The Lawn Chair Church

In the late Summer and into the Fall of 1968, Calvary (Pentecostal) Church, much like the Children of Israel who wandered in the wilderness, traversed the City of Cincinnati.  With lawn chairs in tow, the group met at various congregants’ homes to hold church services:   Normal & Mildred Morgan held services in their basement; the Rev. Harold & Betty Swango held service in their yard; others opened up their living rooms.  As Fall turned into Winter, a couple from the congregation, the Littell’s, saw a church for rent in the area in which they lived.  That church, The Blue Ash Baptist Church on Blue Ash Road, was available for rent on a month-to-month basis as the Baptists were desirous of ultimately selling the building, not just renting it.

Rev. Paslay, I, along with a group who would form the original board, visited the church and made arrangements to rent it.  Again, The Lawn Chair Church was on the move.  With lawn chairs in hand, families entered that building in December 1968 for the first service.  The church initially was cold, quite dirty from months of non-use and no cleaning, and lacked pews and other semblances of its being a church (empty Sunday School rooms, no instruments).  But all that changed with the grit and sacrifice of the congregants.  People donated items:  J.R. Wilson, an organ; Harold and Carol Setser, a piano, and many other items.  People donated money or took out loans on their property or vehicles to buy pews and other furnishings for the building.

This building became a haven for the lost and served the church well for over 5 years.  In the years in that building, the Holy Ghost was poured out and many Divine healings (e.g. child with leg braces came with his grandparents and left walking with no braces on his legs) took place.  The Spirit fell on many occasions to the point that the metal rods that stretched from side to side of the building for stability shook up and down when the church began worshipping and dancing before the Lord.   During these 5 years of occupancy in Blue Ash, building funds were being raised, and very sacrificially given, for not only supplying the needs at that site but for an eventual move.   Harold Heimkreiter, the church treasurer, built a 5’ thermometer for the building fund; every time an allotted increment was reached, the “mercury” (a red painted line) went up.

By 1972, the church was overflowing.  A move was needed.  As the Senior Paslay’s and the church prayed for direction, God answered that in a miraculous way by providing a church building to the group that was not even for sale.  Rev. Swango, from Calvary, was visiting a church member in the hospital when he met Rev. Godman, Pastor of Springdale Nazarene Church, the original occupants of the church at 343 West Kemper Road.   Rev. Godman told Rev. Swango that his church building was for sale — the Nazarene congregation did not even know the church was for sale.   Rev. Swango talked with Rev. Paslay, I, about this building.

Again, Rev. Paslay, I, and his entourage went to visit that building; it was immediately clear that the church facility was what was needed and more; it was large enough, in move in condition and in a very visible area in Springdale.   In fact, this church was seen in a vision of Wilbur Wolfangel; every detail, down to the blonde colored pews, was as he had seen it.   Also, a young man, Michael Zink, had been given a vision of the church sanctuary also in detail including the same blonde colored pews.

Rev. James Lumpkin was the speaker for the initial service on Kemper Road.  The choir had just concluded singing, “To God Be the Glory,” when tongues and interpretation were given that this would be a “fruitful place.”   It proved that, and the Lawn Chair Church was again on the move but not with chairs in tow. The church on Kemper served the congregation for 27 years when it became quite apparent that its seams were bursting.  This time, Rev. Paslay, II, spearheaded several successful building fund drives and a project to build a new facility.

The property that Calvary Church currently occupies was secured for the new church building in miraculous fashion.  Again, this land was not visibly for sale, as Kemper Road had not been visibly on the market. Central Parkway Church of God owned the land and had it listed for sale on occasion, but they were not in a hurry to sell; they had owned the property for more than 30 years with the intention of moving their congregation on that land, but decided that it was too far from the church’s original site.  Sharon Mullen worked/works with a woman whose father was a previous board member of Central Parkway COG.  This gentleman, Ed Jennings, went to Central Parkway Church to ask if they would consider selling the land to Calvary.   The church was eager to see another church on that property since it was apparent they would not use the land, and they agreed to meet with Rev. Paslay, II.   The land was priced to sell at that time at $600,000.  This represented a sum that Calvary could not meet; God helped Central Parkway lower that price to $240,000, a sum that Calvary could meet.  The land was purchased, plans were drawn up for a building and ground was broken in September of 1997 at 11970 Kenn Road.

During the time that Calvary had expressed great interest in the property, another group, representing a housing project, also showed intense interest in the land on Kenn Road.  They were ruthless in their intentions to acquire this land to the point of going to the City of Springdale.  They wanted to put forth their plans and show the great tax base such a housing project would bring to the city.   But God intervened and their plans came to naught.   Springdale was more interested in a church on that property than housing units.

The church on Kemper now needed a new owner.  Among others, Macedonia Baptist Church came to inspect the church for possible purchase.   The group from that congregation came on a Sunday while Calvary was holding service.   The Assistant Pastor of that church, Keith Anderson, had placed a fleece before the Lord.  If this was the building for them, he wanted to meet someone in service that day at Calvary with whom he was acquainted.   God did answer his fleece; he saw Sharon Mullen. He had known Sharon for some time through their work at University Hospital/U.C.  His fleece answered, Rev. Anderson encouraged his pastor to move on the purchase of that building.   Macedonia did become the owners of the Kemper Road Church.

The Lawn Chair Church was once again on the move.   During the late Spring and early Summer 1999, the congregation took up their lawn chairs and met at various locations throughout the city in organized cell groups.  These groups met weekly for a number of months while the church construction was on-going for Bible study and fellowship.   Finally, when the walls and roof were on, the congregation, again dragging in lawn chairs, met in the unfinished sanctuary area on Sunday afternoons.   These were officially “work” days as the building code would not yet permit assembly.   So the group worshipped and worked.   With work clothes on, they worked and worshipped ever so thankful for a new church home.   The church was dedicated in September 1999.

Today, The Calvary Church is situated on a prime piece of land – quite visible from Interstate 275 – and stands as a beacon for the lost.  The Lawn Chair Church has folded up their chairs, except for social events outside, and a large continent of the generation who had prayed and fasted and believed God for a such a church edifice when the church was gathered in its first building in Blue Ash has gone on to their eternal reward.