CLEVELAND — Inside New Life At Calvary Church, holiday decorations like wreaths and ribbons adorn the main room. A Christmas tree stands in the corner covered in small clothing items, something they’ve called the HUGS tree. Instead of ornaments, the tree is adorned with hats, underwear, gloves and socks to give to members of the community. On the wall are papers with the ages of school children in the community who could use a gift this holiday season.
From the inside, the historic church, which has served Cleveland since 1880, is decorated as one would expect for the Christmas season. But upon closer inspection, the room where services are held is actually a gym, and cherry pickers stand outside where a temporary roof spans most of the building. A trailer sits in the corner of the parking lot, serving as church offices.
In August, a tornado ripped through Cleveland, tearing the roof off the church, causing a tree to fall into a wall, and causing damage to the stonework.
“I just remember bawling, in tears, I was just so sad for our building. But this nightmare has turned into a source of joy, a source of strength, a source of hope for us,” said pastor Kellie Sullivan. “Just to see the community rally around us and care for us has been an amazing experience.”
Sullivan said the community has called, sent cards, and shared their support as the church has undergone repairs, a process that’s been slow thus far, according to Sullivan.
“I initially thought this was going to go fast, we’re going to be back in our building by Christmas, everything’s going to be ok. But this has been a slow journey,” she said. “It’s been incredibly slow.”
Sullivan said they’ve learned that the damage done by the tornado caused other problems that need to be attended to before any rebuilding can start.
“When the tornado happened, it ripped off our roof and all of this asbestos was released, lead, mold, other contaminants in our building,” she said. “That caused an environmental issue, which is resulting in a major clean up. Before the clean up can be done, though, all the evaluations have to be done and assessments have to be done. Right now, we’re in a waiting stage.”
Sullivan said the clean-up alone can take weeks, if not months, once it begins. She said they could be working on the repairs through the summer.
While the church waits for clean-up efforts and the rebuilding process to move forward, they’re continuing to host Sunday services in the gym using an air filter, a room that was not damaged by the storm. The upstairs area, where the children used to play, underwent the most damage, as that’s where the roof was torn off.
Despite these challenges, New Life At Calvary Church is also still holding a food bank Friday ahead of the holiday and is collecting clothing to support neighborhood students.
“We want to share that love and that joy that we have been receiving with many others, so we’re not giving up,” Sullivan said. “I think I’ve said that from the beginning, we are not going to give up. And we are still calling up on the City of Cleveland to support us, love on us, and we will offer that love in return.”
According to assistant pastor Antonia Martin, Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb has been helpful in supporting the church, even attending service and calling upon federal and state support.
“Easter and Christmas are the times of year when you see people the most, and that’s when people need hope the most. That’s when people need to hear about Jesus Christ the most," said Martin. “So yes, this is a very important place to be, especially during Christmas time.”
The church is accepting donations of toys, food and clothing for the community for the holiday season, and they're also accepting monetary donations for repairs. For more information, visit their website.
