CONCEPCION, Texas — It’s not uncommon to still see thousands of people lined up to touch the Miracle Healing Tree in Concepcion. The tree was first planted in a home there 20 years ago and over time, its supposed healing powers have drawn people from across the country to the site.
A lot has changed as the tree suffered heavy damage from the big Texas freeze in 2021. But one thing that hasn’t changed is the belief that it can still deliver miracles.
Our Michael Gibson took the pilgrimage to this religious roadside attraction and caught up with some others looking for a miracle.
He met with Ernesto Villalpando, a truck driver from the Rio Grande Valley who’s made the trip to Concepcion to visit the tree. The young truck driver said he’s suffering from diabetes. He told us that he has heart and vision problems and even had to have his foot amputated.
"I recently heard about the tree, its healing, and I saw some videos about it with other people coming by and how they were healed. It was just faith that brought me to it," Villalpando said.
The tree is located off of Farm to Market Road 1329. It is an olive tree that was planted in 2002 and has drawn thousands of visitors each year.
"I have been here to witness that people have come here blind that have left seeing," the owner of the tree, Estella Cantu, said. "People that are diabetic or with heart disease, tumors, cancers... and I have proof of the healing."
Cantu took over the Miracle Tree site for her mother after she passed away in 2017.
We are told that that one of the special features of this Miracle Healing Tree is that if you put your ear up to the trunk, you can hear something. So, as a good reporter, I put my ear to the tree for a listen. I heard what sounded like water being dumped out of a cup and possibly, my own heartbeat.
The tree doesn’t look the same as it did for the first 19 years of his life. It was heavily damaged in February 2021's freeze. It had to be cut in half. Still, the tree came back to life and continues to provide hope.
Villalpando and his family are now headed back to the Valley to wait and see if touching the tree will produce the miracle that modern medicine hasn’t been able to deliver.
More from 3News on KIIITV.com:
- 60+ stolen shopping carts recovered in Flour Bluff neighborhood, arrest made
- Parent arrested after 4-year-old found with loaded handgun at JFK Elementary
- Woman with ties to Corpus Christi thought to be missing was actually evading arrest, tracked to South America
- 'Irreplaceable leader': Corpus Christi teen died of heat stroke playing football
- Trade Center navigating solutions to reopen after electrical issues
- Beto O'Rourke missed South Texas events due to bacterial infection, he says
Want to send us a news tip?
Put your name and contact information below so we can get in touch with you about your story should we have questions or need more information. We realize some stories are sensitive in nature. Let us know if you'd like to remain anonymous.
If you do not have a photo/video to submit, just click "OK" to skip that prompt.