2 years after devastating fire, St. Vladimir Ukrainian Catholic Church rises in Arnold

Two years after a raging fire swept through St. Vladimir’s Ukrainian Catholic Church in Arnold, support has swelled to see the rise of a new $2.2 million sanctuary.

The disaster on Dec. 4, 2021, could easily have destroyed the congregation of just 35 members.

Instead, it made the parish stronger.

“We rebuild our church, but we also are rebuilding connections within our greater community and rebuilding even ourselves, with joy, happiness and hope,” said the Rev. Yaroslav Koval, pastor.

Construction began in October on a space that uses portions of the original structure, according to architect Dan Macek of New Kensington-based Canzian/ Johnston & Associates.

A shortened nave — the space for the congregation — in the front retains the original altar, now restored, Macek said.

It will be connected to a new courtyard for open-air celebrations. Churchgoers will notice Belgian-­made stained-glass windows which were unscathed in the fire and will be used to fill alcoves that overlook the outdoor space. On the other side is a narthex — a threshold space — with the old bell tower, also left intact.

Koval hopes for a July opening to coincide with the feast day of St. Vladimir.

Arnold’s only Catholic church, situated on the corner of Kenneth Avenue and McCandless Street, was destroyed by a blaze that caused more than $4 million in damage to the 74-year-old building.

Less than 24 hours after the fire, Koval hosted a liturgy in the adjacent social hall and vowed to rebuild.

Support has poured in from the community and spurred a return for many who once were connected to the church.

Nancy Pollino grew up at St. Vlad’s. Her parents were married there and sent five children through the adjoining elementary school.

Pollino stayed until she married in 1986 and moved to Murrsyville.

The fire compelled her to return.

“I actually went to the church the night of the fire,” Pollino said. “I was overwhelmed with so many memories of my past. I wanted to ensure the church was rebuilt, and I wanted to be a part of it.”

She has been back at St. Vlad’s ever since, not only for Sunday services but to rally support from the community and to help strengthen the congregation. Pollino joined the pierogi-making team, a group that turns out 600 dozen potato pockets that sell out every week.

“Several of my sisters also come, and we recruit alumni from our school and church,” Pollino said.

Two of her cousins also have joined the fundraising.

The number of people flocking to help means more activities to bring in money for the rebuild.

“Many alumni have relocated to other parts of the country, but they make their way back to participate,” Pollino said. “It is really encouraging to see their participation. It seems many of us share a common goal for the church to be rebuilt and successful.”

Parishioner Julie Martin said new community bonds have been created, too.

St. Vlad’s is teaming with St. Mary of Czestochowa to host a Christmas concert this month.

Holy Virgin Ukrainian Orthodox Church, also on Kenneth Avenue, is donating contents of its building after its closure, which is formally scheduled by the bishop on Monday.

The Orthodox church was formed in the 1930s by a group of St. Vlad’s parishioners who broke off, Martin said.

“I think it’s kind of an unusual coincidence how this church, or at least some part of it in the form of icons and other sacred objects, is being folded back into St. Vlad’s,” she said.

St. Vlad’s also purchased at minimal cost several religious items, such as 100-year-old pews, from some of the five Guardian Angels churches that were closed in 2022 by the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh.

“The donations mean a lot,” Koval said. “We’ve received donations from not just parishioners and local people but people from out of state.”

St. Vladimir was founded in 1894 by six immigrant families who attended services in a local home and later in a social hall. The original church was built in 1911 along Third Avenue before construction of a new church, school and hall on Kenneth Avenue.

While plans for the new space bring salvaged relics into the fold, Koval wants to focus on the future.

A smaller floor plan will accommodate about 100 people rather than mimic the former space that commonly reached 700 with standing-room only crowds. Koval said it would be wasteful to spend money on a dynamic that has changed.

Instead, he wants to focus on the message that “church is not a building, it is the people. We are our faith.”

The courtyard will be the last portion to be finished and may take years, Koval said.

Up first is a $100,000 project to refresh or replace icons that firefighters were able to save from the altar.

For hours while volunteers tried to knock down the blaze, others were able to retrieve statues of Jesus, baptismal fonts, a pulpit and gilded canvas paintings whose glue was loosened by the cascade of water poured into the sanctuary.

At the time, Koval said it was an act of God that anything could be saved at all.

He said the focus of rebuilding has widened to include not only the physical restoration of the church building but a rebirth of the community.

“It has offered some beautiful moments for our parish,” he said. “We are not only the building — we as Christians are temples of the Holy Spirit.”