S imeon Menzak was one of the founding members of the parish of Saint Nicholas in Desjarlais. Simeon came to Canada from Ukraine with his wife and daughters in 1908, and he settled in this region. Shortly after their arrival, one of the young daughters died. She was buried on a plot of land that would eventually become the Desjarlais Cemetery. Simeon was strongly concerned that a Temple be built there.
Although there were other established Temples in the area (Shandro, Old Wostok, Boian), the Desjarlais community felt the need for their own Temple nearby. Besides, “in the area” at that time nevertheless a meant a long journey by horse. The first meeting was held on 1 March, 1917, which resulted in the foundation of the parish community.
Soon afterwards, in the spring of 1917, construction began. Stephen Gudzowaty was contracted to build the Temple. The Greek domes style of architecture was chosen. The parishioners cut, squared and hauled logs with teams of horses. With teams of horses and wagons, rocks were brought in to the site for making the foundation. The ladies of the community spun yarn and they embroidered cloths and they wove tapestries to adorn the interior of the Temple.
In early 1918, the construction of the Temple was completed. Then, on the spring Feast-day of Saint Nicholas, on 22 May, 1918, Father Gregory Soroka sanctified the Temple. The parish was incorporated on 10 December, 1918, as : “St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church of Desjarlais”. It was on 31 July, 1919, that the parish received the title to the 40 acres of land at the land description site NE 1/4 9-57-14-W4. It was registered under : “An Ordinance Respecting the Holding of Lands in Trust for Religious Societies and Congregations”.
n 1975, the Archpriest Michael Andruchow suddenly fell asleep in the Lord. Because the Archdiocese of Canada suffered from a shortage of available priests at that time, and because the Parishes of the Moscow Patriarchate had available priests who were brought from the Soviet Union to serve, the parishioners accepted services from this administration from 1975 until 1984. It was by 1984 that Archpriest Stephen Keaschuk in Edmonton was available to care for several rural parishes by driving from the city. After that, the Archdiocese of Canada (OCA) was able to provide the necessary clergy.
In 1980, the Temple was designated as a “Local Historical Site” by the Alberta Government’s Department of Culture and the County of Two Hills. Grants were received in order to repair the Temple and to restore it to its original condition.
Go HERE for more information and history of this parish.
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GPS Co-ordinates: 53.914042,-112.033236
Cemetery Co-ordinates: 53.912970, -112.031530
Affiliation: Orthodox Church in America
