CMC’s clothing fest was born out of a need to supply many of the poor and needy people in our community with appropriate seasonal clothing, especially for people on social assistance, recent immigrants, and, more recently, unhoused people and refugees.

“Where is Fort Frances?” is a question we hear often. It’s usually followed up by, “Oh, it’s in Ontario. How far are you from Toronto?” Quite far it turns out. About a 24-hour drive. Oh, the dilemmas of living in Northwestern Ontario.

It has been said, “If your church wasn’t there would anyone notice? Would anyone care?” When EFC was built on its current location in the late seventies, a lot of the surrounding area was open field. Today we would say that God has brought the mission field to us.

As we consider the current context of ministry in Canada, there are many reasons to be encouraged. Openness to the gospel itself is higher than ever, and willingness to accept an invitation to church is way up.

I’m often asked, “How are things in Mennville these days?” I respond with one word: “Healthy.” We truly find ourselves in a healthy place (spiritually speaking). We genuinely enjoy gathering and doing life together. As we venture into the spring of 2026, we are joyfully anticipating celebrating Mennville’s 75th anniversary on July 12.

We continue to be blessed here at Prairie Rose. We have many long-time members and attendees in our congregation, and this contributes to a close, family atmosphere. We have welcomed a few new families and individuals into our midst in the last year or two which is encouraging.

We can behold the beauty of the mosaic that the Creator has crafted: people from Syria with their hijabs and accents rooted in their mother tongue (Kurdish), talking with people from Ukraine, searching in English for a common point to understand each other. At another table, we see someone from Kenya laughing during a chat with some Canadians and Brazilians.

This past year has been a season of transition for our church family. When Pastor Norm Bueckert resigned in 2024, we once again found ourselves without a pastor. Though we continue to be without one, we’ve come together as a congregation—sharing responsibilities, supporting one another, and trusting God to lead us through this time of change.

We are so excited to have Andreas Warkentin join our staff at Stony Brook Fellowship (SBF) as our community life pastor in September 2025.

Letters published in the July/August 2024 issue.

Letters published in the May/June 2024 issue.

The Anabaptism at 500 Project is proud to announce it has exceeded its goal of 500 study groups contributing to the Anabaptist Community Bible.