Discussions about establishing a church for the Egremont community began in 1926 at the wedding of the daughter of a local farmer named K. Pawluk. Several guests who were involved in establishing a district cemetery dedicated to St. George, resolved to send a delegation to Rev. Dmytro Seneta in Edmonton to ask about the possibility of holding a Ukrainian Orthodox service for Egremont residents, at the same time blessing the site that had been selected for the burial ground. Although the original promoters of the cemetery came from various religious and political backgrounds, it was the pro-Ukrainian Orthodox activists who proved to be most committed to the endeavour, as one their number, Harry Buhay, donated the land for the graveyard.
On August 10, 1926, supporters of a Ukrainian Orthodox orientation met at the Buhay home, where they learned that Rev. Dmytro Seneta was willing to come once the sponsors had officially notified the Consistory and Archbishop Ioan Theodorvich of their intentions.
A formal meeting was then convened at the nearby M. Hrushevsky Hall (constructed in 1921), where a letter was read announcing that Fr. Seneta would hold a service as requested on the Feast Day of the Elevation of the Cross. The first liturgy took place at the home of an area resident, Tom Plupek, on September 27, 1926, when the cemetery was also consecrated.
In the wake of these developments a heated debate arose between the Greek Catholic, pro-Soviet and Orthodox inhabitants of the Egremont district, the former being understandably upset by the direction which events were taking. The controversy was to rage for a period of almost three years, and tensions continued to be strong long after the different factions had gone their separate ways.
In the meantime, however, Ukrainian Orthodox priests conducted regular services at the nearby Hrushevsky Hall, in the process gradually strengthening the position of the Orthodox tendency. Finally, at a dinner following a liturgy officiated by Rev. T. Horbay on July 27, 1929, it was decided to officially organize a Ukrainian Orthodox congregation. The meal featured a talk by Fr. Horbay about the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, and was attended by a large number of people, ten of whom came forward to provide leadership for the initiative. Formal affiliation was subsequently accepted at a meeting on August 9, 1929, when it was likewise decided to make St. John the patron of the future church. At the dinner, the sum of $35.00 was collected for the construction of a sanctuary, but when the old Ingleside School subsequently became available for $350.00, it was purchased (in March 1930) to provide a convenient place of worship.
Moved to a parcel of land on the T. Plupek homestead opposite St. George's cemetery, and appropriately modified for its new function, the structure hosted its first liturgy on April 7, 1930. Testifying to the lingering ill feeling among some opponents of the congregation, all of the windows of the church were broken, and the interior damaged by stones, when the sanctuary was later vandalized by unknown individuals. With the passing of time, however, passions cooled, and calm was restored in the district. An early highlight in the history of the congregation was the visitation of Archbishop Ioan Theodorovich on August 2, 1932, when he celebrated a liturgy with Reverends Horbay and Mayba.
The modified school was utilized until 1938, when it was deemed to be too small and in need of extensive renovation. A decision was therefore made to construct a new place of worship, with parishioners contributing $25.00 each toward this goal. The congregation commissioned two brothers named Kozak with church-building experience in Ukraine to design a brand-new sanctuary, which was then quickly constructed by professional carpenters assisted by volunteer members. The cruciform structure was crowned with a large central dome on an octagonal base, two smaller domes gracing harmoniously proportioned towers that flanked the porch to produce an aesthetically pleasing facade. The interior of the church was painted by Peter Lipinski in 1938 and includes his distinctive faux block walls. The iconostasis appears to have been made by Philip Pawluk.
In 1958, St. John's church, St. George's cemetery, and the M. Hrushevsky Hall were all legally incorporated as a single entity under the ownership of the parish. The congregation celebrated its fiftieth anniversary in 1979, the same year that someone stole its large antique bell, which had originally been brought over from Ukraine. In 2001 a new bell tower was built on the north side of the church to replace the earlier one.
The Cemetery
St. George's cemetery was formally established at a meeting of Ingleside School district residents at the Hrushevsky Hall on 12 May 1913. The first burial at the site was that of Mary Stemkowski, on 5 March 1913. Initially, the one-acre parcel of land at SW 6-59-21 W4 was donated by Harry Buhay. However, at a subsequent meeting of the cemetery group held on 12 September 1915, it was decided to pay for the donated acre of land, and to purchase an additional acre from Harry Buhay for the total sum of $13.00.
On 10 April 1916, the cemetery association requested, and eventually obtained, incorporation of the cemetery as a community initiative that was not affiliated with any particular church. Then, on 29 August 1918, the members of the cemetery group voted to have their graveyard consecrated, although they intended for it to retain its non-denominational character. Later, a change in provincial law required that cemeteries be affiliated with a church if they were to remain operational. By then, cemetery association members were ready to come under the auspices of St. John’s Ukrainian Orthodox Church at Egremont. Since Rev. Seneta blessed the cemetery in September 1926, before a church had been constructed and a congregation officially organized, the burial ground was dedicated to St. George rather than St. John.
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GPS Co-ordinates: 54.071060, -113.150709
Cemetery: 54.071923, -113.150451
Affiliation: Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada
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