Cleveland Deanery Report to The 49 th Diocesan Assembly - Minneapolis October 4-6, 2010

Transcription

1 Cleveland Deanery Report to The 49 th Diocesan Assembly - Minneapolis October 4-6, 2010 REPORT OF THE DEAN - ARCHPRIEST ANDREW CLEMENTS Upon the retirement of Fr John Steffaro, I was appointed Dean of the Cleveland Deanery effective April 1, My activities since that time have included: Presiding at two Deanery Meetings Attending my first Bishop s Council Meeting in Chicago Negotiating two Clergy Salary Packages for Fr Joseph McCartney (Associate Pastor - Archangel Michael, Broadview Hgts) and Fr Andrew Nelko (Fr Steffaro s replacement at St John s - Campbell). Acting as Parish Administrator for St John s Campbell during vacancy involving countless phone calls and s Attending Special Parish Meetings regarding Rectory renovation and new Priest placement Overseeing the Interview Process for the two candidates for St John s - Campbell Fr Andrew Nelko assigned as of Sept 1, 2010 Mentoring Fr Gregory Thompson Interim Priest at St John s Representing the Deanery at Fr Steffaro s Parish Retirement Dinner Tying up loose ends in the Deanery after Fr Steffaro s retirement. Taking official possession of the items in storage (Liturgical & other) from the closed parish of Holy Cross - Nashville, Ohio * In process of completing Clergy Survey Project initiated by Archbishop Job Moderating one of three Interview Sessions of our Episcopal Candidates at our Clergy Convocation Deanery News: New Deanery Meeting Format Meets every other month Less business, more sharing and discussing of issues, problem, etc. Each month, different Reflection / Discussion Leader presents a topic of their choosing Return to weekly Deanery Mission Services during Lent Trying to attract teens by offering a 4:00 pm Mini-Retreat lead by host Pastor before the 5:00 pm Service Retirement Dinner for Fr John Steffaro Scheduled for Nov. 14 with all Deanery Clergy / Wives New Deanery wide teen Group meets monthly at different Deanery parishes Mainly fellowship but also clergy talks offered * These items amount to A Church in a Box including Icon Screen, Altar, Tetrapod, etc and are available to any Diocesan Mission. See Fr Andrew for details. 1

2 Parish Reports ST NICHOLAS MENTOR, OHIO - ARCHPRIEST ANDREW CLEMENTS The following report reflects activities since last year s Diocesan Assembly. October 2010 will mark parish s 37 th Anniversary and Fr Andrew s 25 th year as Rector. Fr Andrew became Dean of Cleveland on April 1, 2010 BUILDING PROJECTS New storage garage built (complete in house labor) New AED installed New First Aid Station installed Nave of Church painted Parish Inventory for Insurance purposes completed Proposed Hall Renovation during 2011 CHARITY Assisting a Parishoner with medical bills Sponsored travel expenses for a member to be home for Christmas 100 complete Turkey Dinners distributed for Thanksgiving (Internal & Greater Commuity) Three Soup Kitchen Projects (full meals cooked and served to over 100 people) Giant Eagle Food cards distributed as needed Parish Charity Fund supports internal & community needs $2,040 of Lenten Alms distributed - Fr Michael Mihalik, St Herman s House, others Sponsored a Graduation Open House for a needy family CONTINUING EDUCATION Fr Andrew & Two members attended OCA Parish Ministries Conference Church School Program including two Adult Classes Catechumen Classes Marriage Prep Classe FUNDRAISING Christmas Cookie / Food Sale MINISTRIES 18 Lay Ministries OUTREACH & MISSION St Nicholas Uganda Children s Fund (Endorsed by Metropolitan Jonah) Peter & Sharon Georges spend 6 mos / yr in Africa providing School Fees, Uniforms & Supplies for needy children, reviewing new potential recipients, supporting local Orthodox Programs, etc. ( 2

3 See Separate Handout on your table. Project Mexico (Our 11 th year of participating) Twelve participants in 2010 Quarterly support of Ancient Faith Radio PUBLICATIONS The Memorial Service The Funeral Service New Parish Roster SACRAMENTS Baptisms 2 Converts 2 Funerals - 3 Weddings 2 1 st Confessions - 6 New Families 6 SOCIAL & FELLOWSHIP Weekly Coffee Hour Various Parish Dinners Lamb Roast, Graduate / Church School Picnic St Nicholas Celebration Potluck & Children s Program (Original Play written each year by Shawn Cunningham) WORSHIP Full cycle of services Cathedral Vigil & Liturgy each week Vesperal Liturgy for feasts when proper Full Lent & Holy Week Schedule Canon of Andrew 1 st week Weekly Presanctified Liturgy YOUTH & TEENS 2 Mini Retreats with each group and Fr Andrew (Advent & Great Lent), other discussions at other meetings Various Service and Social events throughout the year Soup Kitchen Paticipation, helping at Parish Dinners, Garage & cleaning, sledding, bowling, campfires etc. Monthly participation in newly formed Cleveland Deanery Teen Group Deanery Parishes take turns hosting events Respectfully Submitted, Fr. Andrew Clements Rector 3

