SAINT LUKE’S SCHOOL OF RELIGION BUILDING DEMOLISHED

by Lynette Filips

PHOTO BY BRENDA THEURER

Friday, September 18, 2026; Pearl and Memphis: This photo was taken just days before the Old Brooklyn Community Development Corporation began demolishing the St. Luke’s School of Religion building to make way for new development. It shows the top portion of the beautiful stonework window frame (after stained glass was removed) on the second floor of the Saint Luke’s 1925 addition. It’s been reduced to rubble now.

   (Plain Press October 2026) “Dam shame!” says the caption which accompanied a Wednesday, September 23rd, 2026 online video of the former St. Luke’s United Church of Christ exclaimed. The subject of the approximately ten-second video was a giant backhoe whose claw was breaking apart the roof of the School of Religion building at 4216 Pearl Rd. in Old Brooklyn. It had been added to the north side of the original St. Luke’s Evangelical and Reformed Church (most recently United Church of Christ) in 1925. The two-part former beauty is/was on the northwest corner of Memphis Ave. where most of the buildings have already been demolished for a yet-to-be-determined new development. (Another plan for a six-story, up to eighty-four-unit apartment building has been scrapped.) This last demolition is taking more time than the previous ones did because the addition was very securely attached to the church proper. Preservationists can only hope that the 1903 church portion won’t be damaged beyond repair in the process.

   The online video was posted by Jesse Akers of Wakeman, Ohio. That’s approximately 45 miles southwest of Old Brooklyn and I’m not certain what his interest was in recording and posting the demolition. Jesse’s Facebook page describes him as a Digital Creator. Only one of the readers’ responses to his video had anything good to say about the destruction of St. Luke’s. The rest were angry, sad, or confused at the awful sight of this architecturally significant piece of neighborhood history being ripped apart. Jesse’s post couldn’t have come at a better time for me, because I was just about to begin writing this month’s article about Memphis and Pearl.

   The site is, of course, still blocked by orange Jersey barriers and fencing material, but people driving past it are able to see that roofing work has been done on the southern, church part of the complex plus access-to-the-site driveway work has been done on “Short” Broadview Rd. (just west of Pearl Rd.). One must assume that the abatement of any hazardous materials in the building since the demolition — and the dust which accompanies it — is well underway. The second day on the job, the backhoe completely removed the front as well as part of the north side of St. Luke’s School of Religion. Without realizing that she was doing so, Brenda Theurer snapped the photograph which accompanies this article — the beautiful stonework which surrounded the stained glass window in the front of the building — at what was clearly “the eleventh hour”. It is now gone forever.

PEARL ROAD UNITED METHODIST CHURCH 

   Meanwhile, Pearl Road United Methodist Church (PRUMC), 4200 Pearl Rd., is sitting untouched behind the rubble. Perhaps in the new site plan it will end up totally unchanged on the exterior and thus escape even partial destruction. The faithful remnant of PRUMC’s congregation have been meeting at its temporary (perhaps three-year) home at 8235 Memphis Ave. for the 10:00 a.m. Sunday service. For now, they are content worshipping in this former Lutheran church just west of St. Elias Melkite Greek Catholic Church. And they have been planning some community activities. Instead of the rummage sale which they had been sponsoring inside for decades on the first Friday and Saturday in October, this year they are switching to a different kind of venue. Using the large parking lot outside the church they will sponsor a “Junk in the Trunk” event on Saturday, October 3rd, from 1-4 p.m. (or as long as people’s’ merchandise lasts). The vendor cost is $10 per parking space. Later in the month, from 6-8 p.m. on Thursday, October 22nd, PRUMC will be back in the parking lot for a free “Trunk or Treat” which coincides with the City of Brooklyn’s Halloween event at its Veterans Memorial Park. Looking forward to 2027, PRUMC is hoping to conduct a rummage sale at its Memphis Ave. location during Brooklyn’s citywide garage sale weekend in June.

HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF OLD BROOKLYN 

   The Historical Society of Old Brooklyn (HSOB) continues to organize its new space at 2221 Broadview Rd. and has not yet established regular Museum hours. They did open on Sunday, September 13th, for the Ohio History Connection’s “Open Doors” biennial event. The statewide celebration was larger than usual this year in honor of our country’s 250th anniversary. But the HSOB’s participation was not advertised well enough to attract a significant number of visitors.

   Eighteen HSOB members gathered on the previous Friday, September 11th, for what was to have been the first meeting of their 2026-2027 year at St. James Lutheran Church, 4771 Broadview Rd., opposite Oakpark Ave. When things didn’t work out as planned regarding both access to the meeting space and the expected program, the group moved across the street to the new patio at Metropolitan Coffee. With the permission of the shop’s owner, they conducted a casual, very productive meeting there, including informative presentations by two of the organizations’ members. Jeff Lennartz spoke about the Old Brooklyn history walking tours he’d been conducting from Loew Park during the Old Brooklyn Community Development Corporation’s (OBCDC’s) weekly Farmers’ Markets; and Brenda Theurer spoke about setting up the new Museum space. HSOB member Mary Ellen Stasek presided over the discussion. The weather and location were so lovely that being forced outside ended up being an enjoyable, happy mistake. New members are always welcome. The HSOB’s annual dues are $20; visit the website: www.oldbrooklynhistory.org to learn about activities, updates and/or to pay dues online. 

TAKE A HIKE AT BROOKMERE CEMETERY

   On three Saturdays in October — the 10th, 17th and 24th — Take a Hike Cleveland will be partnering with the Brookmere Cemetery Preservation Coalition to conduct a tour at 1 pm. Two sisters, Linda Cameron and Karen Parks, will be leading the free, one-hour walks. The ladies became interested in the historic cemetery several years ago when they were doing genealogy research there and gradually, they became increasingly involved with the grounds on a volunteer basis. The cemetery is located at 3645 Broadview Rd. at the far western end of the street. Please register in advance at www.takeahikecle.com. The Historic Gateway Neighborhood Corporation is sponsoring this tour; it is one of three different “fall series” tours being offered this month.  

NIGHT FAIRE

   After organizing a heavily attended outdoor “Goth” event at Brookmere Cemetery a year ago, the owners of an Old Brooklyn business named the Miscreant and the Muse were hoping to sponsor a repeat performance there this year. But to do so would again require a permit from the City of Cleveland because Brookmere is one of the cemeteries the City owns. This year Cleveland chose not to issue that permit despite pleas from multiple persons that the Faire be held there. While the ambiance of the historic cemetery is undeniable, the City felt that another location would be more appropriate for the event. Undeterred, the Miscreant and the Muse worked with other like-minded businesses, as well as with OBCDC, and came up with new spaces in and around Stanford Ave. and the nearby Foundry Concert Club on Pearl Rd. So the show (and the marketplace) went on from 5-10 p.m. on Saturday, September 19th. Finding a parking place was still challenging, but probably not quite as challenging as when the first Faire was held in the Cemetery. It’s no doubt better not to hold it on sacred ground, especially since it’s looking like it’s going to be an annual event which grows bigger every year. 

FOR MORE INFORMATION RE: MEMPHIS PEARL

   In researching the information for this article, I read (and in some cases re-read) the Minutes of OBCDC’s Board of Directors meetings from January through June of this year. Even though some of their discussion takes place in “Executive Session” and is not included in the general minutes, anyone so inclined can get a wealth of information in what is available to the public. I hope to delve into some of it next month. In the meantime, if you want to read what I have been writing about this ongoing project or refer to any previous Plain Press articles about this historic Old Brooklyn corner, access them on the Plain Press’ website, https://plainpress.blog, or on the HSOB’s website, www.oldbrooklynhistory.org.