LAKEWOOD (OH)
The Plain Dealer
By Carol Kovach, Sun News
LAKEWOOD A crowd gathered outside St. James Catholic Church in Lakewood this evening to celebrate news that their beloved church could reopen soon. Excited parishioners hugged each other, saying they waited nearly two years for this decision. The 100-year-old cathedral-like church, still locked as it has been since June 2010, loomed behind them.
Some in the crowd held “Save St. James” signs. The signs popped up on lawns throughout the city after Cleveland Bishop Richard Lennon announced more than two years ago that the parish woul be among more than 50 churches closed in a downsizing of the diocese.
The faithful, like Joe Dwyer, a 25-year parishioner, never lost hope that the decision to close St. James would be reversed. He greeted dozens of friends outside the church with hugs and kisses.
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