On a wooded 140-acre parcel at 9191 Mississippi Street in Merrillville, Indiana, Saint Sava Serbian Orthodox Church has gathered Orthodox Christians and friends of Serbian heritage in Northwest Indiana for more than a century. The current parish, the fourth home of a congregation that began in 1914 in Gary, Indiana, is known across the region for the annual SerbFest summer festival, the Pavilion event center built in 2014, a children's choir that hosts Midwest festivals, and a rich year-round calendar of liturgies, Lenten meals, Friday fish frys, Monday bingo nights, and Kolo dance sessions. It belongs to the Diocese of New Gracanica and Midwestern America of the Serbian Orthodox Church.
From Gary to Merrillville: A Parish Rebuilt from the Ashes
The parish traces its beginnings to 1914, when a small group of Serbian families in Gary organized a church-school congregation. A first wooden church was completed in 1915 at 20th and Connecticut streets. As the community grew, the parish moved north to a larger building at 13th and Connecticut, dedicated in 1939. That second church served the community for nearly four decades until an all-consuming fire leveled it in 1978.
Without missing a single liturgical service, worship resumed in a chapel quickly built inside the existing Serbian Hall on 49th Avenue in Hobart, Indiana. The parish also moved forward with a far bigger plan: purchasing land at 9191 Mississippi Street in Merrillville and erecting a new church and complex that clergy and board members called a "once-in-a-lifetime endeavor." Volunteers "weeded" the construction with their own labor, embodying the Orthodox conviction that "faith without work is dead." The present church rose during the interim years of 1978 through 1991, while the chapel in Hobart continued to host the Divine Liturgy.
More than three decades later, the parish took another major step in the fall of 2014, completing the new Pavilion Hall - a state-of-the-art, contemporary event center of more than 12,000 square feet. The Pavilion anchors the campus today and is the home of SerbFest, Monday Night Bingo, Lenten fish frys, wedding receptions, and the annual Intercultural Dance Festival.
Sunday Morning at 10:00 a.m.
Sunday is the heart of the week. The Divine Liturgy begins at 10:00 a.m. in the main church, with the cycle of the Orthodox year setting the tone: Great Lent, Holy Week and Pascha (Easter), Pentecost, the Dormition, the feast of Saint Sava in late January, and Slava observances throughout the year. Confession is heard before the liturgy, as it is throughout Holy Week, and congregants typically stay after the service for parish announcements and a coffee-hour meal in the South Wing Social Center.
Children move from the Liturgy into Sunday School, which is active for grades Preschool through 8th grade. Classes run from 11:20 to 11:55 a.m. and from 12:00 to 12:30 p.m., and virtual attendance is offered for those who cannot be present in person. Religious instruction and Serbian-language learning are woven together, and the Sunday School also hosts fundraisers such as the Yankee Candle sale and an annual "Little Falcons" book basket distribution through the Historical Society. The registration fee is set per family, and registration forms are available online each summer for the year beginning in September.
Thursday Nights at the Akathist
For those whose Sundays are full, the parish offers a second weekly service that is unusual in its accessibility. On Thursday evenings at 6:00 p.m., the community gathers for the Akathist Hymn - a standing service of approximately 35 minutes dedicated to the works of the Saints, Holy Days, and the Holy Trinity. The church opens at 5:00 p.m. for silent prayer and reflection, and men and women are invited to take turns reading passages from the Book of Akathists, exchanging phrases with clergy.
The Akathist is one of the most beloved services of devotion in Orthodox tradition, with roots that reach back to sixth-century Constantinople and the hymns of St. Romanos the Melodist. Its 24 stanzas - alternating long and short - recount the Annunciation and the Incarnation, each ending with the refrain "Rejoice, O Bride Unwedded." At Saint Sava, the service is intentionally family-friendly: it is considered perfectly acceptable to come in a work uniform, fresh from the office, with whatever one is wearing. The parish encourages families to make Thursday a special night together, with Akathist followed by dinner at home.
Two Choirs on the Bimah and in the Sanctuary
Music has long been a hallmark of worship at Saint Sava. The Karageorge Choir leads the responses at the Divine Liturgy, including special Lenten services such as the Cheesefare Sunday Great Vespers hosted with His Eminence Metropolitan Longin and visiting clergy. The choir takes part in major feasts and also helps lead responses for the Sunday of Orthodoxy Pan-Orthodox Vespers hosted regionally by the Orthodox Christian Clergy Association of Northwest Indiana.
