- December 4, 2025
Prince of Peace Catholic Church recently celebrated the groundbreaking for a new addition to its parish campus: A "Mary's Peace Garden," complete with a 5-foot-tall Virgin Mary statue on a 5-foot base.
The groundbreaking ceremony, held on Aug. 6, came after about two years of planning for the garden, which will also have 14 Stations of the Cross — pillars depicting the events that led to Jesus' death. The garden will also be composed a 170-foot-long, 16-foot wide sidewalk and several benches.
"Mary is a big thing for Catholics," said Dominic Bui, parishioner and project coordinator. "... The area that we're getting ready to build is a very nice piece of property, and that's why we looked into building a new one — a bigger, nicer one — so that everybody can come and reflect in themselves and pray, and don't have to go inside the church."
The garden will be located east of the church's main parking lot, the same location as the existing smaller garden in honor of Virgin Mary. The space will allow for the church to hold special services outdoors.
Bui said that, to his knowledge, there's nothing like this garden project in the greater Volusia area.
Being able to celebrate its groundbreaking, he added, was excellent. Going through the city's permitting process took about a year, and in the meantime, the church was also getting permission from their diocese in Orlando.
The garden project receiving significant financial support. Many of the components in the project, Bui said, have been sponsored.
The church asked for 14 sponsors of $5,000 each for the Stations of
the Cross, as well as four sponsors for the base of the statue of Mary, at $2,500 each. Sponsorships for light poles and the walkway are still available.
The statue of Mary, made in marble in Italy, is ready to be installed. So are the Stations of the Cross, made from natural stone from Vietnam.
"We have it in-house," Bui said. "So now, it's just the construction process to put all the pieces together.
The church contracted Luxury Builders, of Daytona Beach, for the project, which Bui said is expected to be complete by the end of November.
To learn more about the project, visit www.princeofpeaceormond.com/mary-peace-garden.
