CLEVELAND — A theft at one of Cleveland’s historic churches has left members confused, calling it egregious and violating.
Police say sometime between July 9 and July 14, someone stole two antique light posts from the Pearl Road United Methodist Church. The person responsible left no mess behind, which has forced members to believe they were experienced.
“They put little tabs onto each of the bases so that no one would get a shocked…they had to know what they were doing, and that's the most frustrating part of all,” said Parishioner Lou Swanson Goodwin. “It's just a heartbreak to have these gone. It really is.”
Mark Whisenhunt, Pearl Road United Methodist Church’s newly appointed pastor, says the light posts were added during a remodel 70 years ago.
“They were kind of the witnesses to the way this church and this neighborhood have been mutually supportive to each other,” he said. “This incident is not reflective one of the church, but it's also not a good reflection on the community and the neighborhood around it…It feels like it's a breach of trust over the established norms of everyone that lives in the area.”
So far, there are no suspects nor any surveillance video of the theft. Members told News 5 they fear the posts could possibly end up at a scrapyard. They are made out of either bronze or brass, with pure copper tops and stained-glass inserts.
“I've talked to over a dozen scrap yards and most of them have been very helpful. They said that, first of all, they wouldn't take something like that…and if they had something like that, they said they would have told me right away,” said Tom Hites, leader of the Pearl Road United Methodist Church board.
Despite their sadness and shock, the congregation remains hopeful.
“You always hope for better times to come. You hope that these lamps will be returned, and they'll be put back in the historic place they came from,” said Hites.