4 HOLY ASSUMPTION MARBLEHEAD, OHIO - PRIEST DAVID LIS The Parish Meeting In compliance with the statues of the Orthodox Church in America, Article 10, Section 7 quoted above, Holy Assumption Orthodox Church on Sunday 17 January 2010 convened its annual parish meeting with the Rector of the parish, Fr. David A. Lis, presided. 26 members in good standing were eligible to participate in this annual meeting because they had met the requirements set forth by statute to be identified as members in good standing. The requirements of eligibility are: (1) being an adult 18 years of age or older, (2) having participated in the Eucharistic life of the Church by Holy Confession to the priest of the parish, and the reception of Holy Communion at least once within the twelve months preceding the annual meeting, (3) having met the minimum stewardship contribution to the parish of $ Parish Statistics At the present time, Holy Assumption Parish has 28 adult members in good standing and 10 children. Potentially the parish could have as many as 42 adults. However these 14 individuals are not currently members because they have neither met the minimum spiritual nor financial requirements set for in the Statutes of the Orthodox Church in America and the By-Laws of the parish. It is our sincere hope that these individuals would return to active membership and I encourage all of you to invite them back at every opportunity. Private Confessions: 24 (as of 9/2/2010) Sunday Divine Liturgies 50 with an average attendance of 23 members Great Vespers - 50 times with an average attendance of 7 people Vesperal Divine Liturgy or the Divine Liturgy was celebrated for the 12 Great Feasts During Great Lent; The entire Canon of St. Andrew of Crete with Small Compline was read during the First Week of the Fast; The Liturgy of the Pre-sanctified Gifts was celebrated on each Wednesday of the Great Fast; On the Fridays of the Great Fast, Small Compline with the Akathist of the Most Holy Theotokos was read; Divine Liturgy with the complete reading of the names of all those from the parish now resting in Blessed Repose was celebrated on each of the five Soul Saturdays. Metrical Report Baptisms: 1 Chrismations: 0 Weddings: 0 Funerals: 1 Buildings & Property A. Rectory Air Conditioning System Replaced 4

5 The air conditioning system was replaced in July since at 20 years of age it would have cost as much to repair as to replace. A $ donation was received to help pay for this project, and the $2, balance was paid from the parish s Building Fund. Total cost of project: $2, B. Rectory Electric Hot Water heater Replaced In July of this year, the rectory s 80 gallon electric water heater failed after 22 years of service. A new energy efficient 50 gallon electric water heater was installed to replace it. Total cost of project: $550.00, which came from the parish s Building Fund. C. Comprehensive Tree Trimming In preparation for the 2010 Halupki Festival, five of the large trees in the back yard of the parish property were professionally trimmed and the above ground root systems ground down to prevent falling limbs and facilitate grass cutting. Total cost for this removal: $1, D. Rectory Garage & Breezeway Repair and Restoration As the result of a fire in the engine compartment of the rector s 2001 Ford Windstar while it was parked in the rectory garage during the night of 28 June, a $37, repair and restoration of the garage and breezeway of the rectory had to be done. In the course of this repair and restoration, the electrical system of the garage and the breaker box for the rectory were brought up to current Building Code requirements. Except for the parish s $ deductible, the balance of the charges for this project was covered by the parish s property insurance. E. Rectory Roof Leak Repair & Gutter Replacement A persistent leak which caused a hole and water leaking into the living room of the rectory was finally repaired with the repair of a dormer and the replacing of the front gutter and flashing of the parish rectory. After confirming that the repairs addressed the problem, the living room ceiling was repaired and repainted. Total cost of this project: $713.71, which was paid in full with monies from the parish s Building Fund. Cemetery Holy Assumption continues to us A-1 Lawn Care for the lawn care and trimming of the parish cemetery, at an annual cost of $1, In addition, $1, was taken from the parish s Cemetery Fund to help pay for the resurfacing of the road which runs through the entire cemetery. This was a token payment to St. Joseph Catholic Church which paid for the entire $23, cost of this project as we share the same land area with them for our cemetery. Temple A. Altar Server Robes The replacement and purchase of five robe sets of new altar server robes was completed in Holy Assumption now has a five robe set of altar server robes in White, Gold, Green, Violet, Red, and Blue to enhance the parish s celebrations of the Great Feasts and seasons of the Liturgical Year. The purchase and/or replacement of these robes were all paid for by private donations. B. Altar Coverings In addition to the new robes for the altar servers, Holy Assumption has completed the replacement of all the coverings for the altar in the colors appropriate to the various feasts 5

