See photos The State of California proudly displays, in various locations, a variety of statues of the Franciscan priest, Father Junipero Serra, founder of nine of California’s twenty-one historical missions. Only the city of San Buenaventura, however, can boast of three similar statues, one of concrete, one of wood, and one of bronze. This is the story of how these three statues grew out of the heart of the people of the “City by the Sea”.