Hopefully the history of St. Paul Parish will be updated for the 100th anniversary to include the Renaissance years when the Rev. Fr. John M. Jenkins was pastor.
This is only a rough draft for updating. More detailed information should be gathered to record the many changes which took place during the Jenkins years.
A new church and gymnasium were constructed, the old brick convent on Greenlawn was sold and later torn down, the Dominican Sisters ended their long tenure as teachers at St. Paul School, the School Foundation Fund was established and the old Chapel became a Parish Activity Center.
Father Jenkins was born in Akron St. Thomas Hospital on August 9, 1934., the son of Lee T. and Catherine Jenkins. His family, like Fr. Koegel’s both lived on South Balch Street in St. Vincent parish. A 1948-49 directory
lists them at 195 S. Ballch St. His father worked for General Tire. Fr. Jenkins attended St. Vincent and St. Martha elementary schools in Akron. and St. Gregory Seminary High School and college in Cincinnati and Borromeo and Saint Mary’s Seminary in Cleveland. He was ordained May 28, 1960 by Most Rev. Bishop Edward F. Hoban. and was appointed seventh pastor of St. Paul on October 1, 1981.He first assignment was at St. Timothy in Garfield Heights. He also served at Saint Aloysius, Saint Luke and Holy Cross parishes in Cleveland and was chaplain to University and Huron Road hospitals in Cleveland with residence at Holy Rosary for two years and at St. Philomena for four years.
He became the seventh pastor of St. Paul on October 15, 1981, succeeding the Rev. Fr. Thomas Koegel who became pastor of St. Hilary Parish in Fairlawn.
Before leaving St. Paul to become pastor of St. Hilary, Fr. Koegel redesigned Boeke Hall and changed seating in the old chapel (now the Parish Activity Center). Pews originally facing the altar at the west end were placed around the altar which was moved to the north wall. A section of pews faced the altar and two others were on each side facing toward the center.
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The parish received many awards for care of sick and elderly under Sister Noami Kuhns CSJ and those who succeeded her during the Jenkins years.
In 1983 the Dominican Order notified Fr. Jenkins that they could no longer staff the school.
The old brick convent on Greenlawn, which in 1968 housed 26 Dominican Sisters, was sold to Summit County Board of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities (MRDD), but the county put the building up for sale in the late 1990s. The parish purchased the building but after investigating possible uses for it found it was subject to vandalism so it was demolished.
After the convent on Greenlawn had been sold to the county a small home at 1616 Brown Street was the convent.. Sisters later moved out and after unsuccessful attempts to sell it, the house was moved around 1992 to a lot on N. Firestone Blvd. and the three-car garage demolished to increase the parking area
The school enrollment grew through the 1980s and 1990s until cost-based tuition was introduced. Unfortunately because or the raise in tuition enrollment declined.
in 1926 when the school opened there were 176 students. In 1965 there were 33 classroom with more than 1,550 students taught by 22 sisters, 11 lay teachers and four priests. In 2009 enrollment was 229.
In 1981 the Diocesan Board of Education Southern Region occupied the area of the school over the chapel. As enrollment increased they were asked to move and the area became the junior high.
In the mid 1980s parish bingo fell on hard times. Low attendance meant low income and local competition was fierce. An alternative was needed. Parish income was rather stable, but school expenses, competitive teacher salaries, benefits and improvements were a burden. In 1987 the St. Paul School Endowment Fund was initiated with a goal of $1 million with the fund interest to be reinvested until the goal was reached. It took ten years but the fund stands today providing financial assistance to keep the school in existence.
As time progressed the church building needed an interior facelift and a redecoration took place. The pews were removed, the choir loft which sagged was cut back, the high altar platform was placed forward and the church then was used only for one Mass on Sunday. It became a multipurpose building providing an auditorium for school and parish programs and meetings.
In January, 2000 a chunk of plaster fell from the church ceiling. Engineers investigated and found the steel girders supporting the roof were no longer safe. The church building and the pre-school in the basement were closed. It was determined to demolish the church which took place in August 2000. A wall covered the sanctuary area where the school was built around the original church in 1926.. The glass mosaic of the hand holding the world (behind the altar) when the chapel was built was placed on the exterior of the wall.
A town meeting of the parish was held and a majority vote approved moving toward a new church–A committee was formed, an architect was selected and you know the rest. Ground was broken and construction began in August 2002. The church was dedicated in October 2003.
There was a parish-wide survey in the spring of 2000 to determine what to do. A town meeting of the parish was held and a majority vote approved moving toward a new church. A building committee was formed with Michael J. Merle, president of Ray Fogg Building Methods Inc. of Cleveland, as chairman. The building committee met 11 times from July 24, 2000 to January 22, 2001 Members, in addition to Merle were John Amedeo, Sally Casenhiser, Mary Ann Courdriet, Mike Demczak, Tony DiDonato, Kelly Dodson, Bob Hamilton, Father John Jenkins, Rosemarie Muha, Dick Rinella, Doug Root, John Semonin, Debbie Speck and Mike Hausch.
Parishioners and neighbors of St. Paul's gathered August 24, 2000 as a wrecking crew razed the 80-year-old landmark.
The emotion was described by 77-year-old Katie Burrell in an article the next day in the Akron Beacon Journal
``I got so upset that I had to leave,'' said Burrell. ``I started feeling sick to my stomach when I saw it coming down. It just got to me. It was like watching my memories being taken away. I went to school there. I was married there. My nine children all went to school there and received their sacraments there. My grandchildren and now my great-grandchildren go to church there.''
Many of the parishioners who gathered to watch took a brick from the old building with them as they left for home.
``It's a sad time for the parish,” said Fr. Jenkins who had been pastor for nearly 19 years. “but repair would have been extremely costly, and we would have still had the same aging building It's a parish that has been a staple in the park, and people don't want to see the building go. But the parish will still be here.''
A preliminary design for the church was given to Bishop Pilla in January, 2000 and in late Spring 2001 a Capital Campaign started.
Construction bids were approved in the Spring of 2002.: Fr. John Jenkins, pastor, and Martin J. Amos, auxiliary bishop of the Cleveland Diocese broke ground for the new church on Sunday, July 28, 2002.
The church was dedicated by Bishop Anthony J. Pilla on Sunday, October 26, 2003 and work on the gymnasium was done from July to November 2003.
Cost of the church was over $2.5 million and the gym cost about $650,000. Other costs, fund-raising expenses and construction interest, added another $75,000 so total cost for the project then was about $3,250,000. The church is 12,500 square feet and seats 790..
The gym is about 9,500 square feel and features a full-size regulation high school basketball court.
Fr. Jenkins was pastor of St. Paul from October 15, 1981 to October 4, 2004 when he retired as Pastor Emeritus. He now resides at Holy Cross parish in Euclid. He was succeeded by the Rev. Fr. Ralph W. Thomas who became St. Paul associate pastor on June 12, 2002, administrator pro tem on October 4, 2004 and pastor on June 7, 2005.
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