6 and seasons of the Liturgical Year. The cost of these new sets in White, Gold, Green, and Violet were covered completely by private donation. New Red and Blue sets of altar coverings are still in need of replacement and these will be purchased as funds become available Budget Report Apart from the $3,800 dollars taken from the Building Fund and the Cemetery Fund for the repairs noted in this report, Holy Assumption Parish has met all of its year-to-date operating expenses through stewardship income and donations. This is a significant improvement in revenue from 2009 wherein transferred $13, from savings in order to meet operating expenses during a three month period between May and July of In addition, the 2010 Halupki Festival (from which a large portion of the annual operating expenses are recouped) met with considerable success, tentatively netting over $15, in profit (final figures as of 9//2/2010 are still being compiled. Barring any other unexpected expenses, it is projected that the parish will end its 2010 fiscal year, 31 December in the black. Respectfully Submitted, Rev. Fr. David A. Lis Rector ST. JOHN S CAMPBELL, OHIO - ARCHPRIEST ANDREW NELKO GLORY BE TO JESUS CHRIST! GLORY BE FOREVER! St. John the Baptist Orthodox Church in Campbell started the year since the last Diocesan Assembly rather quietly with the usual fast and feast celebrations. In February our former pastor, Rev. John Steffaro, received permission to retire from the active priesthood. At the annual meeting early in February discussion began about finding another pastor for St. John s. This is always a frightening journey but we were certain with God s help we would be blessed with a new spiritual advisor to continue us on our journey. Also in February, under the guidance of Fr. John, we began a spiritual renewal as a church family. The parishioners and clergy devotion to renewal resulted in both spiritual and financial growth for our parish. The weekly discussion groups and frequent church services during the Great Lenten period brought us closer together as a parish family. When the actual discussion group sessions ended we met as a group to discuss how we wanted to continue what had been so successful in aiding in our spiritual growth. A small stewardship committee was formed and we met with Joe Kormos, Parish Facilitator for the Diocese. As a result of that meeting we planned to attend the Parish Ministries Conference in June in Cleveland. Mr. Kormos also informed us of a grant available from the Diocese to assist in promoting stewardship in our parish. We applied for, and subsequently were awarded, a grant. 6

7 Simultaneously, we began the actual task of seeking a new spiritual pastor. We spent the next few months working on required financial matters with our Dean, Fr. Clements, and waiting for interested candidates to present themselves. Also during this time we began our goodbyes to Fr. John and Mat. Carol. Parish council meetings were filled with lists of duties and tasks that needed ownership now that Fr. John was leaving. At the end of June our church family hosted a very special dinner for Father John and Matushka Carol. Amid tears, laughter and fond remembrances we said our goodbyes. Also towards the end of June we were notified that two priests had indicated an interest in our parish as a possible new church family. We scheduled interview meetings that included church services with both early in July, as it would happen, both on the same weekend. Gods does work in mysterious ways! The weekend of meeting the priests and celebrating church services with them was very beneficial in helping us to identify a priest whom we felt might be a good match for our parish. Then began the wait for official approval from His Beatitude Jonah. In the interim be were busily attending to major parish house renovations. As with any building that really had not been tended as well as it should have been one renovation lead to another. It took all of the month of August to bring our parish house to a beautiful new level that we are warmly and proudly welcoming Fr. Andrew Nelko and his family to. With our new Priest now in residence (or in a few hours as I sit and write this report) we will once again turn our attention and efforts to continuing the spiritual renewal and growth through stewardship that was begun so many months ago. Under Fr. Nelko s guidance and direction we pray that with God s wonderful blessing, our church will continue to grow spiritually as a family. With greatest respect I submit this report. St. John the Baptist Orthodox Church Parish Council President HOLY TRINITY PARMA, OHIO - ARCHPRIEST VLADIMIR BERZONSKY Holy Trinity Church, Parma, OH 2010 Significant events BOSE system installed; Hosted 25 th annual Eastern Christian Seminar; Hosted Sunday of Orthodoxy Vespers of Greater Cleveland; Combined with St. Nicholas Church of Mogadore, Youth retreat on icons of the Revelation; Outreach to community pancake breakfast first Saturday of each month; monthly Book Circle, reading and discussion of significant or topical Orthodox literature; series of workshop meetings with Joseph Kormos to create a vision for the parish future; seven members took part in Project Mexico; talks on icons following Great Vespers during Great Lent; our worship is broadcast and has received positive respose. It can be heard on 7

