler said.
The chapel itself is a large open room with a raised platform with arched windows that overlook the pond. While much of the site's roots are in Catholicism, the Fillers want the monastery site to draw people of all backgrounds, beliefs and ages.
'For me, my mission is to let kids come out here,' Scott Filler said. 'I was a Boy Scout, and I'd love to get the Boy Scouts or other youth groups here. To teach a kid to fish is an amazing feeling, seeing their faces light up.'
'I'd love to help them get merit badges, go fishing or learn how to build a fire or spend a night camping,' Cheryl Filler added. 'It's all here, and no one knows that this place exists.'
Scott Filler said he would like to see the exterior be open to the public in some form and Cheryl Filler expressed wanting to create a community garden and keep bees in an apiary.
'This quiet place is crammed right in the middle town, but sitting here right now, you wouldn't know it,' Scott Filler said.
The Fillers have a variety of thoughts and dreams about what they'd like to do with the property that would make for some sort of destination spot or community hub. However, because they're still working with the town of Cedar Lake and are in early planning stages, no definite plans have been made yet.
The Fillers have gone before town officials this past spring to present a concept plan to the Cedar Lake Planning Commission, which included restoring the chapel to be in use, but no definite decisions have been made.
'People have come and thanked us for saving the property,' Scott Filler said. 'We've had people who said they prayed for someone to take it over who would preserve it and care for it. They say you can't stop progress, but maybe you can stop 61 acres of progress in Lake County.'
Bocock said, in a way, the Fillers have been an answer to Cedar Lake residents' prayers.
'I think that those of the community and its leaders should be excited about what is happening at the former friary site because, at the time that the Franciscans sold the property, many expressed concern that we'd lose the beauty of the area if it was developed for housing,' Bocock said. 'Many visitors have left their prayers written on various scraps of paper in the grotto in hopes that it would be saved. With all of the current building going on in town, it has been felt that we're losing more of our natural resources. I think a very serene and picturesque spot is being saved.'
For more information, visit the Facebook group 'Friends of the Friary.'
For those curious to see the grounds, the Fillers have partnered with Humane Indiana to host public events. From 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. June 21, Humane Indiana will host 'Nocturnal Nature Night' at the former friary grounds at 12921 Parrish Ave. in Cedar Lake. There will be guided night hikes with night vision goggles to see owls, bats and other nocturnal creatures, as well as visiting ambassador animals, demonstrations, crafts and more. It is open to the public and the cost will be $10 per car, with more information to be found on humaneindiana.org.