History

Our Savior's Rocky River Lutheran Church, Located at 20300 Hilliard Blvd., is the product of a merger of 2 Scandinavian churches; Our Savior's Lutheran Church, a Norwegian congregation formally located on West 58th & Franklin, and Immanuel (Rocky River) Lutheran Church, a Danish Congregation whose Eastlook location dates back to 1897. missonary pastors had been serving the spiritual needs of Norwegian immigrants as early as 1874, and the Scandinavian Evangelical Lutheran Church of Cleveland, which eventually evolved into Our Savior's traces its beginnings to 1878.

As the membership of Our Savior’s began moving westward, and Rocky River continued to grow and to develop a suburban character, the 2 congregations who had a similar language and heritage and who had often shared a pastor during their respective histories began to explore merger. Although that merger as Our Savior’s Rocky River Lutheran Church became effective on January 28, 1951, groundbreaking for the building at its present Hilliard Blvd. site did not take place until August 17, 1952, and the first service in the new sanctuary did not occur until September 6, 1953. In the meantime, the newly merged congregation worshiped at the Beachcliff Theater on Detroit Road.

Our Savior’s Rocky River Lutheran Church is one of the more than 200 congregations that make up the Northeastern Ohio Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The Rev. Terry Mohr who is the present pastor of the congregation has been serving Our Savior’s since 2003.

Our Savior’s involvement in the Rocky River community includes, since 1981, being the Meals on Wheels preparation and distribution site for the Rocky River area, and, since 1971, providing a state-accredited nursery school for our community’s three and four year-olds.