8 SS PETER & PAUL LAKEWOOD, OHIO - ARCHPRIEST YVES BABISH This year to date we have had 1 conversion by Chrismation, 2 catechumens to follow and one funeral. Our Baba s Kitchen which is our only income from outside of the parish makes and sells perogie dinners on Fridays. There was a write up about our Baba s Kitchen in the local paper, which increased sales and brought attention to our church. We, also, have booths at all the local festivals such as the Lakewood Arts Festival selling nut rolls, kolacky s, and religious item s which also brings attention and inquiries about our church. Food is collected by our parish and given to Lakewood local food banks. In addition, money is collected for the local orthodox monasteries that help the poor and needy. We still have no choir director as of yet, but are working on a solution to the problem. We have had some major expenses this year, repairs needed to be done on the Church cupola due to water leakage. In addition, some steps at the front of the church needed to be replaced with stone ones instead of concrete as per Lakewood city ordinance. Our next major project is to put in a handicap lift, at this time bids are being looked at. Labor Day weekend marks the beginning of our Sunday school program, and soon we will start a Bible study group. With the Help of Christ, we hope to grow in faith and size in the rest of the year. Submitted by Fr. Yves 9/1/2010 ARCHANGEL MICHAEL BROADVIEW HEIGHTS, OHIO - ARCHPRIEST JOHN MEMORICH St. Michael s continues to be one of the most active communities amidst the many Orthodox parishes of greater Cleveland. We are witnessing our Faith through worship, fellowship, stewardship, charitable acts, and by fostering Christian leadership for the future and well-being of the Orthodox Church. Over the course of the year we have hosted retreats for adults, youth, and altar servers, as well as various leadership conferences. Because of our eight scheduled weddings, I even held a marriage seminar which was attended by these couples. Our parish was blessed with hierarchal visitations from His Beatitude Metropolitan Jonah, Archbishop Job, newly-consecrated Bishop Michael, and His Grace Bishop Melchizedek who presented a really excellent day-long retreat. We are still participating in the diocesan Church Growth program and have created two new committees who are charged with rejuvenating our existing educational and charitable programs: Continuing Orthodox Religious Education (C.O.R.E.) and, Faith in Action. The goal of each of these groups is to expand our potential for growth and meet the greater needs of this still vibrant parish. Besides sending out daily sermonettes, Orthodox news items, and prayer requests via e- 8

9 mail to the parish, we have recently instituted an Orthodox Q & A section in our weekly bulletin and monthly newsletter. This has allowed the faithful to send in questions they want answered: questions pertaining from what does the church say about piercing and tattooing? to what is the proper way to enter the church? I am very happy that a steady stream of questions keeps rolling in weekly. Our parishioners gathered for a number of stewardship projects, such as workdays at St. John s Monastery and St. Vladimir s Camp. Matushka Jani recently began a bi-monthly Book Club with twenty to thirty participants. We held a parish-wide movie night (complete with pop corn machine!) to show a documentary film about St. Tikhon s Monastery/Seminary entitled, America s Holy Mountain. The magnitude of this event s success has encouraged us to purchase a DVD projector so that we can begin hosting such films on a monthly basis. Perhaps our two most important news items would be the ordination of another deacon for our parish and acquisition of a second full-time priest. On Saturday, November 7, after years of study, Subdeacon Daniel Kovalak was ordained to the Holy Diaconate by His Eminence, Archbishop Job on the eve of our parish feast. He, along with Deacon Dennis Lucak, are a huge help to the parish. Then, with the blessing of our late hierarch, St. Michael s undertook the search for an associate pastor to help meet the needs of this congregation. After sifting through numerous applications and interviews, we hired Priest Joseph McCartney who graduated from St. Tikhon s this past May. Fr. Joseph has excellent credentials and seemed a perfect fit for our needs. Because he was both a fulltime student and also the seminary s Bookstore manager, we felt he would definitely be able to handle the work load in a parish of this size. Fr. Joseph and his family arrived and began his pastoral duties as of July 1, Respectfully, Very Rev. Fr. John Memorich Rector CHRIST THE SAVIOR BYESVILLE, OHIO - PRIEST PRIEST MARK LOWERY Probably the most significant item to report about Christ the Saviour Church, Byesville, Ohio, is that it is (again) part of the Cleveland Deanery. This became official at the end of February, at the same time that the priest who has been serving the parish was appointed acting rector. This action, in turn, meant that the Divine Liturgy is once again served every Sunday. However, the priest lives at some distance (88 miles), due to his secular employment, and so there are limits on weekday services. During the course of the past year, there has been one Baptism, and one wedding. Since Christ the Saviour Church remains a very small parish, the mere fact of having these Sacraments celebrated in the church has been hopeful and significant. Sadly, there has also been one funeral: Dorothy Seresun, a faithful member, who had lovingly remembered services and activities in the Cleveland Deanery from the previous time that the parish was part of it. (She was hospitalized for several weeks in Cleveland Clinic, and 9

