After 561 days of displacement, New Life at Calvary Church in Cleveland’s Fairfax neighborhood is returning to its sanctuary for worship. The historic church, designated as a Cleveland Historic Landmark, suffered extensive damage from an EF-1 tornado that struck in September 2022. The storm caused millions of dollars in structural harm, along with asbestos and lead contamination, forcing the congregation to relocate services to the church gym.
On Friday, Pastor Kellie Sullivan spoke with reporters ahead of Sunday’s long-awaited return to the sanctuary. Reflecting on the church’s journey, she described it as a period of both struggle and resilience.
Back in October 2023, Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb addressed the congregation, acknowledging the difficulties they faced. “It has been many challenges, but also many joys. So overall, I think I told you that day that we’re blessed. We feel the presence of God, and we know that he’s been with us on this journey, and so we’re just going to keep being obedient and faithful and trusting in his plan,” Bibb said.
Now, with a new roof in place and remediation work completed, the sanctuary is ready for worship once again. Most of the pews have been restored and reattached, and Sullivan expressed her eagerness to welcome everyone back. When asked what she missed most about the space, she responded with enthusiasm.
“Oh, everything,” she said. “You just feel the sacredness, the holiness, the beauty of the architecture, the stained glass window, sitting in a pew and actually having church, having space for everyone [in] our choir. I cannot wait to see our choir up and singing on Sunday and having the space to sing.”
In February, Sullivan had anticipated that the church’s first sermon back in the sanctuary would be one of gratitude. “I would hope that our first sermon back would just be a praise and thanksgiving to God,” she said at the time. The church has also been working toward being listed on the National Register of Historic Places, a decision expected in the near future.
During Friday’s discussion, Sullivan provided insight into the message she plans to share with the congregation this Sunday. “This past Ash Wednesday, my first message was ‘Worship in the Ruins,’ because in the Bible, it’s a story about how the Israelites came back… to rebuild the temple, and it was difficult. It was a lot of broken pieces,” she explained. “And so as we come back into our sanctuary, we don’t have perfection, but we’re not striving for perfection. We are a work in progress, and that’s what I hope people see when they come here.”
Sullivan emphasized that the church remains committed to growth and inclusivity. “We keep growing. We keep challenging ourselves to reach new and higher levels,” she said. “We never got to fully recover from COVID, and so we are hoping our church gets full to the brim again. We’re hoping our Easter service is jam-packed. We want to see people come to experience their faith here. So we’re going to keep carrying our baton and sharing love and joy to the Cleveland community. Our doors are open. Come on in, everybody!”
The church will celebrate its return to the sanctuary with a service on Sunday, March 9, at 10 a.m. As the congregation regains its sacred space, they continue to await official word on their potential historic designation.