South Hill Mennonite Brethren Church (Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada)
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| South Hill Church Source: D. Giesbrecht |
The South Hill (formerly known as Vancouver) Mennonite Brethren (MB) congregation began services about 1935, and formally organized on 25 April 1937 with a few dozen members. The congregation was the first Mennonite Brethren congregation in Vancouver. The first building was occupied in 1945; the group initially met in a rented hall. The church basement was built in 1941; the sanctuary was completed in 1944. John Peters is considered the founding leader of the group. The congregation originated through the urbanization of Mennonites from the Fraser Valley. David B. Wiens was pastor of the congregation from 1957 until 1968, when he became pastor of a daughter congregation, Culloden Mennonite Brethren Church. Roughly 75% of the the church's membership followed Wiens to the new daughter congregation.
In the spring and summer of 2007, Vancouver MB began discussions with the English language congregation of Pacific Grace MB Church to talk about ways in which the two congregations could plant a new congregation. A joint task force was formed in July and a proposal to merge was presented to both congregations on 16 September 2007. Formal approval was given by the leadership of both congregations on 30 September, and a new name, South Hill, was selected on 5 November 2007.
Bibliography
Canadian Mennonite (November 24, 1961): 27.
Giesbrecht, Jacob. "History of the Mennonite Church at 43rd and Prince Edward: Address to the Congregation on the Occasion of its 20th Anniversary, Dec. 1, 1957," 2 pp. CMBS.
Mennonite Reporter (August 23, 1976): 9.
Mennonite Brethren Herald (May 27, 1988): 17.
Nishi, Mike. "The tenth church plant of Pacific Grace MB Church: South Hill Church." Pacific Grace MB Church. 30 November 2007. http://www.pgmbc.com/FamilyChats.html?id=The+tenth+church+plant+of+Pacific+Grace+MB+Church%3A+South+Hill+Church-Pastor+Mike+Nishi (accessed 20 November 2009).
Additional Information
Address: 5887 Prince Edward Street, Vancouver BC V5W 2X8.
Phone: 604-325-3313.
Website: South Hill MB Church
Denominational Affiliations:
British Columbia Conference of the Mennonite Brethren Churches (1937-present)
Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches (1937-present)
General Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches (1937-2002)
South Hill MB Church Leading Ministers
| Minister |
Years |
|---|---|
| Frank Janzen |
1936-1937 |
| John J. Neufeld |
1937 |
| Johann F. Peters |
1937-1938 |
| Peter Reimer |
1938-1939 |
| David G. Quapp |
1939-1943 |
| Heinrich Regehr |
1943-1944 |
| Henry J. Klassen |
1946-1955 |
| Gerhard P. Warkentin |
1955-1957 |
| David B. Wiens |
1957-1968 |
| Peter Rahn |
1968-1969 |
| Gerhard G. Thielmann |
1969-1976 |
| Hans J. Wiens |
1977-1980 |
| Ernst Janzen |
1981-1986 |
| Abe L. Klassen |
1987-1991 |
| Manfred Schmidt |
1994-1997 |
| Johannes Stolz |
1999-2007 |
| Mike Nishi |
2007-present |
South Hill MB Church Membership
| Year |
Members |
|---|---|
| 1939 | 110 |
| 1945 | 250 |
| 1950 | 215 |
| 1954 | 683 |
| 1960 | 620 |
| 1965 | 536 |
| 1970 | 140 |
| 1975 | 196 |
| 1980 | 173 |
| 1985 | 183 |
| 1990 | 159 |
| 1996 | 139 |
| 2000 | 125 |
| 2004 | 126 |
Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Scottdale, Pennsylvania, and Waterloo, Ontario, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 4, p. 799. All rights reserved. For information on ordering the encyclopedia visit the Herald Press website.
©1996-2010 by the Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. All rights reserved.
MLA style: Redekop, J. F., Marlene Epp and Richard D. Thiessen. "South Hill Mennonite Brethren Church (Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. November 2009. Web. 31 July 2010. http://www.gameo.org/encyclopedia/contents/V3536ME.html.
APA style: Redekop, J. F., Marlene Epp and Richard D. Thiessen. (November 2009). South Hill Mennonite Brethren Church (Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 31 July 2010, from http://www.gameo.org/encyclopedia/contents/V3536ME.html.
