A Pioneer Congregation on Chillicothe Road
Old South Church sits along Chillicothe Road in Kirtland, Ohio, in the rolling country between Cleveland and the Lake Erie shoreline. From its doors each Sunday morning and three afternoons a week, the congregation lives out a twofold identity: a worshiping community rooted in two centuries of New England Congregationalist faith, and an active neighbor feeding hundreds of households through one of the most consistent food pantries in Lake County. The church's own description says it plainly: the purpose of Old South is to be an intentionally welcoming, justice-building faith community, committed to spreading God's radical love.
From Ten Founders in 1819 to a Congregation of Today
The story begins on September 5, 1819, when four men and six women gathered to confess their faith at what was then South Kirtland Congregational Church. The village of Kirtland was eight years old. All ten founders had been members of Congregational churches in Connecticut or Massachusetts, descendants of the first Congregationalists - the Pilgrims and the Puritans. They were, in the church's telling, staunch believers in God who looked forward to an unknown future, building their faith on the rock that the hymn proclaims.
As Old South United Church of Christ, the congregation continues to build on that rock while serving members and friends who live in twenty-four cities and townships across Lake, Geauga, Cuyahoga, and Ashtabula counties. Residents in fourteen other communities throughout the United States also attend or support the church, a reach that reflects its long history as a destination congregation on the eastern edge of Greater Cleveland.
Open and Affirming, and a Just Peace Church
Old South carries two designations that shape its life from the pulpit to the parking lot. It is an Open and Affirming Congregation of the United Church of Christ, a covenant that means every person is welcomed, celebrated, and invited into full participation regardless of race, age, nationality, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, family circumstance, socio-economic status, physical and mental ability, or spiritual background. The congregation's own covenant ends with the line: God loves you. Christ invites you. We embrace and celebrate you.
It is also a Just Peace Church. The Witness for Justice statement affirms that peace and justice are the heart of God's plan for humanity and commits members to educating themselves about oppressive systems, working to reduce fear and hatred, promoting care for the earth, advocating for equitable distribution of resources, and striving to create a world where all people are loved, valued, and treated equitably. A standing Witness for Justice team, including Paula Cross, Mary Jones, Nick Dybo, Karen Mulloy, and Joe Mulloy, presents a new topic each month for the congregation to study together, with past topics including voting rights, economic justice, LGBTQI+ issues, women's rights, and discrimination.
Worship at Ten, In Person and Online
Worship takes place every Sunday morning at ten o'clock, both in the historic sanctuary and via livestream on YouTube. Visitors who arrive in person are greeted by a banner that reads: You Are Welcome Here. Come as you are. Be who you are. No Exceptions.
The musical tradition is anchored by two seasoned musicians. Terry Herschman, the choir director, holds Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees from Kent State University with an emphasis in choral conducting and retired in 2014 after thirty-six years of teaching in the Mentor Public Schools, where she directed junior high and high school choirs and taught music theory and composition. Sara Smith, the organist and accompanist, holds degrees from the Eastman School of Music and has worked for decades as an educator, arranger, coach, and accompanist across the Cleveland area, including long tenures at the Cleveland Institute of Music, the Cleveland Music School Settlement, and Church of the Saviour in Cleveland Heights. Together they lead a choral program that provides choral anthems on the first and third Sundays of the program year, with special music always welcome on other Sundays and throughout the summer.
The Food Pantry, Monday Through Friday
The food pantry is the most visible expression of Old South's commitment to its neighbors. A partner agency of the Greater Cleveland Food Bank, the pantry distributes food three days a week: Mondays from 6:00 to 7:30 PM, Wednesdays from 6:00 to 7:30 PM, and Fridays from 2:00 to 4:00 PM.
Guests who need food assistance are welcome to visit every two weeks. There is no residency requirement, but guests are asked to bring a photo identification with their current address. On arrival, visitors line up in the lower parking lot and remain in their cars until invited inside. The pantry follows a choose-what-you-need model, with volunteers helping each household select items based on family size and loading the order into the car. Additional assistance is available on request.
Donations of food and personal products are accepted during distribution hours and by appointment through the church office, with monetary gifts made online by selecting Food Pantry as the purpose. The pantry's current wish list includes flour, sugar, coffee, eggs, milk, sandwich bread, pads and tampons, dish soap, and shampoo.
