During this year’s presentation of the Moose Jaw Business Excellence (MJBEX) Awards, Minister Jim Tenford of St. Andrew's United Church accepted the Pillar of the Community award on behalf of the church, thanking the entire community for supporting the many programs and partnerships St. Andrew’s has been involved in.
“It's wonderful to have the recognition from the chamber of commerce and the community,” said Tenford. “It’s good confirmation that the work that St. Andrew’s has been doing all this time is really making a difference.”
St. Andrew’s was nominated for a number of reasons, including the church’s longstanding partnerships with Moose Jaw Pride and the Moose Jaw Multicultural Council, the latter of which currently operates from its space in the church building.
The church is also known as the first in Canada to be served by an ordained female minister, when Lydia Gruchy was ordained 1936 and served St. Andrew’s until 1939, as a show of support for women’s equality.
Tenford shared that St. Andrew’s has been very involved in the refugee program in Moose Jaw, having sponsored nine people from Syria and Venezuela in the last five years, while also working with other churches and groups to help at least a dozen more individuals find refuge in Canada.
St. Andrew's has also offered hospitality to the LGBTQ+ community in Moose Jaw. It was the first church in Moose Jaw to bless same-sex marriages in the early 2000s and in 2013, the church became a partner and ally of Moose Jaw Pride — whose first offices were located in St. Andrew's.
Tenford is also proud to say that in 2017, St. Andrew's earned the designation of affirming, which declares that the church welcomes all people regardless of age, gender identity, race, sexual orientation, ethnicity, economic circumstances, or differing abilities.
“We really want it to be a community church, a visible centre and a place where people can come to that is approachable by the organizations and communities that are trying to make the world a better place,” said Tenford. “We’re always looking for ways to partner with people, and so I really hope that folks see us as not hiding away behind those big stone walls, but actually engaging the community.”
In winning the Pillar of the Community Award, Tenford is pleased to see that St. Andrew’s is making an impact within so much of the community, including those outside its congregation.
“Obviously people really do appreciate having St. Andrew’s as part of this community [and] they see St. Andrew’s as important to who we are, which I think is just fantastic,” said Tenford. “We really want it to be a community church, a visible centre and a place where people can come to that is approachable by the organizations and communities that are trying to make the world a better place.”
This is the first MJBEX Award that St. Andrew’s has won, said Tenford. He sees the spotlight as motivation to continue doing great work within the community.
“One of the things this award has done for me and, I hope, others in the church [is] that now we have this recognition that our work is making a difference, and that just means we need to work that much harder to live up to that legacy,” said Tenford.
