MOOSE JAW — Bev Curran has attended St. Andrew’s United Church for most of her life, but this Sunday will be “very difficult” for her and others as the church closes its doors.
“It’s been very teary already for two weeks. I can’t even imagine what it’s going to be like on Sunday, (June 29),” Curran, 73, said a few days before the final service, which occurs at 2 p.m. “We are sadly done.”
Curran, whose maiden name is Rollefson, has attended St. Andrew’s since she was six months old. Even when she was in university, she returned every weekend to attend services since she wanted to be with her parents.
She noted that many important life milestones occurred at the church over the decades, including her wedding, her children’s baptisms, some of her children’s funerals and her grandchildren’s baptisms.
“So we are a three-generation (family) at this church,” Curran remarked.
Curran held various roles and ran several programs over the decades, including establishing and running a nursery and leading a program for mothers. Furthermore, she taught Sunday school, supported the church’s Christian Education Committee and volunteered with the United Church Women (UCW) during events like suppers and funerals.
Curran added that she will miss the people she met in church and outside of it.
Sheila Leahy, the chairwoman of the worship committee, has attended the United church for almost 31 years and has enjoyed her time there. She noted that there have been “good points and … bad points” and “happy points and … sad points.” She has particularly enjoyed singing in the choir.
“It’s family. And we’re all going to miss family,” she said. “But we can’t continue on any longer.”
Continuing, Leahy said St. Andrew’s is a small congregation — about 65 people are on the roll, but only 20 to 30 attend weekly, while the church can hold 750 — and the building is too big for them to maintain financially. So, closure was the only option.
“We’re all just very sad. It’s like everybody’s grieving. It’s a loss,” she said, adding that the church is filled with history, including being the first in Canada to ordain a female minister — Lydia Gruchy in 1936 — and being the only affirming church in Moose Jaw.
One person who has appreciated St. Andrew’s openness to diverse sexualities is Heather Milligan Stevens, the office administrator.
Her husband is transgender, and when her previous church in Moose Jaw found out, she began receiving unfriendly treatment, she said. So, her family left and has been worshipping at St. Andrew’s for seven years. She noted that her husband is not a churchgoer but will attend services at St. Andrew’s because of its welcoming approach.
“I love this church. I’m going to be really sad to see it go … ,” Milligan Stevens said, noting that she’ll miss the people.
The office administrator said the closure in June 2025 was not the church leadership’s initial goal, as they had originally planned to close on Dec. 31, 2024. However, “a lot of people were upset” by that announcement, even though many of them did not attend the meeting where the closure vote happened.
Continuing, Milligan Stevens said the congregation is older and there aren’t any more volunteers to keep the church running, while the parishioners who volunteer are exhausted and need a break.
The office administrator added that as of Aug. 1, Victory Church will take ownership of the former St. Andrew’s United Church building, while the Moose Jaw Multicultural Council is expected to move into the mall in the fall.
