At over 35 feet high, and 20,000 pounds the tallest steel cross in San Diego recently was placed atop a Rancho San Diego-Jamul hill by a Chinook helicopter. With its pedestal, reaching nearly 38-feet, the large Chaldean cross rises 900 feet above sea level and will serve as symbolic memorial for Christians persecuted throughout Iraq and the Middle East.
The cross was made possible by the family of Sam and Evone Attisha and placed on Dec. 14.
The Chaldean Holy Cross Monument is located on Via Caliente del Sol.
“Over the last several decades, Christians in Iraq and throughout the middle east have been persecuted simply because of their faith,” said Samad Attisha in a press release. “My family and I are blessed with the opportunity to have made this possible on behalf of the entire Chaldean Community.”
In June 1976, Mary & Yelda Attisha, the Chaldean parents of six boys and one girl landed as immigrants in San Diego, California. Just like hundreds of other Chaldean families before them, they left Iraq due to political, cultural, and economic reasons to settle in America. The Attisha siblings mustered enough planning and efforts to open several grocery stores and gas stations in San Diego in the early 1980s to start their own Chaldean families and live the American Dream.
“Overcoming bureaucratic hurdles, ensuring structural integrity, fabricating the entire cross out of one piece of carbon steel and constructing the foundation of the Chaldean Cross was not an easy feat, but our team is blessed with several highly skilled individuals, all of whom played a crucial role in ensuring this project’s success,” Vince Kattoula, the project’s manager
Correction: A previous version of this article reflected that the last quote was said by Samad Attisha by saying, “he said.” The quote came from Vince Katoula, the project’s manager. The East County Californian regrets this error.
