The church was built between 1630 and 1634 in the centre of Gera Lario to make it easier for the faithful to attend religious services. It was completed in 1725 with the wall paintings of the presbytery, which was also paid for by donations received from local fishermen.
The terrible flooding of 1951 caused serious damage to the church and it was closed to worship. In the following years, at the behest of the parish priest Father Luigi Bianchi, restoration works began and in 1963 the Bishop of Como, Felice Bonomini, reconsecrated it as the “Santuario dei Pescatori” (Sanctuary of the Fishermen).
The Sanctuary was later visited by the Bishop of Fatima, Venancio Pereira, who consecrated the two side altars, beginning a spiritual dialogue between Gera Lario and the Portuguese town of Fatima. Inside there are several paintings of the seventeenth 17th century and an effigy of Our Lady of Fatima, to which the church is today named.
Opening hours
Every day: 8am-6pm
Masses schedule: view the dedicated section