Four pieces of art by Ray Dirks
The Mennonite Heritage Centre (MHC) Gallery is featuring Ray Dirks’ exhibit, Thankful: moments, memories, and some art, in which the gallery founder and retired curator reflects on his lifetime of work. The exhibit runs until Jan. 14 at the gallery on the grounds of Canadian Mennonite University in Winnipeg. Dirks’ art weaves together vibrant colours…
Spontaneous joy in this time of pandemic
Louisa Adria, Foothills Mennonite Church’s congregational support worker, and Ruth Bergen Braun, communications coordinator of Mennonite Church Alberta, sparked joy when they spontaneously decided to do a photo shoot on Feb. 26, next to a brightly painted shipping container near downtown Calgary. Inspired by a random bunch of balloons left in the back of Adria’s…
Picturing her calling
What she really wanted was a party, but pandemic realities prompted Lois Siemens to find another creative way to celebrate the 10th anniversary of her ordination. Superb Mennonite Church, near Kerrobert, Sask., called Siemens to ministry, and she was ordained there on Jan. 9, 2011. Today she lives in Saskatoon, where she serves as spiritual-care…
An eye for beauty
Natalie Stevanus, 36, of Bloomingdale, Ont., likes how her photographs bring joy to people, which inspires her to take even more. (Photo by Jane van Pelt) Natalie Stevanus has an eye for beauty. She loves to take photographs that make people happy. It is a winning combination! Stevanus, 36, recently won the Judges’ Choice Award…
Expiring City
Michael Veith grew up across the world in Macau, where his parents were Mennonite Church Canada Witness workers. This November, seven years after moving to Canada, he launched a photo exhibit featuring the city where he was raised. Titled Expiring City, the show ran at the gallery space at Forth Café in Winnipeg, where a…
Faces and places in an aging China
Like Canada, China is facing an aging population. There is a growing need for elder-care homes, as families shift away from the cultural norm of taking care of their aging loved ones. Churches have stepped in and have begun to build elder-care homes to address the need. These churches have reached out to faith communities…
Stations of the Cross on Broadway
On Good Friday, April 14, 2017, pilgrims from Winnipeg and beyond gather at Broadway Disciples United Church to walk the Stations of the Cross on Broadway, one of Winnipeg’s oldest and most historic thoroughfares. Before observing the first station at the church, and setting out against the day’s damp cold, guests are invited to warm…
Challenged, changed, rewarded
My partner Suzanne Braun and I spent three years as Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) service workers in South Africa, Swaziland and Lesotho from 2011-14. As the connecting peoples coordinator and planning, monitoring and evaluation coordinator, we worked to support a wide variety of MCC partner organizations throughout the SwaLeSA area. Much of what we did…
