By Dorothy Burdette
Co-pastor, Wiarton, Ontario, Canada

The congregation in the small brick church in Wiarton, Ontario, Canada, celebrated its 120th anniversary August 20. Organized as a branch in 1903, it has been the home congregation of five full-time church appointees.

Beginning in 1902, “Walker” Grant St. John walked hundreds of miles through all seasons to share the gospel story. He baptized 640 people.

Then in 1922, Percy Farrow, a 23-year-old hometown boy, was called into full-time missionary service. At the 1948 General Conference, he was ordained as an apostle. He served eighteen years in that role, giving him a total of forty-three years of full-time service.

The congregation in the small brick church in Wiarton, Ontario, Canada, celebrated its 120th anniversary August 20. Organized as a branch in 1903, it has been the home congregation of five full-time church appointees.

Missionary Joseph Yager came to Wiarton in 1922 to hold a series in Burford Rydall’s orchard. He met and married Lillian Perkins, and Wiarton became home. Their son, Ronald Yager, followed his father as a full-time missionary in 1958.

Also, congregation member John Bradley was called into full- time missionary service in 1955.

At a gathering to celebrate the milestone anniversary, guest minister Carman Thompson, an evangelist, shared memories of his roots on the Bruce Peninsula. Many expressed their gratitude for the Lord’s Spirit, which often is felt in the sanctuary.

A history book compiled and edited by Dorothy (Rydall) Burdette ( ) includes forty-four testimonies from past and present Wiarton members, as well as a brief history about the birth and development of Community of Christ on the Bruce Peninsula.