St. Stephen’s - Spiritual might and the making of an identity

By Tim Lambrinos

By late 1959, families had moved into modern homes alongside Weston Road in a brand-new community named Woodview. All of the residential streets west of Weston Road were named after places in Florida because the original builder liked travelling to the U.S. state.

As new families continued to arrive in Woodview, pressure escalated regarding the need for a church to serve the community. The story of the building of St. Stephen’s Presbyterian Church is an extraordinary account of ordinary people who, by all accounts, fashioned themselves into exceptional people. They included Reverend David McCullough, Frank Canning, Fred Johnson, Colin Campbell, Jim B. Smith, Ron and Keva Hart, Fred Mabey, Mrs. Marie Stratton, Jessie Dearsley and David and Elisabeth Page.

In 1960, the birth of a church began when Chalmer’s Presbyterian Church considered a move from downtown Toronto. This was as a result of significant demographic changes within that community. Supplemented with a $35,000 loan from the Chalmer’s group, a spot for a new church was selected and purchased on the southwest corner of Weston Road and Verobeach Boulevard.

On June 19, 1962, a wooden portable was wheeled into the vacant lot. The portable would be used temporarily for services. A timetable was agreed upon by the Township of North York with the condition that a permanent structure would be built within a period of no more than two years. The firm of Hanks, Irwin & Pearson Architects were commissioned to design a contemporary building for the community.

When construction finally began in 1964, the portable church was relocated across the street at Weston Road and Habitant. Ultimately the portable ended up on the northeast corner of Driftwood Avenue and Finch Avenue West on the site of the new University Presbyterian Church. This church stands today and coincidentally celebrated a 50th anniversary last year.

The vision for Weston Road’s new church was able to progress considerably when Charles E. Oster from Davenport Road arrived on the scene. He had given an important financial stimulus to the crusade and thus was given the honour of turning the first sod with a golden shovel on June 21, 1964.

On October 18, 1964, the Carroll Contracting Company Limited laid the cornerstone of the new building and completed construction of the elegant structure by year’s end.

On January 28, 1965, Reverend J.R. Graham initiated the opening session of St. Stephen’s Presbyterian Church, complimented by organist Miss Gloria Robbins and choir director Mrs. Mary Lessells.

On Sept. 10, 1965, Reverend Graham announced his retirement to the congregation, saying it was a result of the distance he had to travel. A search for a new minister began.

In March 1966, Reverend Victor (Vic) Turner officially joined the congregation along with his wife Olive and their two boys, Larry and Mark.

Turner had come from London, England and was a veteran of the R.A.F., the Royal Navy and the Fleet Air Arm. He was a former manager of a retail shoe store before he became a Minister. Olive was a gifted soprano singer and accomplished pianist who took on the role of directing the choir.

She had a mischievous, gleeful sense of humour and was a highly sensitive person. Both boys attended Emery C.I., played on the Emery Hillmen football teams and became skilled musicians on the guitar and bass.

During pivotal years substantial amounts of fundraising were required to maintain the church. Ken Heslop and his wife Jennie played a major role in procuring funds. Heslop initiated a highly successfuland entertainment program, “Make a Molehill Out of Our Mountain” or the MORTY-rhyme campaign. It began when Heslop gave Pattie Johnson a red Piggy Bank as a consolation prize at a New Year’s Eve event. People thought, why not give a penny a meal from everyone?

The campaign took off and eventually involved 300 little white figurine piggy banks (donated by Heslop) that netted well over $600 in revenue for the church. Heslop, a politically intense self-made man from Yorkshire, England did not want the church to continue to maintain a debt and a mortgage. He ended up paying off the majority of the balance himself.

During this same time period, numerous people provided time and energy to ensure the success of the church. Some leading individuals were Norm and Rina MacDonald (children Sabrina, Alan and Jackie), Jack and Gwen MacKenzie, Barry and Barb Clarke, Doug and Doris Kelman (girls Linda and Donna), Ed and Sadie Lockhart, John Lang, Barb Heighington, Mrs. Spears, Delores Tapp, Bev Hurlbut, Shirley Schuetz, Dennis Rawlins, Rena Pollock, Judy Wyse and Barry and Jenny Flude.

In 2010, Turner, who had been retired as a Minister for some time, proudly took on the responsibility of conducting an exclusive funeral service to acknowledge the passing, and praise the life, of Ken Heslop.

Turner passed away six months later in Nov. 2010 at the age of 87.

Larry Turner currently resides in London, England and Reverend Mark Turner has followed in his father’s footsteps running his own congregation at the Trinity Community Church, 590 Gainsborough Road in London, Ontario. Sabrina (MacDonald) Ingram (daughter of Norm MacDonald) became a Minister herself and currently practises at the St. Stephen’s Presbyterian congregation at 1140 Paul Street South in Peterborough. Fred Johnson’s son Jim is a Minister at the Durham Presbyterian Church. In all there are 19 former members of the early congregation that entered higher levels of the Presbytery.

Currently, St. Stephen’s Presbyterian Church on Weston Road conducts sermons at 10:45 a.m. every Sunday morning.

The sessions are open to all, so feel free to appear and drop in sometime. As always, the church welcomes a wide range of cultural backgrounds to the congregation. Prayer and Praise meetings are also open to the public every Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. The daughter of Fred Johnson, Cathy McCulloch, continues to sit as Clerk of Session of the church.

St. Stephen’s can be contacted by email at: ststephensweston@gmail.com

The majority of information within this article was acquired from a 1985 document written by David Page entitled, “His Story … Twenty-five Years in the Life of St. Stephen’s Presbyterian Church.”

Additional details were cordially provided by former Emery student, Reverend Bruce McAnsh who now runs his own congregation, the Burlington East Presbyterian Church at 505 Walkers Line in Burlington.