Northern Fellowship Chapel (Creighton, Saskatchewan, Canada)

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Northern Fellowship Chapel, January 1998.
Source: Terry M. Smith, Editor, The Messenger

The Northern Fellowship Chapel (NFC) in Creighton, Saskatchewan, a member of the Evangelical Mennonite Conference (EMC), began services in 1960 because a schoolteacher, Henry Klassen, saw that the community needed an evangelical church. Services began in a community hall in Creighton in 1960 and a building was constructed in 1962 at 433 First Street West in Creighton. The congregation was formally organized on 1 November 1964 with 11 members. Since 1965 it has been affiliated with the EMC. 

Its first worker was Arnold Wiebe in 1960. When Mel and Mary Koop arrived in November 1960 and Arnold Wiebe left unexpectedly, Mel Koop became the organizing pastor. With Creighton located between Denare Beach, Saskatchewan, and Flin Flon (both Saskatchewan and Manitoba ), many of the members came from the wider area. The congregation was known as Creighton Fellowship Chapel prior to 1964 when the name was changed to better reflect the membership. Its first baptisms were performed in May 1967 when George Braun was the pastor. Those baptized were Valerie Rempel, Bev Manns, and Robin Smith.

Northern Fellowship Chapel functions as a community evangelical church. In the 1970s and 1980s when churches in the area were affected by varying views on the Holy Spirit, NFC became charismatic. It grew significantly, but then went into decline.

Northern Fellowship Chapel’s early leaders or pastors were Arnold Wiebe (1960), Mel and Mary Koop (1960-65), Dan and Norma Koop (ca. 1966-ca. 1967), George and Elsie Braun, Arnold Leister, Harvey Kroeker (1978-1983), Dan and Lottie Thiessen (1983-85), and Terry and Mary Ann Smith (1985-1996). NFC then had interim pastoral couples, including Henry and Tina Kornelsen and Dick and Tina Unrau (November 1996-April 1997). 

In 2001 NFC began to share a pastoral team with Cornerstone Community Church (formerly Flin Flon Mennonite Brethren Church), a Mennonite Brethren congregation established in Flin Flon, Manitoba in 1984. Its joint pastoral couples have been Dale and Marge Warkentin (2001-2003), Alex and Carla Suderman (2003-2004), Scott and Natalie Koop (2004-2009), and Randall and Faith Krahn (2010-present). Retired pastoral couple Lorne and Margaret Moorhead, who served previously at Endeavour Fellowship Chapel and in Baptist circles (including in Flin Flon), are part of the local pastoral care team.   

The Northern Christian Academy, an Accelerated Christian Education private school, ran from 1980-1984.

In 2012, the average worship attendance was 10.

Bibliography

EMC Yearbook for 2012: Including a Record of the Proceedings of the 62nd Annual Sessions of the Evangelical Mennonite Conference July 6-8, 2012. Steinbach: Evangelical Mennonite Conference, 2012.

Moorhead, Margaret. "VBS and Pastoral Change." The Messenger 42 no. 20 (17 November 2004): 8.

Schroeder, Sandra. "Scott and Natalie Commissioned." The Messenger 42 no. 20 (17 November 2004): 8.

Smith, Terry. "A Short History of the Northern Fellowship Chapel." Unpublished typescript, 1987, 3 pp. Mennonite Historical Society of Canada collection, https://uwaterloo.ca/mennonite-archives-ontario/ Mennonite Archives of Ontario.

Smith, Terry. "At the End of the Road . . . is Home." The Messenger 36 no. 3 (11 February 1989): 6-10.

Additional Information

Location: 433 First Street West, Creighton, Saskatchewan

Mailing Address: Box 35, Creighton, SK S0P 0A0

Phone: 306-688-4689

Denominational Affiliation

Evangelical Mennonite Conference

Northern Fellowship Chapel Ministers

Minister Years of Service
Arnold Wiebe 1960
Mel Koop 1960-1965
Dan Koop 1966-1967
George Braun  
Arnold Leister  
Harvey Kroeker 1978-1983
Dan Thiessen 1983-1985
Terry Smith 1985-1996
Henry Kornelsen (interim)
Dick Unrau (interim) 1996-1997
Dale Warkentin 2001-2003
Alex Suderman 2003-2004
Scott Koop 2004-2009
Randall Krahn 2010-present

Northern Fellowship Chapel Membership

Year Membership
1970 24
1975 21
1980 28
1985
1990 11
1995 7
2000 8
2005 7
2010 9
2015 9


Author(s) Terry Smith
Date Published January 2013

Cite This Article

MLA style

Smith, Terry. "Northern Fellowship Chapel (Creighton, Saskatchewan, Canada)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. January 2013. Web. 9 Oct 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Northern_Fellowship_Chapel_(Creighton,_Saskatchewan,_Canada)&oldid=156087.

APA style

Smith, Terry. (January 2013). Northern Fellowship Chapel (Creighton, Saskatchewan, Canada). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 9 October 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Northern_Fellowship_Chapel_(Creighton,_Saskatchewan,_Canada)&oldid=156087.




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