Mennonite Church B.C.

Bus tour visits Stó:lō sites in B.C.

Sonny McHalsie (in red) tells stories of Kawkawa Lake, or Q’owqewem Lake, to Mennonites on an Indigenous tour in B.C. (Photo by Amy Rinner Waddell)

A nine-hour bus tour gave 30 participants a taste of the history of places that Indigenous people had inhabited for 10,000 years prior to the arrival of Mennonites in B.C. in the 1930s. The July 14 tour was guided by Sonny McHalsie, a cultural advisor and historian at the Stó:lō Nation’s Research and Resource Management Centre located in Chilliwack, B.C.

Final motorcycle ride in B.C.

Five bikes with seven riders embarked on this year’s annual Mennonite Church B.C. motorcycle ride over a weekend in late August. Meeting in Chilliwack on the morning of Aug. 20, the group took Highway 1 to Cache Creek, then Highway 99 to Lillooet for the night. The next morning they returned to the Fraser Valley by two different routes. “I am very thankful for the friendships made over the 15 years of the MC B.C. motorcycle ride,” said organizer Garry Janzen, MC B.C.’s executive minister. “This was the last MC B.C. ride, as I am retiring by the end of this year.

B.C. bikers continue annual tradition

A longstanding tradition continued on July 17 with the 14th annual Mennonite Church B.C. motorcycle ride, organized by executive minister Garry Janzen. Participants began with coffee in Chilliwack, then rode to Manning Park for lunch at Manning Park Resort, followed by a ride to the Cascade Lookout and Lightning Lake on either side of the resort. Riders returned to their own communities via Hope. This year, 10 riders on eight bikes took part, coming from Ladner, Port Coquitlam, Aldergrove, Mission and Chilliwack.

In a time of uncertainty

The sign outside Level Ground Mennonite Church in Abbotsford, B.C., announces the stark reality of church closure due to health concerns. (Photo by Amy Rinner Waddell)

With the spread of the COVID-19 virus prompting provincial health authorities to recommend social distancing, including public gatherings not to exceed 250 people, Fraser Valley Mennonite churches scrambled to react appropriately for the third Sunday of Lent on March 15.

Living into a new imagination

‘Can the next generation of leaders see themselves being involved in short-term, issue-specific initiatives to achieve a specific goal or outcome?’ (Image by Free-Photos/Pixabay)

Once upon a time, around 35 years ago, God brought into the world some new people. These people have grown up to love Jesus and follow him with all of their lives. They have also responded to the impulse of the Holy Spirit and God’s call to serve as leaders in the church. Some of them are pastors. Some are people just interested in making a difference in our world in Jesus-shaped ways.

‘A rich storehouse of treasure awaiting learners’

Fresno Pacific University professor Tim Geddert, right, gives a presentation on Reading the Bible Together at a seminar for Mennonite Church B.C. leaders and congregants at Level Ground Church in Abbotsford on April 14, 2018. (Photo by Amy Dueckman)

Scripture and community were the focus when Mennonite Church B.C. members gathered at Level Ground Mennonite Church in Abbotsford on April 14, 2018, for Reading the Bible Together.

Resource person Tim Geddert, a professor of New Testament at Fresno Pacific University’s Biblical Seminary in California, called the Bible a “rich storehouse of treasure awaiting learners.”

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