Children, Youth, and Families
The Children, Youth, and Families ministry coordinates nursery care and education activities during Sunday morning worship, along with a youth group, game night, a Family Fun Day, and summer programs. The Colonial Crafters, a women's fellowship group that has met since 1952, gathers every Tuesday at ten o'clock for crafting and conversation, bringing a bag lunch and sharing in desserts provided by the hostess. The group of about twenty-five also welcomes members from other congregations.
The Women's Fellowship, with about twenty active members of any age who are church members, meets on the fourth Monday of each month for business and fellowship. Members provide lunches for grieving church families and refreshments for many church events. The group's signature project is its annual Holiday Bazaar, said to be the oldest craft bazaar in the county, dating back to at least the 1920s. Everything at the Bazaar is handmade - sewn, knitted, crocheted items, and a wide selection of homemade baked goods - and the hot lunch features homemade soups and pies alongside hot dogs, sloppy joes, egg salad, and tuna salad. At least eighty percent of what is earned is given away, including camperships for the church's youth.
A Care Team and a Ministry Team
A Care Team supports the congregation through Lay Care Ministers available for one-on-one pastoral conversations, as well as ministers who send cards and make phone calls and others who coordinate meals for members in special situations. The Pastoral Relations Committee advocates for the pastor and serves as a vessel for the church body in matters of a pastoral nature.
Behind all of it sits a Ministry Team with a single point person for each area of congregational life: Worship, Music, Children, Youth and Families, Adult Learning, Marketing, Building Use and Design, Missions, Witness for Justice, Congregational Care, Team, Digital Ministry, Fellowship and Celebration, Welcoming, Women's Fellowship, and Food Pantry. The Administrative Cabinet is composed of the Moderator, Assistant Moderator, Clerk, Treasurer, and a Steward for each of four areas: Financial Management, Building and Grounds, Fund Raising, and Personnel and Leadership Development.
Weddings in the Sanctuary and the Dell
Old South offers its 1859 sanctuary and a beautiful outdoor amphitheater called the Dell for wedding ceremonies. Both venues seat approximately 180 guests, including balcony and back-of-sanctuary seating indoors. Weddings must be booked at least three months in advance, with the reservation confirmed after a non-refundable deposit. The Dell hosts weddings from the first Saturday in June through the last Saturday in September; in the event of rain, Dell ceremonies move into the sanctuary.
Ceremonies are officiated by the pastoral staff, with outside officiants considered after a conversation with the pastor. Planning sessions are held ahead of the wedding day so that the minister can shape a ceremony with the couple's input, and a wedding coordinator assists with rehearsal and ceremony details. The sanctuary's center aisle stretches forty-five feet from the vestibule doors. Photography is permitted only at the entrance, the exit, and from the balcony with available light, and aisle runners cannot be used in the Dell. Pets are welcome at Dell ceremonies.
Missions Beyond Kirtland
In addition to the food pantry, Old South's missions focus includes Project Hope in Painesville and support for disaster relief programs and special offerings. The church's monthly newsletter, Steeple Views, carries the pastor's reflections, calendar, and ministry reports, with current and back issues available online. The church's communications include a Facebook page at OldSouthUnitedChurchofChrist, an Instagram presence at oldsouthucc, and a YouTube channel where services are livestreamed and past services can be watched.
Pastor Brenda Waddell
The Reverend Brenda Waddell serves as pastor. Raised in an evangelical, fundamentalist Christian tradition, she learned to ask challenging questions about God and religion early in life and eventually found a spiritual home in the United Church of Christ, where she rediscovered the life-giving love of God through worship, the sacrament of communion, and community engagement. Before entering ministry she had a career in the automobile industry, and she brings to her work a sense that mission and the people who pursue it belong together. She holds an Associate degree in Business, a Bachelor's degree in Psychology, and a Master of Divinity from the Methodist Theological School in Ohio with a concentration in interreligious contexts, and she is certified through the Association for Clinical Pastoral Education. She describes herself as a lifelong learner passionate about removing the obstacles to God, whether placed by others or by ourselves.
Getting There and Getting Involved
The church office is open from nine o'clock in the morning until noon, with a phone line at 440-256-3329 and an inbox at office@oldsouthchurch.org. Those interested in volunteering for the food pantry can write to volunteers@oldsouthchurch.org. Giving to the church and to the food pantry can be done online. Visitors and newcomers are welcome to attend Sunday worship at 10:00 AM, either in the sanctuary or via the YouTube livestream, and to stay afterward for the fellowship that has marked this congregation from the day ten people first confessed their faith in 1819.