Our Lady of Angels Church
3644 Rocky River Dr
Cleveland, Ohio 44111
Phone: 216-252-2332       Fax: 216-252-2383
Pastor: Jerome J. Duke
E-mail: rectory@olangels.org
www.olangels.org

Father Linus

 Because Father Columban's resignation came during the winter of 1923, a temporary pastor was needed until the following summer when a permanent pastor could be appointed. That temporary pastor was Father Linus Koenemund, O.F.M. His "temporary" assignment, initially intended to last only six months, from December 1923 until the following summer, spanned more than three decades. It eventually ended thirty years and six months later, during the summer of 1954 when he was transferred to a less demanding position in Riverton, Illinois.

Father Linus was a holy and learned priest, as well as a tireless worker. He endeared himself to the congregation over the years due to his total dedication to, and love for, his flock. Father Linus is generally remembered as a strong leader and one of the guiding lights of the early years of Our Lady of Angels Parish.

Before Father Columban resigned, he had started a parish school. Ground for the building which would house this school was broken on July 1, 1923 and the cornerstone for the new Our Lady of Angels School was laid on August 5, 1923. However, during the early years of Father Linus' stewardship, the parish saw continuing growth as more and more Catholic families moved into the area and, as a result, in 1926, the school was expanded, with four more rooms being added to the original building.

Just a couple of years later, on June 17, 1928, the frame church was enlarged and renovated. However, growth in Our Lady of Angels Parish continued unabated over the years and, in 1940, the decision was made to erect a new church. With ground having been broken on March 19, 1941, the new church rose from the ground magnificently. Less than nine months later, on December 8, 1941 – the Feast of the Immaculate Conception and, coincidentally, the day following the attack on Pearl Harbor – the new church was dedicated. A portion of a photograph that was included in the Golden Jubilee Book reflects the new and terrifying reality with which parishioners – as well as the rest of the world – suddenly found themselves confronted. Faces that should have been joyful and proud are unsmiling, and clearly concerned. That morning, perhaps more than at any time in their lives, Our Lady of Angels parishioners, though obviously concerned, must have felt the tremendous power and healing of God's love in the beautiful new structure they had just built to worship Him.

Though not completely finished, Midnight Mass was held in the new church on Christmas Eve, 1941. Following the Christmas masses, services were once more conducted in the old church to allow for the uninterrupted completion of the new building. By Easter 1942, the new church was completed and, soon after, the small frame church, so beloved by all, was razed.