Woodland Hills : School Given Statue of Father Junipero Serra

On command, boys and girls in parochial school white and blue began filing across the schoolyard to the folding chairs arranged in neat rows.

They took their seats in silence, as the soft, melodic strains of Antonin Dvorak’s “Symphony of the New World” wafted through the warm autumn sunlight.

The occasion was a dedication Tuesday of a statue of Father Junipero Serra, a gift to St. Bernardine of Siena Catholic School in Woodland Hills. The Spanish missionary, who established Catholic missions from San Diego to San Francisco during the 1700s, is revered by many Catholics for his efforts to spread Christianity among California’s Native Americans.

Msgr. Paul Dotson, pastor of St. Bernardine of Siena Church, described Serra as a kind man who sacrificed much to spread the Gospel. He admonished the students to follow Serra’s example.

The statue was donated by William Hannon, a longtime Los Angeles resident and Serra admirer. Hannon said he became interested in Serra as a young boy, while seeing plays at Mission San Gabriel about the life of the Spanish padre. Hannon, a developer, credits Serra with paving the way for the development of California.

But Serra’s image is tarnished in eyes of some who say the Spanish conquest of California and the missionary system did more harm than good to the tribes who lived here. Dotson, asked to comment, said that though he is not an expert on the history of that period, he believes the missionaries had only good intentions. They accompanied the soldiers on their expeditions, he said, because “it was an opportunity to evangelize. It was part of Christ’s calling.”