Built to be a house of prayer for all people, the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels recently honored 56 volunteer tour leaders who have just completed a mentoring program designed to enhance each visitor's experience and appreciation of the cathedral's architectural and artistic treasures.

Mentor Mike Gibson, 48, who has been a tour leader since the program's inception after the cathedral's dedication in September 2002, accompanied 10 leader volunteers participating in the quality evaluation survey program. Mentors worked with the tour leaders over a three-month period to help compile "best practices" for the cathedral guides, who lead one-hour tours on weekdays and selected Saturdays as well as private tours for groups of ten or more by appointment.

"The trick is bringing descriptive language to the prepared script and engaging in dialogue," said Gibson, a lawyer and parishioner at St. Lawrence Martyr in Redondo Beach. According to Gibson, people taking the tour from the cathedral's "very dedicated" volunteers leave overwhelmed by the experience.

"The Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels is probably one of the most outstanding monuments in L.A.," said Gibson. "At the end of the tour, people are universally impressed."

Fellow tour leader and St. Francis of Assisi (Los Angeles) parishioner, Christine Foster, 61, who wrote the script used by the volunteers, said volunteering has enhanced her love of the cathedral. "I'm delighted to share the knowledge I've gained," said Foster, who created the cathedral website (www.olacathedral.org) and has authored a soon-to-be-published 50-page picture book focusing on the cathedral's art and architecture.

Foster noted that visitors appreciate the feeling of hospitality at the cathedral, beginning with the outdoor gateway pool which features the words: "I shall give you living water" in 36 different languages.

Inside, visitors are free to touch the life-size crucifix behind the altar and even sit in the cardinal's cathedra (chair). "The vast majority of people are awed that they can wander around so freely," described Foster.

"The cathedral is a magnificent statement of Southern California and our traditions here and is appropriate to our times," said Foster. "There are so many wonderful reminders of the California missions." Mission influences, said Foster, include the cathedral's adobe color and the trees on the outdoor plaza.

Manager of volunteer services Sue Burnett, who coordinates more than 800 active volunteers at the cathedral, estimates that several thousand documented tours have been conducted since the tour program began in 2002. "The tour leaders have a beautiful calling," she said, "and they have truly become wonderful teachers at the cathedral."

Free community tours are conducted on weekdays at 1 p.m. in the lower level plaza (1:15 p.m. on Wednesdays after the free cathedral organ recital) as well as selected Saturdays reserved by appointment. Groups larger than 10 may be scheduled with Francisco Camacho, tour coordinator, at (213) 680-5215.