The St. Sava Children's Choir was officially established on December 7, 2014, with the blessing of Father Marko and Father Bogdan, to gather children with a love of music and an interest in the language and culture of their ancestors. Directed by Ivana Stankovic and accompanied by Vasilije Vasko Stankovic on guitar, with Ivana Filipovic on flute, the choir's membership ranges from ages 5 to 12 and now numbers in the teens. The repertoire mixes children's spiritual songs and old Serbian songs with solos for advanced singers, and the choir rehearses once or twice a week, generally on Tuesdays and Thursdays. In 2016 the choir hosted the inaugural "Crown of Tones" Children's Choir Festival, drawing more than 100 young singers from parishes across Indiana, Illinois, and Wisconsin.
Srbadija Folklore and the Adult Kolo Open Group
The parish's principal dance ensemble is Srbadija, a youth folklore group directed by choreographer Miloš Drljević Djakovac. Srbadija carries the traditions of the Serbian regions into the Midwest and has been featured on Lakeshore Public Media's "Eye on the Arts" program. Srbadija hosts its own Lenten Luncheon (featuring Goran's Famous Fish Stew and Lenten salads) and each year plays host to the Intercultural Dance Festival, which has brought more than a dozen groups from Chicago, Detroit, Munster, Edmonton, Niagara Falls, and Ontario to the Pavilion's stage.
For adults, the parish opened a beginner-friendly open folklore group that meets every Monday evening from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. in the South Wing Social Center. Newcomers learn traditional Kolo circle dances with Miloš Drljević Djakovac; a small fee of $5 per week supports the church, the children's folklore program, and the children's choir. Tennis shoes and comfortable clothes are all that is required - opanke are optional.
The Pavilion: A 12,000-Square-Foot Event Center
Completed in the fall of 2014, the Pavilion at St. Sava is one of the largest banquet venues in Northwest Indiana and is available to the general public for weddings, business conferences, tradeshows, and other large gatherings. The main assembly area, stage, kitchen, bar, and storage spaces total more than 12,000 square feet, and the central hall is flanked on both sides by full-length, floor-to-ceiling accordion-style window-doors that open onto two patio areas looking out toward wooded grounds. State-of-the-art multimedia and contemporary furnishings are standard.
On-site catering is provided by Dimitri's Catering, focused on Serbian and American cuisine, with menu options ranging from Bronze (French Cut Chicken Beurre Blanc with a five-hour premium bar) through Silver, Gold, and Platinum packages (with Fillet Mignon, Bordelaise sauce, floor-length linens, and a five-hour top-shelf bar). Couples booking 2026 events are offered a booking special of complimentary butler-style cheese and bruschetta during cocktail hour. Rentals, capabilities, and pricing are arranged by calling the church office at 219-736-9191.
SerbFest: Three Days at the End of July
Each year at the end of July, Saint Sava hosts SerbFest, one of the largest ethnic festivals in Northwest Indiana and Chicagoland. The festival traditionally runs noon to midnight on Friday and Saturday and noon to 6:00 p.m. on Sunday. Festival hours open with food and beverage ticket sales (cash only, with ATM on site), food sales, and bar service in the Main Hall and Main Tent/Beer Garden. A Historical Society exhibit is open in the North Wing of the church complex, and guided church tours led by Father Marko run late afternoons and evenings from inside the main church.
Music anchors the weekend. Friday typically brings traditional Serbian selections by DJ Vinko in the Main Hall, a tambura ensemble on the Main Hall stage, kafana singers with the Jasnic Brothers on the South Patio, and an American cover band in the Main Tent. Saturday continues the tradition with kolo dancing led by DJ Spaz, more tambura music, and kafana singing. Sunday closes the festival with afternoon tambura and kolo performances, ending with the SerbFest Cash Raffle Drawing at 6:00 p.m. The SerbFest Cash Raffle, organized under Indiana Gaming Commission license #002611 (on file with the Church Office), awards a $15,000 grand prize, plus $7,000, $3,000, $2,000, four $1,000 prizes, two $500 prizes, five $200 prizes, and two $1,000 early-bird drawings awarded in late May and mid-July.
The festival grill serves pljeskavica (Serbian hamburgers on pita with grilled onions, peppers, and coleslaw), cevaps (eight Serbian sausages with feta), and hot dogs; the indoor kitchen turns out hardwood-roasted half chicken, sarma stuffed cabbage, spit-roasted pig, and lamb, with roasted potatoes, Serbian-style green beans, coleslaw, and bread. The bakery offers krofne, palacinke, pastries, cookies, strudel by the slice or whole (apple, cherry, salty cheese, sweet cheese, spinach), and whole nutrolls. The bar carries Serbian brandy alongside wine, shots, mixed drinks, Stella and Michelob Ultra on draft, and non-alcoholic options. Whole pig and lamb are also sold by the pound for take-home cooks.
