Lutheran Church of the Redeemer

• The first service was held on October 12, 1930
• We are the first Lutheran Missouri Synod Church to do services in English. There were two other Churches at the time (Immanual and Holy Cross) that held services in German
• First service was held in rented space at the Music and Arts Building on It cost $15.00 per month for rent, and $7.00 per month for piano rental.

The first pastor for the Church

• Our first pastor, Pastor Meinzen, was a new graduate from Concordia Theological Seminary in St. Louis
• He was installed on September 21
• His first task was to organize the new Mission Church. The mission had no name at this time
• His starting salary was $996 with another $233.75 for rental of a home

The Church becomes an independent congregation with a constitution

• On February 6, 1933 the Church members voted on a constitution and the name “Redeemer Evangelical Lutheran Church” was formally adopted for the Church
• In the summer of 1937 property on the corner of Wellington Crescent and Academy Road came up for sale. The initial cost:  $2,616.00. At that time the Church did not have. Pastor Meinzen took a 6 week leave of absence from the Church to seek financial support from other Missouri Synod Churches and from congregation members. He managed to get $918.20 committed in one year.   This allowed them to get an option to buy the land from the City
• In the spring of 1939 the Church became incorporated which allowed it to put a formal offer in for the land
• The congregation had to get support of other residents of the area
• The assessed value of the land was $3,000. The congregation’s building committee offered $1,818 which was refused by the The City. The City did set a price of $2,500, which the Church accepted and the land was held with a $100.00 deposit. Payment was 1/3 down and the balance in 6 semi annual payments. Members were canvassed and the land was paid for
• In 1940 Church membership was 124 and the Sunday School enrolment was 36

WWII

• During WW2 Pastor Meinzen organized the Army and Navy Commission for our Synod
• Money from the Church Extension Board was unavailable as it was needed for the war
• A number of congregation members enlisted for the war effort
• Fundraising for the Building Fund in 1944 included members donating Victory Bonds as well as cash
• Building a church was held up due to war time restrictions on building

Construction of the Church building

• The cornerstone for the Church was laid on May 26, 1946
• The contractors who did the build were a company called Couture and Toupin Building Contractors
• The cost for the church structure was estimated to be $60,000 in 1946
• The new church was dedicated on April 20, 1947

Early Years

• From its inception until 1946 the church had received an annual grant from Missionary Funds for operating. In February of 1946 the voters adopted a resolution to become self-sustaining and the receipt of the Missionary Funds was ended

Name Change

• Since another church on Arlington Street was using the name Lutheran, our congregation decided to change its name from “Redeemer Evangelical Lutheran Church” to “The Lutheran Church of the Redeemer”

1950

• In 1950 the LCR membership was 333
• The Church was impacted by the 1950 flood
• Records of baptisms, confirmations, deaths, and weddings were lost
• The church received water damage that required a new ventilation system to remedy

Lutheran Women’s Missionary League

• In the fall of 1952 Church Council approved Pastor Bartsch’s desire to organize a LWML. Therefore the first LWML in the Manitoba and Saskatchewan District was begun. This was 2 years before the district was formally recognized in 1954

LLL

• LLL is the abbreviation for the Lutheran Layman’s League. The LLL is a group that supports spreading “The Word”. It began in 1917 and has supported such programs as developing pensions for Church Workers, starting the Lutheran Hour (a radio show) in 1930, TV programming, and International Ministries. It is believed our church began the first LLL in Western Canada

Mid 50’s

• By 1955 the Church size was inadequate to meet the congregations needs. As part of the Church’s 25 Anniversary celebrations a expansion concept was approved by the Voters in the amount of $120,000 and a new organ
• From 1956 to 1958, 64 babies were baptized
• 19 youth were confirmed in 1958
• The LCR had a curling league and a bowling league

Need building rationale

• The congregation had determined that more room was needed for the size of the congregation. It was determined by engineers and architects that considerable money would be required to strengthen the structure of the old church to accept renovations and expansion of facilities
• After much discussion, on the advice of architects, it was decided to tear down the old church and replace it with a new one
• The estimated cost for the new church was $154,000
• In March of 1962 the plans were approved
• In September the cornerstone was laid for the new Church
• Dedication of the Church and Parish Hall took place on February 24, 1963
• The stained glass, chancel furniture, and pews were retained from the old and used in the new Church
• The free standing walls with the hymn boards and speaker systems were build with stones from the first Church
• The cornerstone from the first Church is also in one of the walls
• In 1977 the congregation became debt free and burnt the mortgage

Voting Privileges

• In 1970 the constitution was amended to allow women to have voting privileges. 12 women became voting members
• In 1999 the constitution was amended to allow any confirmed member of the LCR 18 years and older to become a voting member

Little Lambs

• Little Lambs Nursery School began in September of 1988 with an enrolment of 5 children
• A “Tiny Tot” program also began with 25 children

Lutheran Church Canada

• In 1988 LC-C was formed as a separate autonomous entity from its parent, the US based Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod
• The head office was temporarily based at our church from 1988 until 1991

Guiding Principles for the Church

• In September of 2001 40 members of the congregation attended a workshop to develop guiding principles, a vision and value statements for the congregation
• VISION STATEMENT: “Through the work of the Holy Spirit we receive a passion for God’s word, prayer and the Sacraments giving us spiritual strength. This enables us to be a community of the true faith in Christ to serve and care for all people, following His example and connecting others to”

2004

• In December of 2004 membership included 347 baptized and 254 communicants.

Pastors

• Richard Meinzen – 1930-1949
• Donald Ortner – 1949-1952
• Elmer Bartsch – 1952-1959
• Lawrence Sawhill – 1959-1964
• Maynard Pollex – 1964-1976
• Ronald Reisdorf – 1977 – 1991
• James Scholz – 1991-2011
• Ward Yunker – 2011-2012
• Todd Hoeffs – 2012-2020
• Shaun Manning – 2024-