For more than a year, I’ve been covering the story of New Life at Calvary’s journey to recovery following a tornado that struck its historic building on E. 79th Street and Euclid Avenue in August of 2023.
The church is still being repaired but has continued to serve its members and community.
News 5's report detailing the one-year anniversary of the tornado that caused major damage to New Life at Calvary
Monday, the church announced a major gift. It’s been awarded a $175,000 grant through the National Fund for Sacred Places program- a collaboration between the National Trust for Historic Preservation and Partners for Sacred Places.
The funding will help the church continue its preservation projects that were being planned well before the tornado.
"I can't imagine how many stones make up this building,” said Pastor Kellie Sullivan as she walked me around the property.
The structure, built in the late 1800s, and its members have withstood the test of time.
"They (members) stayed through the Civil Rights Movement. They stayed through when white flight took place and everybody left,” Sullivan said. “They stayed through the hardship of a tornado.”
Millions of dollars in damage occurred as the church was already in a campaign to restore the historic landmark designed by architect Charles Schweinfurth.
"We’re going to stay a place of faith. A place of worship. And a place of hope and healing for the Cleveland community,” Sullivan said.
News of the church being awarded the grant is news New Life had waited months for.
“We absolutely see value in investing historic buildings both because of the stories that they hold and the people that value them in their communities,” said Jennifer Sandy, senior director of preservation programs at the National Trust for Historic Preservation. “We saw that New Life at Calvary both was historically significant and was doing so much work in their community. And because they had been impacted by tornado damage and because they were working with preservationists like Cleveland Restoration Society, we really wanted to step alongside and help lift that work up.”
The grant can be used for preservation projects, including capital improvements like roof repairs, HVAC replacement, waterproofing and stone repair.
“What we're really looking for often are sort of generational investment in buildings. Maybe they haven't been repaired in 20 or 30 years, but the membership are coming together and they're partnering with others in their community,” Sandy said. “Maybe there's a local foundation, community foundation or a nonprofit that they're working with to say, ‘Hey, we are doing great stuff in this building.’”
Sandy said raising money for preservation projects is oftentimes difficult.
“We don't have the same millionaires that used to exist on millionaires row right here,” Sullivan said. “We have very humble, hardworking people we serve at our church, and so they give so faithfully. But even with they're giving, it's really not enough to make up the millions of dollars that this building needs to be maintained.”
A total of $4 million was awarded to 24 places of worship. There were nearly 500 applications. New Life and First Congregational Church, UCC in Columbus, were the only two from Ohio.
Sullivan said the church will use the grant to cover masonry on the north, east and west sides of the building.
"You can see the wear and tear on the stairs. the mortar is missing and gone,” Sullivan said. “A lot of these stones were quarried right here in Ohio. So, these are Ohio stones and Ohio workers touched these stones and created this. Each stone will be carefully cleaned and preserved for the future. They have a special technique of cleaning the stone that doesn’t require sandblasting.”
The Cleveland Restoration Society provided New Life with technical assistance on their grant application.
“One of the ways that our history is told and shared is through our older and historic buildings and churches are an exceptional place to tell this story… telling the immigrant story (and) telling a migrant story,” said Margaret Lann, director of preservation services and publications at the Clevland Restoration Society.
The nonprofit also helps others in the community apply for similar funding.
Lann said New Life is special.
“The church functions both as a reminder of our past and then provides community services, adds value to the neighborhood today and is a thing of beauty that can certainly be appreciated by Clevelanders,” Lann said. “It was designed by the architect Charles Schweinfurth, who designed some of Cleveland's greatest and most notable buildings and structures For example, all the beautiful bridges that are along Martin Luther King Junior Drive.”
Sullivan said a timeline for the exterior work isn’t known yet, but she can’t wait to show off the completed work.
“We want this building to be here for 200 years and more,” Sullivan said.
The church is also still in the process of trying to get into the National Register of Historic Places. The Cleveland Restoration Society is assisting with that application process.
News 5 Reported in February of this year that the National Park Service awarded the Cleveland Restoration Society a $52,149 federal grant to help complete nominations to the National Register of Historic Places for New Life at Calvary Church, Advent Evangelical Lutheran Church, Emmanuel Baptist Church, The Greater Abyssinia Baptist Church, Greater Friendship Baptist Church and Nazarene Baptist Church.
Another Cleveland church received this grant in 2022
In 2022, East Mount Zion Baptist Church was awarded a $225,000 grant through the National Fund for Sacred Places program. Rev. Dr. Brian A. Cash said the church is using that funding as part of a $1.1 million roof replacement project that will begin in the spring.
New Life’s return to its sanctuary
Sullivan added that a new contractor, Korner Construction, is finishing repairs to the church following the tornado. She said this week, a new permanent roof is being installed over a portion of the building that housed offices, youth worship and activity space.
There’s also remaining work in the sanctuary, including new H-VAC systems and electrical. Members have been holding worship services in the gym, but Sullivan said they could return to the sanctuary in time for Christmas.