10 was visited by several of the deanery clergy, especially Father Emilian Hutnyan. Her family is most appreciative of this, as is the parish priest.) Although the potential for growth in the parish would seem minimal to an outsider, given the location in a rather small town, there is genuine interest in outreach, in trying to make ourselves known to Orthodox and interested people who might be in the area through the local media and phone book listings, and in meeting these folks through dinners and other activities. There is also renewed interest in activities within the parish: Saint Nicholas Day was celebrated with a delicious dinner and activities for the children in December, and a cookout/picnic is planned for the first Sunday in October the first such event in many years. There are hopes and plans to do larger events in the future. The priest is most appreciative that there are laity in the parish who are willing to plan these events and bring them to fruition. We also plan to expand educational opportunities, such as talks after Liturgy. Priest Mark Lowery, acting rector ST JOHN S WARREN, OHIO - PRIEST JONATHAN CHOLCHER 1. Mystical (Sacramental) Life study) Weekly Worship Schedule: Saturday evening Great Vespers & Confession Sunday morning Divine Liturgy & Church School/Bible Class (all ages) Tuesday evening Vespers & Path to Salvation Class (Scripture/Patristic Wednesday morning Divine Liturgy Thursday morning Matins Feast Days Full Cycle Vespers/Vigil on the eve; Divine Liturgy in the morning Great Feasts, Great Lent, Holy Week, etc. Since the last Diocesan Assembly, 2 Catechumens (current) 1 Baptism infant boy 1 Chrismation adult man (from Byzantine Catholicism) 1 Marriage 7 Deaths/Funerals 2. Active Life We facilitate a Classic Literature Reading Group at the local Borders (book store) Café every Wednesday morning. The Sisterhood meets once a month for lunch and discussion, and they maintain both the Church and Hall (kitchen). Volunteers landscape and maintain the exterior property. St. John s Society (teen group) meets twice a month to consider their spiritual life and Christian service. From September to April two teams of members compete weekly in a local bowling league every Sunday evening. During the course of the year we host regular parish dinners (Fall, in February, in May/June for graduates). Twice monthly Fish Dinners will resume in January 2011, which are very popular and well attended by non-orthodox patrons (the proceeds are not used for normal operating expenses in the parish, but for special, 10

11 designated projects). This year in October, with the help of a Diocesan Grant, we will operate a stand at our local Eastwood Mall selling religious items with the intent of exposing as many people as possible to the riches of the Orthodox Church. Three times a year, at Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Pascha, we distribute about 20 food boxes to families in need. 3. Contemplative Life Enacting a Charity of the Month plan has deliberately increased our giving to those in need. We participate in joint Orthodox services and projects (e.g., Vacation Church School) in our community with the parishes of other Orthodox jurisdictions, including public events such as the Mahoning River Blessing at Theophany. We pray the God will continue to enable to grow in His grace to behold His face always in His everlasting Kingdom. Fr. Jonathan H. Cholcher, Rector (August 27, 2010; Ven. Poemen the Great) ST JOHN S MONASTERY HIRAM, OHIO ARCHIMANDRITE ALEXANDER This year marks the 29th anniversary of St. John's Monastery as a monastic community. The community is made up of Archimandrite Alexander (Cutler), who has lived at the monastery for 29 years; Monk Daniel (Kidd), who has lived at the monastery for 28 years. Fr. Alexander is Abbot. Fr. Daniel is the treasurer. Fr. Peter Pawlack is the acting secretary and is canonically attached to St. John's Monastery. This year St. John's is celebrating its 28th anniversary as a monastery. The annual pilgrimage will celebrate this event. A number of expenditures this year were incurred from the following projects: 1. The major expenditure for this year was the complete removal of the shake shingles from the roof of the chapel in the cemetery and replacing them with durable shingles. The Greek Crosses have been remade in more durable wood. The main Cross and dome need further work. 2. A Nature Stone surface was installed for the entrance stairs and porch of the main temple. 3. A Nature Stone surface was installed for the stairs and porch of the main entrance to the monastery 4. The major, festal, hand painted icons in the temple were all framed. 5. One of the tempered glass windows of the temple shattered and had to be replaced. 6. Electric baseboard heaters were installed in the guest house to provide auxiliary heating in conjunction with the wood stove. 7. The wood house and chicken coop were repainted. 11

