Visitors are invited to explore historic Calvary Cemetery 1-4 p.m. Sept. 23 during Family Day.
The afternoon will be filled with free fun and faith-filled activities focused on bringing families closer together and to the greater Catholic community. There will be light refreshments, self-guided cemetery tours, activities for children, genealogy assistance and more. Visitors are invited to explore the well-groomed grounds and view the monuments and other sights.
Calvary, which is located at 10000 Miles Ave., Cleveland, was consecrated on Nov. 26, 1893. It was the first non-parish Catholic cemetery in the Diocese of Cleveland and is overseen by the Catholic Cemeteries Association.
The cemetery was developed after the purchase of the Leland Farm, 100 acres of land located south of Miles Avenue and north of the Cleveland & Pittsburgh Railroad tracks. Today, it extends over 300 acres, most of which are in Garfield Heights and is the largest cemetery in the diocese.
Calvary is the final resting place of many prominent Clevelanders. A peek at its burial records reveals that many community and business leaders, politicians, war heroes and entertainment figures are buried there, as well as many priests and religious order sisters and brothers.
Among the most recognizable names are Gene Carroll and Frankie Yankovic, both of whom were well-known entertainers. Frank Lausche, who served as Cleveland mayor, Ohio governor and U.S. senator, is also buried at Calvary.
Helena Pelczar, who bore the stigmata and is being considered for sainthood, is buried in the cemetery, as is Cleveland?s Johnny Kilbane, who earned fame as a world featherweight champion boxer. Kilbane later served in the Ohio legislature and was clerk of court in Cleveland.
Stella Walsh, an Olympic track and field champion, also is interred at Calvary.
Several Congressional Medal of Honor recipients, Deacon Joseph Newman, the first African-American deacon ordained in the diocese, and Father Gene Wilson, the first African-American priest ordained in the diocese, are buried there, also.
Calvary is also the final resting place of hundreds of victims of the 1918 Spanish flu epidemic.
All told, more than 310,000 people are buried there. Andrej Lah, director of Catholic Cemeteries Association, said many burial plots remain.
?A Catholic cemetery is more than just a place where we inter our beloved dead. It is a place where our relationship with the dead is renewed. We look to the very foundation of our faith and we find it in the acknowledgement of our relationship with the dead,? Lah said.
Calvary offers a full range of interment choices, providing for ground burial and cremation.
Visitors are also welcome for the annual Cemetery Sunday Mass at 3 p.m. on Nov. 4. Bishop Nelson Perez celebrated the annual Memorial Day Mass at Calvary on May 28.
For more information on Catholic cemeteries in the diocese, including Calvary, visit clecem.org.
