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Peacebuilding and relationship building go hand in hand
It’s hard to imagine when Ben Borne finds time to sleep. “I have four jobs,” he says with an easy laugh. “It’s busy, but I love what I do.” Borne works for Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) Saskatchewan, teaches at First Nations University of Canada, and is the co-president/co-founder of Symmetry Public Relations. His fourth job…
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Pastor reaches out to young adults using social media
Anna-Lisa Salo, pastor of Bergthal Mennonite Church in Didsbury, has taken advantage of Zoom’s free 40 minute limit. Two years ago, she reached out to four young women from her congregation who were heading off to post-secondary institutions. As it was during the beginning of the pandemic, Salo says she felt like she had lost…
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Local artists make Stations of the Cross public
During Holy Week, bright pops of colour appeared in a downtown alley amid the brown slush and litter of a Winnipeg spring. A group of artists from the congregation of Home Street Mennonite Church created their own versions of the Stations of the Cross and pasted them on the exterior…
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Deborah Lynn Sprunger
Deborah Lynn Sprunger, 71, of Lancaster, Pa., passed away on March 27, 2022, at Lancaster General Hospital surrounded by her loving family. Deborah was the loving wife of Rev. JW Sprunger. She was born in Presque Isle, Maine, on April 17, 1950, to Clayton and Lynette Coffin. Deborah and JW attended Scottdale and Akron Mennonite…
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International Witness workers arrive in Ethiopia after delays
After a number of delays, Werner and Joanne De Jong arrived in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, in mid-January in order to begin their work as Mennonite Church Canada International Witness workers at the Meserete Kristos Seminary (MKS). The road has been rocky for the couple, as they navigate restrictions, visas and an encroaching civil war. With…
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Nah Yo-dle: Low German Wordle
You may have just done a double take, but no, this is not a Daily Bonnet article. A Manitoba Mennonite really did create a Low German version of Wordle, a word puzzle craze whose popularity skyrocketed in December 2021. Jared Falk, 37, launched Nah Yo-dle on March 20 after becoming a dedicated Wordle fan himself.…
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Doug Klassen’s contract renewed
Doug Klassen’s term as executive minister of Mennonite Church Canada has been renewed for a second three-year term beginning June 1. “We received strong affirmation for Doug’s renewal from Joint Council,” says Calvin Quan, moderator for Mennonite Church Canada. Joint Council, the governance body made up of representatives from across MC Canada’s five regional churches,…
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Leonard Doell receives lifetime achievement award
A Saskatchewan man was recently recognized for his decades-long work in peacemaking and community building, especially between Mennonite settlers and Indigenous Peoples. Leonard Doell was honoured with the 2022 Global Citizen Lifetime Achievement Award from the Saskatchewan Council for International Cooperation. The council’s mission is to “build momentum towards a just, equitable and sustainable world…
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Growing a business during the pandemic
It was at the end of February 2020 that Lydia Rekrut shook hands with the owner of a floral shop in Thorold, Ont., and bought the business, which included the stock and equipment. March was spent relocating to another building and doing renovations. The official opening was to be April 1, 2020. And then the…
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In praise of small churches
Throughout the pandemic, many Mennonite church congregations have faced the challenges of lower attendance, shrinking budgets and uneasy questions about the future. Denominations across Canada report lower attendance and engagement in church than in the past. Although the headlines about the future of the church seem to be filled with doom and gloom, for three…
