Archdeacon: The Ven. Beverley Stewart
Regional Dean: The Rev. Fred Tassinari
All Saints is a downtown church where the community is a blend of cultures, including Indo-Canadian and First Nations. The parish reaches out with "Time To Meet Your Neighbor", a monthly dinner served to about 90 people. Guests are joined by parishioners sharing companionship. For five years now parishioners have managed to support this in creative ways. Some contribute money, shoppers snap up food bargains, a PR person persuaded a supermarket to donate a monthly gift card, others offer their gift of cooking and baking - it takes 18 people a month to make it happen. There is also networking with the Food Coalition so that information about access to food can be given to those in need.
Other outreach includes prison ministry - a group of parishioners is involved in monthly visits. Donations collected at a special worship service in early January go to the ministry of the church in the north.
The parish opened its doors to AA, AlAnon, Adolescent Resource Center, and the rectory is used for Mission 4 Kids, administered by Mission Community Services. In the early 90s, Stewards in Action funded a street worker project to provide a ministry for teenagers and a drop-in centre.
St. Matthew's is involved in the evangelical movement. Parishioners can choose from an Alpha course, small group ministry and various bible study groups. The parish donates to the local food bank and its facilities are used by Scouts.
In 2001, a Stewards in Action evangelism grant helped with the Alpha program; another grant provided support for the "Lighthouse" program at their new church plant.
St. John's is a parish with a strong focus on family and children. There is an active involvement by parishioners with Chilliwack Community Services to support Better Beginnings Program, Youth Hot Lunch Program, and Chilliwack Family Place. A Single Parents and Children's Dinner night is put on monthly by a different group in the parish. Guests come from several organizations in the area and are joined by parishioners. Children are entertained before the meal to give the adults a break to socialize. If needed, support is continued throughout the year to help meet other needs: clothing, food, furniture, and sometimes helping someone find a home if they need to leave an abusive relationship.
Parishioners collect supplies for the Salvation Army food bank and stock an emergency supply for immediate local response. On special designated Sundays, a variety of items, including food, are collected for the `Xolhemet Transition Home' and the `Second Stage Housing'. There is also a Diaper Dads and Formula Fathers donation program, and the Annual Walk and Knock Food Drive. The parish facilities are full of life, they are used by AA, Overeaters Anon, Guides, Kumon Math and others, 16 community groups in all.
Through a weekly shared ecumenical program, St. Thomas, Chilliwack helps in providing food to a number of people and clothing is provided when needed. The parish is part of the Chilliwack Community network and is involved in the downtown community. The parish facilities are used by the Chilliwack Academy of Music, a seniors group and a YMCA pre-school. By virtue of the position, the rector is chair of the board of the Anglican Cemetery just outside town.
In 1988, St. Thomas through a grant from Stewards in Action, helped set up a street workers ministry together with Chilliwack Community Services. Following that, SIA funded an after-school program which was taken on by Chilliwack Community Services as well. In the early `90s, SIA supported the ministry of a full-time streetworker, ministering to young people in the community.
Christ Church is not only our diocese's most eastern outpost but also the oldest church in the diocese on the mainland, on the same site. Consecrated in 1861 before Confederation, the church is 143 years old. The parish operates a food bank for the homeless and twice a month parishioners serve in a community-based soup kitchen.
The Altar Guild offers a Christmas Tea on November 27 which attracts people from outside the parish not just for the fine food and goodies offered but for the community spirit.
The Carillon in All Saints, Agassiz, chimes the hour from 8 am to 8 pm with two familiar hymns at noon and 8 pm. The Carillon invites people to the mid-week Eucharist which will be followed by a monthly Inquirer's Brown Bag Lunch. The church is open on Monday mornings for prayer and meditation. A contemplative prayer group is developing as a follow-on to the Lenten series on prayer.
In the late `80s, Stewards in Action funded outreach to the families of inmates at the local prison. During Christmas, parishioners distributed gifts from the inmates to their children across Canada. The parish developed a manual "Operation Lovegift" which was shared with other Christian communities.
St. Peter's first services were conducted in 1911. It has added a mid-week Eucharist to its services, followed by Bible study over a brown bag lunch. A new outreach project is the drop-in for the Rosedale area community, parish and beyond. A quilting frame is set up and there is an ongoing quilt to work on for those interested. All are invited to share creative expertise and be in companionship with others.
St. Peter's, St. Thomas', Chilliwack, and St. John's, Sardis, a geographically triune cluster of parishes, run the Anglican Cemetery just outside Chilliwack. The administration is handled through St. Thomas' office, the three parishes jointly provide a board of directors to operate the cemetery.
The fire happened four years ago on Halloween, burning down St. Dunstan - and out of the ashes rose a parish which has learned to be flexible and persevere. The parishioners learned what it means to be church together through worshipping in a school gym for nearly four years and having learned patience throughout the slow process of rebuilding. Groundbreaking finally arrived in May 2003, followed by Easter Monday 2004: the two ton steel cross was lifted in place between the twin bell towers. On May 19th, St. Dunstan's Day, Bishop Michael Ingham dedicated the new church. The parish works with the Women's Transition Houses in Langley and Aldergrove.