A Century of History on Cleveland’s West Side

Our Lady of Mount Carmel parish on the west side of Cleveland officially celebrates its 100th anniversary this year. Long before there was a parish, there was devotion. As far back as 1892, Italian immigrants on Cleveland’s west side gathered to honor Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Saint Anthony, and Saint Rocco. Their faith was fierce and their longing for a spiritual home was stronger still. When Fr. Sante Gattuso, a Mercedarian, arrived from Saint Anthony Parish in Youngstown in 1924, he found a neighborhood already on fire with prayer. He began meeting with the Our Lady of Mount Carmel Mutual Help Society, celebrating masses and first communion classes for the people in the Detroit Avenue area. In the Fasano family home, a small statue of Our Lady became the heart of a makeshift chapel where neighborhood women gathered nightly to pray the rosary with one burning intention: to build a church. By Palm Sunday of 1926, that dream had become a mission parish. In the very first year, the mission of Our Lady of Mount Carmel was established in an old saloon of Pasquale Zitiello on W. 69th St. There were altar boys, the St. Agnes Society for girls, and 220 registered families. By 1932, the parish had grown and was in need of a new space. With the blessing of then Bishop Schrembs, Fr. Sante and Fr. Vincent were able to purchase property at 7104 Detroit Ave. and begin renovation of a double home into a new chapel. In 1933, Fr. Vincent founded the Societa Azione Cattolica, calling men to carry the church’s message through the witness of their daily lives. That same year, the young women joined the Our Lady of Mercy Sodality — and the parish held its first picnic, with families boarding a bus to York Road for just 25 cents. Generations of laughter, food, and fellowship followed. This summer, the tradition returns: join us in August on the parish grounds for a centennial celebration to remember. The church you see today at W. 70th and Detroit was built entirely on the donations of working families. On April 24, 1949, John Pataturo laid the cornerstone. That September, Our Lady of Mount Carmel School opened with 50 students under the Trinitarian Sisters. The convent followed in 1957; a new gymnasium and auditorium rose in 1963. Then in 1966, the bishop sent a letter that made it official: OLMC was no longer a mission — it was an independent Parish. Every stone had been worth it. OLMC has always been more than a church — it is the soul of a neighborhood. In 1967, Fr. Marino launched the first Neighborhood Rehabilitation Project, seeding what would become the Villa Mercede and Nolasco Housing. In 1972, he coined a name that stuck: Detroit-Shoreway. Today that name graces one of Cleveland’s most vibrant districts — a legacy cast in concrete and community spirit. Through every season, OLMC has adapted without losing its soul. Fr. Richard Rausch brought the Mercedarian Sisters to the school in 1997, established the Alumni Association in 1999, and made OLMC the first Cleveland school with a year-round calendar in 2001. At the 75th anniversary, 830 families were registered — many bearing the same surnames as the founders. Fr. Joseph Eddy held the parish together through COVID with outdoor masses, drive-through confessions, and unwavering love. Fr. James Chia, the last of the Mercedarians, served with quiet grace before the order withdrew. In 2023, OLMC became a Diocesan parish for the first time in its history. Fr. Robert Kropac — who speaks Italian — has preserved the beloved Sunday Italian Mass, ensuring that the language of the founders still echoes in the nave during feast days honoring Padre Pio, Saint Anthony, and Our Lady herself. This year we have already celebrated with a Centennial Dinner and will continue our 100 years celebration with the Annual Italian Festival on July 8 – 12. We have great Italian food, the Villa Ristorante, scopa and bocce tournaments, Italian music, homemade wine and cello contests, the famous grocery stand and the reason for the feast, the Procession of Saints and Our Lady of Mount Carmel on Sunday after mass. We hope to see old and new faces this year. Come home. Celebrate. Cent’Anni!