Friday morning of SerbFest weekend is also the date of the parish's annual Golf Outing at River Pointe Country Club, with registration at 8:30 a.m. and a shotgun start at 10:00 a.m. The fee covers 18 holes, a Bloody Mary bar, and a dinner buffet at the Pavilion of spit-roasted lamb, cevaps, Serbian sides, and homemade baked goods. Hole sponsorships are $100, with Premier Sponsors at $1,500.
Monday Night Bingo and Lenten Fish Frys
Between SerbFests, the Pavilion hosts Monday Night Bingo year-round. Doors open in the early evening, dinners are served from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m., Early Bird Bingo begins at 5:30 p.m., and Regular Bingo follows at 6:30 p.m. Card sets range from $15 for an 18-card small setup to $30 for a 36-card large double setup, with special cards, dabbers, dauber cards, and supplies available for sale. The evening is licensed and open to the community.
During Great Lent, the Pavilion's kitchens transform into the Friday Fish Fry. From 4:00 to 8:00 p.m. each Friday evening through April 7, the parish serves beer-battered cod, ocean perch, butterfly shrimp, and the Serbian specialty bakalar (Canadian salt cod blended with potatoes, olive oil, garlic, and onions). Combo platters and a Lenten salad bar and dessert table round out the meal, and carry-out is available. Each Friday is hosted by a different parish organization, taking turns through the season, with proceeds supporting that host group's work.
Memorial Day Blessings Across Northwest Indiana
Memorial Day weekend is a major pastoral moment for the parish. Father Marko Matic leads a Saturday of memorial services and grave blessings at Graceland Cemetery and Angel Crest Cemetery in Valparaiso, then blesses the graves at the parish's own Holy Cross Cemetery at Saint Sava Church on Sunday immediately after Holy Liturgy (around noon), and on Monday visits Calumet Park Cemetery in Merrillville and Oak Hill Cemetery in Gary. The parish sees Memorial Day as both a remembrance of those who died for the country and a karmic duty: an opportunity to plant flowers, light candles, and offer the Memorial Service - Parastos - on the departed.
The Aim of the Church-School Congregation
The parish is governed by a written Aim that lists its core commitments: protecting, preserving, and perpetuating the true teaching of the Orthodox Faith together with Serbian traditions and customs; receiving people into the Orthodox Faith through Holy Baptism and guiding them into family life through marriage according to the Church's teachings; edifying believers through teaching toward spiritual and moral perfection and fostering brotherly love; erecting and maintaining a church and all its annexes for spiritual, cultural, educational, national, athletic, and social needs; establishing Church and Serbian Schools and organizing programs for the moral upbringing of children and youth; preaching and practicing charity as a high ideal of the Christian religion; preserving the ancestral tradition of interring members of the parish; and cooperating with other church-school congregations within the Diocese of New Gracanica and Midwestern America.
The patron of the parish is Saint Sava, the first Archbishop and Enlightener of the Serbian people, whose teaching - "For me, prayer, is the greatest blessing on earth" - is the inspiration for the parish's name and its commitment to prayer as the foundation of family, cultural, and community life.
Visiting Saint Sava for the First Time
The church office is open Monday through Friday between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. and is located in the north wing of the church. Limited parking is available in front of the church, and a much larger lot is found behind the building. Sunday morning services begin at 10:00 a.m., and visitors are warmly welcomed whether they are lifelong Orthodox, newly discovering the faith, or simply curious. The parish emphasizes that "while Saint Sava Church is strongly connected with Serbian culture, we invite people from all cultures who wish to experience the Orthodox Faith." Thursday evening Akathist at 6:00 p.m. is especially accessible to newcomers and to those who cannot attend on Sundays.
Donations may be made in person at the church office (cash or checks payable to St. Sava Church), by U.S. mail, or online through debit or credit cards. A commemorative brick donation program is also available for those who wish to leave a permanent mark on the campus.
The parish is part of a wider network of Serbian Orthodox communities across the region - including St. George in Schererville, St. George in East Chicago, Holy Resurrection Serbian Orthodox Cathedral in Chicago, St. Sava Serbian Orthodox Cathedral in Milwaukee, and New Gracanica Monastery in Third Lake, Illinois - and works closely with the Orthodox Christian Clergy Association of Northwest Indiana and with the Diocese of New Gracanica and Midwestern America, under the care of His Grace Bishop Longin. Summer youth programming is supported through the four one-week camps held each summer at New Gracanica Monastery.
For more than a hundred years, Saint Sava has been a place where Serbian Orthodoxy is taught, sung, danced, and shared with neighbors across Northwest Indiana. From the Divine Liturgy on Sunday morning to the Akathist on Thursday evening, from the Children's Choir at the festival to Srbadija on the dance floor, from the Pavilion at SerbFest to the cemetery on Memorial Day, the parish continues its century-long work of building and transmitting faith, family, and culture in Merrillville.