12 8. Motion lights and automatic night lights were upgraded for security. The company that installed the replacement dome on our temple repaired the Cross on the dome and the Cross was partially gold leafed. His Beatitude, Metropolitan Theodosius bestowed additional holy relics upon the monastery: St. Panteleimon the Great Martyr and Healer, St. Barbara the Great Martyr, St. Paraskieva, St. Ambrose of Optina, St. Silouan of Mt. Athos, and St. Raphael of Brooklyn. He also donated icons of St. Tikhon the Confessor and Patriarch of Moscow and St. Ambrose of Optina with a relic. Before the end of the year we plan for the following expenditures: 1. Replacement of damaged garage door and installation of one automatic garage door opener. 2. Roof over the area of the roof where problem leaking continues despite many attempts to reconfigure the shingles and flashing to stop the leaking. 3. Due to the general loss of discounts in our region from Ohio Edison, we will be more dependant than ever on our wood stoves. To that end, for safety, we will tile the corner area and floor of our library where a wood stove presently stands. Our projects for the future and as money allows will be: 1. Repairing the main Cross and dome of the cemetery chapel. 2. Installing shades for the main skylights in the guest house to reduce solar heat in the summer. 3. Framing of additional hand painted icons in the temple. Our monastery continues to support itself by selling beeswax candies, incense, charcoal and sacramental wine to parishes. (We have begun to carry a larger number of wines.) As a service to local clergy and parishes our monastery sells, at reasonable prices, liturgical and religious items imported from Russia, Greece, and Romania. We carry both embroidered Russian and Greek style vestments, as well as stichars or podrizniki. We are also supported by donations. Pilgrims and guests are welcome to visit the monastery and store. We welcome youth groups and church groups for tours and retreats. On the afternoon and evening of June 29 th we hosted young adults from the Parish Ministries Conference 2010 that met at Baldwin College in Cleveland. They visited the monastery to hear H.G., Bishop Melchizedek of Pittsburgh speak and to dialog with him and H.B., Metropolitan Jonah. Following Vespers there was a cookout down by the river. Since our community works in order to support the monastery, prior arrangements to visit or shop should be made ahead of time by phone. Reservations for the guest house need to be made well in advance. There are days and periods of time during the year when the monastery is closed to visitors. 12

13 Fr. Alexander continues to serve as confessor for the nuns at Holy Transfiguration Monastery in Ellwood City, Pennsylvania, as well as for local clergy and faithful. HOLY ASSUMPTION-CANTON, OHIO PRIEST ANASTASY RICHTER For a number of years previous to now, Holy Assumption had gone through a period of troubles during which our parish lost many people. Thankfully, this period has been over for a while now and health is returning to the parish. Three years ago, Fr Gregory Jensen was assigned temporarily as the part-time priest at Holy Assumption. He was assigned with the purpose of bringing healing, stability and unity to a wounded, chaotic, and divided parish. By the grace of God, all of this seems to have been accomplished under Fr Gregory s time at Holy Assumption, and the parish felt that they were ready for a full-time priest. In late August of 2009, I began my time as the full-time priest of Holy Assumption. I have attempted to continue to build on Fr Gregory s foundation. By the grace of God, things have been going well at Holy Assumption. We seem to be a healthy, unified parish now and our attendance has been slowly increasing, so that our average Sunday attendance is now between 65 to 70. Giving has also been above budget, although our budget is a negative budget. We have a regular life of prayer with Wednesday and Saturday evening vespers and liturgy every Sunday followed by a coffee hour which people must really enjoy because nobody wants to leave! We also have services for all the great feasts as well as some lesser feasts such as St. Nicholas, the Nativity of St. John the Baptist, and others as well as a busy Lenten cycle of services where many came to confession. Our choir is excellent, better than one would expect for a small church. We also have a regular Sunday school after liturgy and youth activities. As part of our outreach we helped support a seminarian and his family this last year. The local public school in our area has also become important to us. We have provided stocked book bags for the beginning of the school year again this year as well as coats for approximately 25 elementary school aged children. This last year there were 2 deaths in the parish, and we celebrated one marriage. We also received 8 people into the Church, one by adult baptism, and 7 by chrismation. There were no babies born in the parish this year. Submitted by priest Anastasy Richter ST ANDREW S MAPLE HEIGHTS, OHIO ARCHPRIEST EMILIAN HUTNYAN St. Andrew Eastern Orthodox Church has suffered the loss of many previous active members over the last 10 years. Some have transferred to Archangel Michael Orthodox Church located in Broadview Heghts, OH while at least 20 individuals have left to attend The Bulgarian Patriarchal Mission established in Hudson, OH under the spiritual protection of Metropolitan Joseph. These individuals have fled to this established mission parish without notifying Parish Council or Parish Priest. Although letters were prepared and hand delivered to their parish priest, no correspondance has been received. Upon assignment to the parish some ten years ago, a dedicated group of parishioners gathered together to study Fr. John Reeves' "Boot Camp" material stresssing the need to grow the parish and remove unfortunate racist attitiudes. Whereas evangelistic concepts of stewardship, target population, mission statement, and consensus of vision were 13

