Thousands of worshippers from across the country will descend upon Berwyn for Labor Day weekend and the 108th annual Maria SS. Lauretana religious feast.

Feast organizer Carl Reina said the event, which has been held in Berwyn for more than 40 years, draws more than 80,000 people to celebrate the birth of the Virgin Mary.

The event runs Friday through Monday, Aug. 29 to Sept. 1, and will feature traditional religious ceremonies such as the procession of the Madonna and the Flight of the Angels, as well as food, games, entertainment and daily performances by the Sicilian Band of Chicago.

The event mirrors an annual feast held Sept. 8 in a small town in Sicily, which is believed to be the birthday of the Virgin Mary.

“This small fishing village of 5,000 turns into 300,000 people overnight,” Reina said. “Ours is a replica of what occurs out there. The difference is out there, it’s on a much bigger scale.”

Reina said the feast started in Sicily after two 15th century fisherman found a frame floating in the Mediterranean Sea. The frame, which held an image of the Virgin Mary, was brought to a church in Sicily where local residents prayed to the image. Shortly after, Reina said, miracles began occurring in the town.

“There were people that were very ill and their families prayed, and these people became well,” Reina said. “There were hopeless cases that were cured and this is how this evolved.”

The feast honoring the Virgin Mary has taken place annually in Sicily for more than 480 years. Italian immigrants brought the tradition to Chicago in 1900 where it was held in the Cabrini-Green neighborhood. About 45 years ago, organizers moved the festival to Berwyn’s Cermak Plaza, where it has been held since.

The bulk of the feast’s events take place Sunday with the traditional procession of the image of the Virgin Mary, followed by the Flight of the Angels, where children are hoisted by ropes to simulate angels flying.

This year’s procession could be a little dimmer than in the past. Reina said someone stole three of feast’s six lighting vestunes from the parking lot of Morton West High School Aug. 18. The vestunes, which normally arch over the street, cost about $2,000 each.

Police later found the badly damaged vestunes at a Chicago scrap yard where they had been sold for $106. Reina said Friday that organizers have not yet decided whether to try to replace them.

“There are some crazy people out there,” Reina said.