History

Saint Paul Greek Orthodox Church of North Royalton, Ohio was born from the vision of Greek Orthodox families in the Parma area who had moved to Cleveland's southern suburbs and found themselves, in their own words, fearful of losing touch with the true traditions of their Orthodox faith and Greek heritage. The first meetings took place in the fall of 1963 at the Pizza King Restaurant, where a small group gathered to discuss the possibility of a new church closer to where they lived. A survey of Greek families in Parma and the adjoining suburbs confirmed the desire, and the movement toward a new parish began in earnest.

On September 2, 1965, the Parma Area Hellenic Orthodox Church, Inc. was incorporated under the General Corporation Act of the State of Ohio, and on September 3, a contract was signed for the purchase of seven acres on Wallings Road in North Royalton. For the first years the community worshipped at Holy Trinity's church hall in Cleveland, which was packed to capacity for their assemblies and services. In one memorable general meeting, the question of the new church's name was put to a vote, and when the announcement was made that Saint Paul had been chosen, it brought a standing ovation from the assembled parishioners.

The architect Leonard Friedman of Youngstown was engaged to design the new church, and in a six-week fundraising campaign in October 1967, $194,000 was pledged. Groundbreaking took place on July 14, 1968, and a construction bid of $456,000 was accepted from the R. Hansen Company. On Palm Sunday, April 19, 1970, the doors of Saint Paul Greek Orthodox Church opened for the first time, with seven hundred people passing through them in an atmosphere of joy, tears, and thanksgiving that those present would not forget.

Saint Paul Greek Orthodox Church in North Royalton serves the Orthodox Christian faithful of the southern suburbs of Cleveland as a parish of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Pittsburgh within the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, a community that grew from a few families meeting at a Pizza King to one of the most active and beloved parishes in northeastern Ohio.