14 thououghly explored, the information was received with joy but without a response and willingness to "reach out" to others (i.e. action plan). Due to a significant amount of spending over the years including the purchase of a second parish rectory, repeated boiler expenses, a parish sound system, a new fire alarm system as well as providing a liveable wage and benefits for the priest and his family, parish funds have been severely depleted. Both the size of the parish complex, and the monthly expenses it takes to maintain it, and the lack of parish growth have combined to severely limit the parishes' ability to remit assessments to the Diocese. After a recent meeting with our Diocesan Chancellor and Cleveland Dean, an agreement was made with the Parish Council to do thier utmost to remit $ each month to the diocese. The chancellor also stressed the need at the present time to have Mr. Joseph Kormos facilitate a conversation about growing the parish first with a sample group of parishioners and then with the larger body of the parish. Whereas some parishioners choose not to attend church services during the summer, and don't participate in remitting financial obligations to the parish, the Parish Council has had to recenly remove another $20,000 from remaining savings just cover monthly expenses. In the meantime, a new parish library has now been put in place for individuals to contiinue to study their Orthodox Faith. Parish Fish Fry Dinners begin again on September 10 and church school registration is now taking place. Time, patience and a renewed comittment to grow the parish will hopefully yield a positive spiriual and financial result, putting the parish back on its feet. If for these and other reasons, the parish is either unwilling to step up and grow the parish while also proving the necessary funds to care for it, then alternative arrangements will need to be reviewed. Please Pray for our parish and our people who are now going through this self-evaluation process. Humbly submitted, Very Rev. Fr. Emilian Hutnyan St. Theodosius Orthodox Cathedral Annual Deanery Report ST THEODOSIUS - CLEVELAND, OHIO ARCHPRIEST JOHN ZDINAK St. Theodosius Cathedral parish, like many or even most of our parishes, is feeling the strain of the economic times. While we are attracting and adding new members to the parish, some others, or even more recent members, have lost their positions and are forced to obtain work in other cities. While the Church at large does not loose these members, our parish does. Cleveland has five OCA parishes within a mile or less distance from each other and two others just beyond that periphery. We find ourselves working the same vineyard. Add to that the fact that there are 35 Orthodox parish communities in the Cleveland area, many of which are within those same geographical boundaries. The Cathedral Temple will be 100 years old in While the temple is a magnificent worship space and has a rich heritage, it takes enormous resources to maintain this blessed edifice. With a supporting membership of 200 adults, (many of which offer the minimum amount of financial support) including the many shut-ins and elderly who are unable to attend regularly, we are not able to solely support the annual 14

15 budget by the regular offerings. Stewardship has improved over the years but still not enough to cover all of the expenses. We are blessed with earnings from our endowment fund that keep us alive, for now. We continue to hold up the ideal of good Christian Stewardship but, as many older parishes experience, it s hard to break old habits. The St. Theodosius parish also owns and maintains a 30-acre Cemetery located in Brooklyn, Ohio. This is the largest Orthodox cemetery in the Cleveland area. It is used by all of the canonical Orthodox jurisdictions. The Cemetery has two full-time employees and one seasonal part-time employee. The cemetery averages around 100 burials per year. The operating budget for the cemetery is also very tight, even sometimes resulting in an annual loss. In addition to the above, St. Theodosius owns and operates our catering hall, Ridge Manor. Currently, the profits from the hall are currently being reinvested in the facilities to update it. Hopefully a healthy portion of the profits will come to the Cathedral in the next year. St. Theodosius is comprised of over 178 households, which number 360 souls. Not all of these are communicants but, never the less, are souls of the parish. This includes the young people from the cradle to college that numbers 45+. It also includes the 35+ elderly who are unable to attend services, but wish that they could. Our average Sunday Liturgy attendance is around 120. Each Sunday brings a new face to the parish. Some come back, some are sight-seeing ; some are truly seeking a spiritual home. St. Theodosius Has one Priest and one Deacon, three ordained Subdeacons and five tonsured Readers. One additional man has prepared and will be tonsured during the next visit of the Bishop. One other man is preparing to enter into Late Vocation studies in the St. Arseny Institute program. We have a wonderful Greeter s Ministry which is much appreciated by all that visit the Church. The Greeters follow-up on the visits and, when it is time, some of them return and some eventually come to call St. Theodosius home. We have an adult Christian education session every Thursday morning. There are about regular participants in this study. In addition to learning various aspects of our Orthodox Christian faith, they enjoy their social fellowship with one another every week. The sessions are suspended during the summer but return, to the delight of the participants, every fall. Christian education is provided for the young ones from pre-school to the 9 th grade. Mr. Paul Pangrace is the coordinator for our Church School program. This is conducted in two nine-week sessions, one in the fall and one in the spring. They are to be completed before the Nativity Fast and before the Great Fast. Emphasis is placed on the regular participation of the students in the liturgical life of the Church. The Classes are conducted prior to Vespers on Saturday evening. Deacon Daniel Boerio and Subdeacon Michael Tabeling coordinate teen education and activity. Regular activities for the parish youth and joint activities, together with youth from other Orthodox parishes, take place throughout the year. 15

