History

Saint Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church of Waterloo, Iowa holds a singular distinction: it was the first Greek Orthodox church established in the State of Iowa. The first known Greeks to settle in Waterloo were Louis Chaparas and James Costas, who operated confectionery shops on Commercial and East Fourth Streets. As more Greeks arrived and put down roots in the city, a neighborhood bounded by West Eighth, West Second, Commercial, and Washington Streets became known as Greek Town.

In 1914, the Greek community formally organized what would become Saint Demetrios, holding services in a rented hall on Bluff Street. During those early years, seventy-five Greeks donated one dollar each to begin building a church fund. Their savings grew steadily, and in 1929 the current church building at 613 West Fourth Street was constructed by John G. Miller Construction at a cost of $17,950. The Great Depression made paying off the construction debt an arduous undertaking, but the community persevered through those hard years and burned the mortgage in 1944, a milestone celebrated with deep gratitude and relief.

The building at 613 West Fourth Street has stood as a landmark on Waterloo's historic Church Row for nearly a century, weathering fires and the challenges of a dwindling congregation while remaining, in the words of the city's Historic Preservation Commission, phenomenal in its ability to be kept in repair and looking as it does in these times. The commission formally honored the Saint Demetrios congregation for historic preservation, recognizing the stewardship of a community that has maintained the building as a gem in the heart of the city.

Saint Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church at 613 West Fourth Street in Waterloo serves the Orthodox Christian faithful of northeastern Iowa as a parish of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Chicago within the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, the pioneer Greek Orthodox community of the Hawkeye State.