A West Park Parish with Two Worship Sites
St. Mark Catholic Parish sits on Montrose Avenue in Cleveland's West Park neighborhood, where its red-brick church and adjoining school have served generations of families on the city's west side. The parish is part of the Diocese of Cleveland and shares its sacramental life with a partner worship site at St. Mel, which hosts several of the Sunday and weekday Masses. Together, the two churches form a single pastoral community under the leadership of Fr. Adam Zajac, with a parish school, a robust PSR program, CYO athletics, scouting, and a long list of ministries that reach from the sanctuary out into the surrounding neighborhood.
Mass and Confession Across the Two Churches
The parish lives by a steady weekly rhythm centered on the Eucharist. The Sunday Vigil Mass is celebrated on Saturday at 4:30 p.m. at St. Mark. On Sunday morning, Mass is offered at 6:45 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. at St. Mel, with the principal Sunday Mass at 8:30 a.m. at St. Mark. The 8:30 Sunday Mass is livestreamed on the parish's Facebook page, allowing those who cannot attend in person to follow along without needing a Facebook account.
Weekday Masses are split between the two sites: Monday and Thursday at 8:30 a.m. at St. Mark, and Tuesday and Friday at 6:45 a.m. at St. Mel. After the 8:30 Sunday Mass, parishioners gather to pray the Rosary at 9:30 a.m. Confessions are heard on Saturday afternoons from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. in St. Mark Church, and Fr. Adam is also available to hear confessions by appointment.
The Seven Sacraments in Daily Practice
The parish treats the seven sacraments as the spine of its life together. Infant Baptisms are scheduled once a month at 9:30 a.m., following the 8:30 Mass, with first-time parents asked to attend a Pre-Baptism class and godparents expected to bring a sponsor certificate from their own registered parish. Adults preparing for Christian initiation enter the Order of Christian Initiation for Adults, or OCIA, a program open to anyone interested in becoming Catholic, to Catholics who have not yet received Confirmation and Eucharist, and to children aged seven and older who have not been baptized.
Couples planning to marry are asked to make arrangements at least six months in advance with a priest or deacon. The parish provides both a Marriage Preparation Guide and a longer Wedding Planning Guide to walk couples through the process, and couples may be prepared at St. Mark even if they choose to marry elsewhere. The Anointing of the Sick is brought to parishioners in hospitals, nursing homes, or their own homes by request through the Parish Office. Funerals are planned in consultation with the parish, supported by a Funeral Planning Guide and a Bereavement Ministry that reaches out to grieving families by phone, mail, and occasional support groups.
St. Mark School and PSR Faith Formation
Faith formation for children runs along two parallel tracks. St. Mark School is the parish's day school, where Principal Christine Gunn oversees a faculty and staff that, together with the parish, totals more than fifty employees. The school currently enrolls a strong student body, and the parish takes pride in the institution's role in shaping young Catholics in West Park.
For children who attend public schools or are homeschooled, the Parish School of Religion, known as PSR, meets on Monday evenings from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. for students in grades one through eight. PSR Director Jeannette Puckett coordinates a curriculum that prepares second graders for First Reconciliation and First Eucharist, and eighth graders for Confirmation, with sacramental preparation requiring at least one prior year of PSR enrollment. Adult Bible Study is offered at various points throughout the year, and a Sunday Pre-School program welcomes children ages three to five during the 8:30 a.m. Mass.
Music, Lectors, and Liturgical Ministries
Music Ministry Director Julia Wallace leads a program that welcomes new members throughout the year and supports every weekend liturgy. The wider liturgical team is built from many smaller ministries. Altar Servers include both adult servers, who primarily assist at funeral liturgies, and youth servers from sixth grade through high school, including PSR and day school students. Lectors proclaim the Scriptures at weekend and special celebrations after a period of prayerful preparation. Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion assist the clergy in distributing the Body and Blood of Christ after completing diocesan training. Ushers welcome worshippers, assist with seating, take up the weekly collection, and distribute bulletins. An Art and Environment committee prepares the church for each liturgical season and weekend Mass.
Reaching Out to Neighbors Near and Far
St. Mark's Social Concerns ministries are woven into parish life. The Parish Outreach ministry prepares meals for funeral luncheons and provides food or supplies to parishioners navigating the loss of a loved one, the birth of a child, a sudden illness, or the loss of a job. Food Sunday, held roughly once a month, collects non-perishable items for centers and agencies whose shelves are bare. The Giving Tree fills Advent with gift tags naming neighbors in need, and Christmas in July runs themed collections during July weekends for Cleveland-area social service agencies. The parish has also taken part in Cleveland Apostles Build / Habitat for Humanity rehab projects.
At home, the Emmaus Partners ministry pairs young families with parishioners aged seventy and older who are homebound or moderately active, building two-way relationships between generations. The Homebound Ministry, coordinated by Dianne Gorsek, sends trained Eucharistic Ministers to bring Holy Communion to those who cannot attend weekend Masses.
Parish Life, Donut Sundays, and the Holy Name Society
Fellowship has its own rhythms. Donut Sunday, the first weekend of each month, brings coffee, donuts, and juice to the gathering after the Saturday Vigil and Sunday morning Masses, with different parish groups sponsoring each gathering. The Holy Name Society, a long-standing organization open to all men and women of the parish, supports the community through prayer and fundraising throughout the year. A Ministry of Prayer maintains both an email and a phone prayer chain for parish intentions, while a Bereavement Ministry reaches out to those who have lost family members or friends.
Scouting, CYO Athletics, and Family Life
For younger parishioners, the parish supports both Cub Scouts and Brownies / Girl Scouts, with parent volunteers helping to lead den meetings, outings, and service projects. St. Mark Athletics, the parish's CYO program, fields teams across the sports seasons for parishioners and welcomes athletes from surrounding parishes with permission. All sports are sanctioned by the Diocesan Athletic Association through CYO, and every adult who works with children - whether as a coach, scout leader, catechist, or classroom volunteer - must complete Virtus training and maintain their certification under the Diocese of Cleveland's safe-environment policies.
The Parish School Endowment
St. Mark began setting aside parish savings for the school in the late 1970s and formally established the St. Mark School Endowment Burse in 2019 as a restricted fund governed by written rules. Its purpose is to provide for the operation, maintenance, capital needs, student scholarships, and continued existence of St. Mark Parish School. The endowment is invested in stocks and bonds that pass through socially responsible filters developed by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Because the school is currently in a strong financial position, the endowment is being grown for the future rather than drawn upon today.
Leadership, Councils, and the Parish Office
Fr. Adam Zajac serves as pastor and is supported by a Parish Council, elected by parishioners to three-year terms, that promotes the spiritual growth of the community and helps set pastoral priorities, and a Finance Council of parishioners with expertise in finance, law, or business that advises the pastor on financial matters. The parish staff includes Pastoral Minister Meaghan McCarthy-Silver, Music Director Julia Wallace, PSR Director Jeannette Puckett, Homebound Minister Dianne Gorsek, Business Manager Teresa Purenciu-Winans, Financial Assistant Debbie Broughton, and Parish Secretary Ellia Guerrieri.
The Parish Office, reachable at (216) 226-7577 or secretary@stmarkcleveland.com, is open Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., closed for lunch from noon to 12:30. Weekly bulletins, the parish calendar, and Mass intention requests are all handled through the office, and giving is supported through ParishSoft Giving, one-time or recurring online donations, and the annual WeGiveCatholic campaign on Giving Tuesday.