PREECEVILLE — On a sun-kissed morning of June 8, the Preeceville and Sturgis United Church Charge threw open the doors of Grace United Church in Sturgis for a jubilant, heart-stirring celebration of the United Church of Canada’s 100th anniversary.
Like a prairie quilt stitched with love, the day wove together nostalgia, fellowship and bold hope, drawing friends, former members and curious souls to revel in a century of faith, love and service. From candlelit memories to a potluck feast that’d make any Saskatchewan cook proud, it was a day to treasure — and then some.
The pews of Grace United Church in Sturgis were packed as the congregation gathered for a service that felt like a warm embrace from the past and a joyful leap toward the future. The highlight was a Decade Candle Lighting ceremony, where ten flickering candles — one for each decade of the United Church’s century — bathed the sanctuary in a golden glow. Each flame sparked stories of yesteryear, from rugged pioneer days to the vibrant present, reminding all that faith is a fire that never dims. Since it was Pentecost Sunday, the Pentecost trappings brought a holy swagger into the sanctuary, dancing and dangling like fiery fires, as we celebrated 100 years of the United Church of Canada. The United Church was established on June 10, 1925, and we celebrated its centennial in 2025.
Rev. David Mugadzi, the charge’s beloved minister with a smile brighter than a prairie dawn, took to the pulpit with his resonant Zimbabwean voice, delivering a sermon that was a masterpiece of heart and hope. He began with a striking visual: four people — a Sunday School child, a youth, a middle-aged member and an elder — each holding vibrant coloured rice in shades of red, yellow, green and blue. One by one, they poured their rice into a transparent glass, the colours mingling in a dazzling cascade. David stirred the mix, his eyes twinkling, and proclaimed, “Together, we are a tapestry that glorifies God, a beautifully painted canvas of unity in diversity. Let’s each colour and beautify the world to the glory of God!” He urged the congregation to reimagine and embrace the future — diverse yet united by Christ — their differences blending like the rice into a vibrant whole. “Looking back to where we come from gives us lessons to carry forward,” he declared, his words landing like seeds in fertile soil. “From there, we reimagine and embrace the future with hope!” The message landed like a spring rain, nourishing hearts and sparking nods, tears and grins across the pews.
The service was a storytelling fiesta, with historical tales from Stenen Wilson Memorial Church, Grace United and Trinity Church spinning like yarns around a cozy campfire. Listeners chuckled at Stenen’s library-turned-church, born from Mary Wilson’s pie-selling pluck in the 1900s, and marvelled at Grace United’s fundraising feats that kept the lights aglow. Trinity’s saga, packed with Rev. Miles Russell’s Christmas barn services and dramatic skits, had folks hooting with laughter. The service was wrapped with a historical slideshow that danced across the screen, a visual patchwork of sepia snapshots, worn hymnals and smiling faces from decades past. It was like leafing through a beloved family album, each slide a love letter to the charge’s enduring spirit.
After the service, the celebration spilled into the church hall, which buzzed like a beehive in a clover field. The hall was a nostalgia wonderland, with exhibits that whisked folks back in time. An old clothes display showcased bonnets, opera short gloves, suspenders and dresses straight out of a pioneer’s closet, sparking giggles and gasps as folks imagined their ancestors strutting in such getups. A photo booth, decked with vintage props, had everyone from kids to great-grandparents posing like 1920s film stars, snapping selfies bound for family fridges.
A timeline station stole the show, where folks pinned notes and keepsakes to mark special years — weddings, baptisms or that epic Sunday when the UCW sold a mountain of pies. It was a living scrapbook, each pin a thread in the charge’s vibrant tapestry. Photo albums, brimming with black-and-white prints and faded Polaroids, lined tables, prompting cries of “That’s Aunt Mabel!” and “Wasn’t that the year the choir went splendidly off-key?” These albums were time machines, whisking folks back to Sunday School picnics and long-ago potlucks.
“No United Church celebration is complete without a potluck, and this one was a feast for the ages, held right in the church hall. Tables sagged under the weight of casseroles, salads and a lot of Canadian cuisines, some with African, Ukrainian and English themes. The star of the show was the anniversary cake, a towering confection adorned with the United Church motto: ‘Bold Discipleship, Daring Justice, Deep Spirituality.’ With a symbolic inscription: ‘Celebrating 100 Years,’ the cake was a sweet testament to the church’s mission. As Rev. David, together with Reverends Miles Russell and Betty-Lou Skogen, sliced the first piece, cheers erupted, and forks dove in with gusto,” said David Mugadzi.
The Preeceville-Sturgis United Church’s 100th anniversary celebration was more than a party; it was a vibrant canvas painted with a century of faith, love and service — and a bold brushstroke toward the next hundred years. As Rev. David Mugadzi reminded the crowd with his coloured rice, unity in diversity is the charge’s strength — a tapestry that glorifies God.
With stories of Stenen’s bell, Grace’s grit and Trinity’s theatrics still ringing in their ears, the congregation left with full hearts, full plates and a renewed commitment to reimagine and embrace the future together. Here’s to Stenen Wilson Memorial, Grace United and Trinity United — three churches, one charge and a whole heap of love. Happy 100th, United Church of Canada.
May your next century be as bold, just and deeply spiritual as June 8, concluded Reverend David Mugadzi.
