Valleyview Mennonite Church (London, Ontario, Canada)

The Valleyview Mennonite congregation in London, Ontario began as an outgrowth of the Goodwill Rescue Mission established in January 1951 by Alvin and Madeline Roth and the Nairn Mennonite Church located near Ailsa Craig, Ontario. Children's Sunday School began in 1953, and after the Nairn congregation purchased a house at 368 King Street, Sunday evening worship services began in 1954. Initially the group was known as the Forest City Mennonite Mission, but it soon became the King Street Mennonite Church (1953-62).

The church and mission became more separate identities in 1961 when Ralph Lebold was called to be pastor of the congregation, while Alvin Roth remained the senior administrator of the mission. The church formally organized as an independent congregation with 30 members and a constitution in January 1962.

The King Street location was slated for urban renewal, so the congregation purchased in a new area in northeast London. A new building at the present location was dedicated 16 June 1963 and the congregation chose its present name.

Major programs established by Valleyview Mennonite Church included a Mennonite Voluntary Service unit that ran a day care for neighborhood children. In 1969 the congregation began to host a pastoral training program in association with Goshen Biblical Seminary of Goshen, Indiana. This program continued until the early 1980s.

Space pressures, increased by the day care program, led to an addition of seven extra classrooms and expansion of the sanctuary in 1979/80.

The theological diversity within the congregation has sometimes caused stress. There was also several multi-month gaps between pastors in which lay leaders carried program and worship responsibilities. Nonetheless the congregation persevered and welcomed new opportunities.

In 2000 a Korean Christian group, represented by Hun Lee of the Charleswood Mennonite Church in Winnipeg, Manitoba, asked to become part of the congregation. Young-Jee Na and Young-Ho Park provided pastoral leadership for that part of the congregation. About the same time, an outside agency took over the day care program, which finally closed in 2002.

In 2004 Hun Lee moved to London and became pastor of the Korean congregation which became organizationally independent as the Vision Mennonite Church in 2005. Agape Fellowship also began to meet at Valleyview in 2005.

In 2008 Valleyview joined with other local churches to form a community lunch and fellowship program known as Welcome Wednesday.

In its earlier years Valleyview was associated with the Amish-Mennonite background Western Ontario Mennonite Conference. However its membership was always diverse because it was the only Mennonite church in the city of London. Students attending the University of Western Ontario and professionals of varied Mennonite backgrounds all became part of the Valleyview congregation. This diversity also attracted persons of other faith backgrounds. Valleyview Mennonite Church became an early advocate for the merger of several Ontario Mennonite conferences that in 1988 became the Mennonite Conference of Eastern Canada.

In 2014 its website described Valleyview Mennonite Church as a caring and supportive Christian community that emphasizes relationships and mutual support in times of crisis, that emphasizes peace and justice as central to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and has a strong intergenerational character where children and youth are valued and loved.

Bibliography

Adams, John. "Ministry to Community: the Mennonite Church in London, Ontario, 1953-1970." Research paper, Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminaries, 1970, 68 pp.

"A Brief History Of Valleyview Mennonite Church." Valleyview Mennonite Church. Web. http://valleyviewmc.ca/about/churchhistory.html (accessed 31 December 2013).

Mennonite Reporter (27 October 1980): 12.

Mennonites in Canada collection, "50-London," Mennonite Archives of Ontario.

Archival Records

Records as Mennonite Archives of Ontario.

Additional Information

Address: 1170 Melsandra Ave., London, ON, N5Y 4N9.

Phone: (519) 438-1705.

Website: http://valleyviewmc.ca/

Denominational Affiliations:

Western Ontario Mennonite Conference, 1953-1988

Mennonite Church Eastern Canada, 1988-

Mennonite Church (MC), 1953-1999

Conference of Mennonites in Canada / Mennonite Church Canada, 1995-

Valleyview Mennonite Church Pastoral Leaders

Name	Years of Service
Alvin Roth	1953-1961
Ralph Lebold	1961-1974
Glen Horst	1970-1981
Millard Osborne	1982-1987
Mary Burkholder	1987-1991
Doris Weber (Interim)	1992
Harold Peters-Fransen	1992-2000
Young-Jee Na	2000-2004
Young-Ho Park	2000-2004
Russell Sawatsky	2001-2005
Gordon Scoville (Interim)	2006-2007
Kendall Jongejan Harder	2007-December 2017
Charleen Jongejan Harder	2007-December 2017
Rudy Baergen (Interim)	March 2018-July 2019
Marvin Friesen	October 2019-present

Valleyview Mennonite Church Membership

Year	Members
1965	44
1975	121
1985	119
1995	117
2000	120
2003	175
2008	163
2015	160
2020	110

Map

Map:Valleyview Mennonite Church (London, Ontario, Canada)

Author(s)	Samuel J Steiner
Date Published	December 2013

Cite This Article

MLA style

Steiner, Samuel J. "Valleyview Mennonite Church (London, Ontario, Canada)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. December 2013. Web. 21 Nov 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Valleyview_Mennonite_Church_(London,_Ontario,_Canada)&oldid=177847.

APA style

Steiner, Samuel J. (December 2013). Valleyview Mennonite Church (London, Ontario, Canada). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 21 November 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Valleyview_Mennonite_Church_(London,_Ontario,_Canada)&oldid=177847.

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