St. Gertrude’s Blessed Mother Statue Vandalized for Third Time

For the third time in five months, the Blessed Mother statue in front of St. Gertrude Church in Far Rockaway was vandalized, and this time, the damage will require replacing the statue.

Sometime overnight from Saturday, March 14 to Sunday, March 15, the statue was knocked over, breaking the more than 100-year-old statue beyond repair. The statue was previously vandalized on October 2, 2025, when a black bag with a skull face was placed over the Blessed Mother’s head. It was vandalized more severely on January 28 when the statue was toppled over, shattering the back of the Blessed Mother’s head. With the latest incident shattering the front and back, the statue will require being replaced completely, according to the Diocese of Brooklyn.

The NYPD is ruling the incident as a hate crime. No arrests have been made. The parish is working to install a new security system and is obtaining estimates to replace the statue.