St. Albert was pretty small when Ruby Shanley came to town.
"There was only about 600 people here in the early 1950s," she recalls, but the town was growing fast. An Anglican in what was then a Roman Catholic town, she was one of many Protestant newcomers who were looking to set up a new church. After gathering a few friends and calling in a priest from Edmonton, she and nine other people did just that.
Shanley became one of the founding members of St. Matthew's Anglican Church in St. Albert 50 years ago last Saturday. She was one of about 130 residents who packed the pews last weekend for an evening concert and a special Sunday service hosted by Bishop Jane Alexander in celebration of the church's golden anniversary.
The little church that grew
St. Albert was almost exclusively Roman Catholic back in the 1950s, says church historian Ian Barnes, but that started to change mid-decade due to the rapid growth of Edmonton.
The church held its first meeting in Shanley's house on Sept. 24, 1961, Barnes notes, lead by rector Thomas Maxwell. After going door-to-door in search of Anglicans, the new church held its first formal service on Dec. 24 in the home economics room of Vital Grandin elementary school. They put the altar over the sinks.
The church had no permanent home and spent the next two decades roving from site to site, notes city resident Bob Russell, who joined the church in 1963. Not having a permanent home meant the church had to be set up and torn down for every service. After moving four times the growing congregation decided a permanent home was needed, especially with St. Albert's population booming to nearly 30,000 people by 1978. The church moved into its new digs in July of 1984.
Edward Lewis came in as rector six months later. They had just 90 members when he started, he says, but thanks to the new church that number rose to 200 within two years.
"We'd gone to three services on a Sunday in order to accommodate the numbers."
Making their mark
The church was no stranger to community involvement. Dodman recalls how the church got political when it was asked to take part in a "beating of the bounds" march against Edmonton annexation on March 15, 1981. A photo of the march shows the church's crucifer (a robed man bearing a staff tipped with a cross) and choir members leading hundreds of protesters down Levasseur Road.
"I had no idea how many people were following," says Dodman, who was near the head of the procession. "There must have been a thousand."
The church was at the heart of a national tragedy on Oct. 30, 1991, when a C-130 Hercules crashed on Ellesmere Island. Five people died, including Capt. John Couch, the pilot and St. Albert resident. About 300 people crammed into the church for Couch's funeral, Lewis recalls, about half in military uniform.
"John died trying to keep people alive in the storm," Dodman says. "That's probably the saddest memory I have."
Today, says rector Lee Bezanson, church members are active supporters of Habitat for Humanity, the St. Albert Community Bridge Program (which supports needy families) and the Edmonton Inner City Pastoral Ministry (which feeds the homeless).
The fact that this church has stayed together for so many years is a testament to its members' commitment to Christ, Bezanson says.
"They've set a very high bar that my parish and I must get over as we go into the future."
