La Glace Bible Fellowship (La Glace, Alberta, Canada)
Mennonite immigrants from the Soviet Union began arriving in northern Alberta in 1925, settling in the Clairmont area. Those affiliated with the Mennonite Brethren Church in the Soviet Union attended the Clairmont Krimmer Mennonite Brethren Church. More Mennonite families settled on the Adair Ranch near La Glace in 1926, including several Mennonite Brethren families. In the spring of 1928, Mennonite Brethren families from Clairmont, the Adair Ranch, and La Glace began gathering together for services in a home, and formally organized as the La Glace Mennonite Brethren Church. Ministers Heinrich Neufeld and J. P. Wiebe from Saskatchewan visited the group and ordained Nick Siebert Sr. to the ministry. C. Friesen offered the north-west corner of his land two miles south of La Glace for a church site and graveyard, and a building was completed in 1929. The congregation joined the Alberta Mennonite Brethren Conference in that same year.
In its early years the congregation experienced vibrant growth, both numerically and spiritually. There was also a good relationship with the neighboring General Conference Mennonite congregation, with the two congregations holding joint Thanksgiving festivals, youth meetings, and Bible conferences.
In the fall of 1933 the church was able to establish the La Glace Mennonite Brethren Bible School. Teachers employed by the school included Gerhard Harder, Isaac Dick, Jacob Pankratz, Abram Schierling, Jacob Franz, and David Ewert. Classes were held until 1946.
In the 1940s families began to leave for the Fraser Valley, British Columbia. The transition from German to English occurred in the 1950s. Ministers prior to 1955 included G. Wiens, J. Schmidt, Martin Hamm, Nick Siebert and Abe Janz.
In 1961 the church built a new meeting house using the old Bible School building. A subsequent building program took place in 1980. The name of the congregation was changed to the La Glace Bible Fellowship Church in 1985.
Bibliography
Centre for Mennonite Brethren Studies. "La Glace Bible Fellowship." Web. 14 March 2012. http://www.mbconf.ca/home/products_and_services/resources/published_genealogies/mb_provincial_conferences_and_church_congregation_records/alberta_archives/la_glace_bible_fellowship_archives/
Epp, Mary Konrad. "History of the La Glace Mennonite Brethren Bible School, 1933-1946." Unpublished typescript, 1987, 4 pp. Mennonite Historical Society of Canada collection, Mennonite Archives of Ontario.
Jubilee Celebration: Mennonite Brethren Church, La Glace, Alberta, 1928-1978, 35 pp.
Mennonite Brethren Herald (1 September 1978): 19; (27 May 1988): 9.
The Mennonite Sojourn in the Peace River Area: A Companion to Our Reunion, June 15, 16, 17, 2001, David Friesen, gen. ed. 2001.
Siebert, Mary N. "An Historic Overview of the MB Church of La Glace Now Called the La Glace Bible Fellowship." Unpublished typescript, 1985, 4 pp. Mennonite Historical Society of Canada collection, Mennonite Archives of Ontario.
Toews, John A. A History of the Mennonite Brethren Church: Pilgrims and Pioneers. Winnipeg, MB: Kindred Press, 1975: 166, 262.
Archival Records
Centre for Mennonite Brethren Studies, Winnipeg, MB: Volume 334, Reel 54.
Additional Information
Address: Box 98, La Glace, AB T0H 2J0
Telephone: 780-568-4341
Denominational Affiliations:
Alberta Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches (1929-present)
Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches (1929-present)
General Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches (1929-2002)
La Glace Bible Fellowship Ministers
| Minister | Years |
|---|---|
| Johann P. Schmidt | 1928–1932 |
| Abram Janz | 1932-1938 |
| Abram H. Konrad | 1938–1943 |
| Martin Hamm | 1944–1945 |
| Abram H. Konrad | 1945–1951 |
| John Kroeker | 1951-1952 |
| Ed C. Martens | 1952–1957 |
| Henry Willms | 1957-1960 |
| George Block | 1960–1962 |
| Victor Pankratz | 1963-1976 |
| Dwight Nickel | 1976–1978 |
| John P. Schmidt (interim) | 1978 |
| Art Isaac | 1979–1983 |
| Peter Boschman | 1984–1994 |
| Arthur Dyck | 1994-1995 |
| Henry Willms (interim) | 1996-1997 |
| Nelson Senft | 1997-present |
La Glace Bible Fellowship Membership
| Year | Members |
|---|---|
| 1937 | 73 |
| 1955 | 52 |
| 1965 | 45 |
| 1985 | 48 |
| 1995 | 66 |
| 2000 | 84 |
| 2010 | 65 |
| Author(s) | A. A. Toews |
|---|---|
| Richard D. Thiessen | |
| Date Published | June 2013 |
Cite This Article
MLA style
Toews, A. A. and Richard D. Thiessen. "La Glace Bible Fellowship (La Glace, Alberta, Canada)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. June 2013. Web. 16 Apr 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=La_Glace_Bible_Fellowship_(La_Glace,_Alberta,_Canada)&oldid=114874.
APA style
Toews, A. A. and Richard D. Thiessen. (June 2013). La Glace Bible Fellowship (La Glace, Alberta, Canada). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 16 April 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=La_Glace_Bible_Fellowship_(La_Glace,_Alberta,_Canada)&oldid=114874.
Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 3, p. 264. All rights reserved.
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