“On Kilbourn Avenue, just south of 63rd Street and a block over from the grocer Save A Lot — not too far from Taqueria El Pastor — sits a small architectural wonder relatively few Chicagoans have seen.
“Ave Maria Chapel, 6336 S. Kilbourn Ave., is a brick building designed by and built for Lithuanians, who settled on the Southwest Side following World War II, fleeing Soviet occupation of their homeland.
“‘The main spiritual goal [in building the chapel] was to maintain their national identity in this polyglot country,’ Vicki Matranga, curator at the Balzekas Museum Of Lithuanian Culture in West Lawn, said.
“As of late, however, there’s been fear this unique building and its former monastery might be lost.
“The Marian Fathers, the Catholic order that owns the buildings and the headquarters of Draugas — the world’s only daily Lithuanian-language newspaper published outside Lithuania — put the entire campus up for sale last summer.
“The buildings, which come with park-like green space, is the kind of package developers tend to like. The chapel closed in July, but the newspaper office remains open.
“There could be some hope on the horizon. The Brother David Darst Center, a nonprofit educating young people on social justice issues, said last week it has a countersigned offer letter with the Marian Brothers to buy the chapel and monastery. Donovan said the purchase would preserve the monastery and chapel.
“Behind Ave Maria’s arched entry sits a small nave that is somehow classical yet modern, filled with mosaics, ornate stained glass, mosaics windows and enough color, details and natural light to seemingly keep the eye occupied for an eternity.
“‘This is a unique little jewel box,” Chicago art historian and stained glass expert Rolf Achilles said of the chapel. “It’s very small. It’s 30 by 40 feet or so, and it’s not your typical church interior. [It’s] absolutely unique. There’s nothing like it in Chicago.’ (Bey, Chicago Sun-Times, 11/20/25)