16 Catechumens are prepared on an individual basis by either Fr. John or one of the qualified catechists of the parish. We are planning a Nativity Fast evening education series on the Holy Mysteries of the Church. The Choir, under the direction of Reader Julius Ken Kovach, is very faithful in preparing for and singing the Divine Services. They also prepare an Annual Christmas Concert open for the public. This is well attended by Orthodox and non-orthodox. They also participate, along with the St. Sergius Choir (ROCOR) and the St. Sava Cathedral Choir (Serbian), in an annual Paschal concert. This concert rotates among the three Churches. We also have the parish Lady s Altar Society. This group of women work hard to earn money to pay for the ongoing needs of the Temple and the Altar (e.g. Altar Boy robes, Altar covers, etc.) The major project of the Society is their annual Christmas Cookie Sale. We publish a monthly publication that is targeted at seniors. This publication, The Fruit Basket is prepared and edited by Margaret Rusynyk. It is available at our Website, sttheodosius.org, in PDF format. We also produce the weekly bulletin, The Ambo, that is also available at our website in PDF format. We are currently looking for assistance in keeping the website fresh. Though this is not a difficult task, it does take a bit of time to maintain. We also have a local FOCA Cathedral Chapter. The chapter here at St. Theodosius is not large but they are dedicated. The Cathedral Chapter has dedicated much of their time to service projects. One wonderful project is the preparation of a nice Pascha Basket, including Pascha Bread, for each of our shut-ins. They also provide opportunity for fellowship and breaking bread together. In spite of the economical difficulties, which are not unique to our parish alone, we strive to bring the Good News of Salvation in Jesus Christ in the Orthodox Way to all that we meet. We strive to maintain a vibrant presence in the local neighborhood. We do this in several ways. Tremont, the Cleveland neighborhood where we are located, conducts monthly Art Walks. We have volunteers who open the Cathedral for the Walk and are available to answer questions about the Sacred Artwork, the Church teachings, etc. Tremont also holds a three-day Art Festival. We have maintained a manned information booth with a running video of the Church, several brochures and a shuttle service from the local park, where the Festival is held, to the Cathedral. This has been a great experience for all of us and it has produced Catechumens who have been received in the Holy Orthodox Church. Though times may be economically difficult, we have not rolled over and died nor do we intend to do so. We pray that God will enliven the hearts of those who seek the True Light and guide them to His Holy Orthodox Church. ST VLADIMIR S CAMP - ARCHPRIEST JOHN MEMORICH We again hosted a three week camping season which was not only very successful, but provided a safe, well-rounded Orthodox environment for over 130 children. Our camp s directors, Dn. Daniel and Catrina Kovalak, continue to do an excellent job and have surrounded themselves with enthusiastic, energetic, youth-oriented leaders who serve as 16

17 counselors. Besides daily matins and vespers, at least one liturgy was celebrated during the course of the each week. Formal education classes were also held each day, with many other opportunities for Christian formation throughout the weeks. This year s theme focused upon the Sacraments of the Church and many of the children s projects and crafts helped to reinforce what they learned. Fr. Barnabas Fravel was the resident priest during the first session (July 11-17), I conducted the second week (July 18-24), while Fr. Stacey Richter attended the third (July 25-31). On Thurs. July 15 I invited all area clergy to concelebrate liturgy for the camp s feast. Following the service, the clergy and children processed through the entire camp singing the troparion to St. Vladimir as we blessed all of the buildings and cabins. St. Vladimir s Camp is also available for individual parish s use and is a popular site for picnics, cook-outs, day retreats, and family reunions. If any parish of the diocese would like further information about our facilities or our programs, please do not hesitate to contact me at (440) Respectfully, Very Rev. Fr. John Memorich Priest-in-Charge 17