History of
St. Andrew’s

St. Andrew’s started as the offspring of Parma South Presbyterian Church. The Berea area was growing rapidly in the mid 1950’s, and many of the members attending Parma South wanted to attend church closer to home. Regular services started on January 8, 1956 at Fairwood Elementary School. The current property was purchased in 1957 and the new building was dedicated in 1961.

St. Andrew’s has had only four pastors in our 50 year history: The Rev. Fred Missel (1957 – 1964), The Rev. Oliver K Williams (1965 – 1973), The Rev. Richard Fouse (1974 – 1987), The Rev. Oommen Thomas, 1989 – 2006 . In 2001, we dedicated our new Friendship Hall, which besides being home to our congregation, also provides space for one of the largest AA group in the area and an excellent space for many community events.

Over the nearly 50 years, mission has been a critical component of our faith vision. We have built homes, sponsored refugee families, yoked with inner city churches and support the regional, national and international missions of our denomination. Children are also a key focus of our church. Several of our children have had their faith foundation set at St. Andrew’s and grown up to receive God’s call to become pastors.

In 2006, we celebrated our 50th anniversary with events that celebrate our past, present and future. While we are searching for our next Pastor, we continue to worship and serve, enjoying the full range of programs and projects of our active congregation Please join us as we continue our journey to follow the path of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Our mission grows from the
St. Andrew’s Vision statement:

St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church
An open, caring family of faith
Receiving God's message
Nurturing each other
Going out into the
world
In all
that we do
Let everyone
experience Christ's love

Personnel

Jody enjoyed teaching music in public schools as a first career and was active as a youth group teacher in her congregation before entering Mc Cormick Theological Seminary in Chicago. After graduation, she moved to Lakewood and has served in the Presbytery of the Western Reserve for 21 years at three congregations ( Lakewood, Fairmount and Brooklyn), an 18-month interim on presbytery staff, and on various committees.

Jody' husband, Ken Gober, manages the Rocky River Nature Center in Cleveland Metroparks. Ken is an elder of Lakewood Presbyterian Church and will be an occasional worshiper at St. Andrew’s.

Brent Erstad
Director of Music & Organist

Brent Erstad has joined the staff of St. Andrew’s as Music Director, Youth Choir Director and Organist. He is currently a student at Cleveland Institute of Music and has studied at Baldwin-Wallace College. Brent expressed his commitment to the Lord and being involved into the greater ministry of the church through his musical talent. We welcome him as a partner in the ministry of St. Andrew’s.

Gladys Kershaw
Coordinator of Christian Education

Gladys facilitates an active program of Christian Education, both for adults and children. She is a graduate of The Ohio State University (B.S. Education, 1970 and M.S. Early and Middle Childhood Education, 1974) and spent 5 years teaching in the Columbus public school system.
Email: standysce@aol.com

Karen Drasler
Church Secretary

Karen is the hub of our office, coordinating activities, preparing all manner of printed material and overseeing our calendar.
Email andrewsecy@aol.com

Bob Peterseim
Church Treasurer

Bob keeps the church checkbook and sees that all our bills are paid.

Dave Zilch
Financial Secretary

Dave oversees church income and prepares a summary report of donations for each donor

Judy Mitchell
Messenger Editor

Judy coordinates articles and edits our monthly newsletter called The Messenger.
Email: SWT8x6@wowway.com