Hillcrest United Church, Montague, PEI ... a church striving to live in God's way
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HISTORY of HILLCREST  UNITED CHURCH 
​Scroll right following the arrows, then tap on the topic you want.  There are 8 topics/tabs here;
Ministers, Church Suppers, Tower, Building, Big Move, Stained-Glass, History 1997-2021 &  Hist Pre-1997, 
  • HISTORY Pre-1997
  • HISTORY 1997-2021
  • STAINED-GLASS​
  • THE BIG MOVE
  • THE BUILDING
  • BELL TOWER
  • CHURCH SUPPERS
  • MINISTERS
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The Building,
For pre-1997 information, text & more photos CLICK HERE
to read the entire 1997 BOOKLET about
HILLCREST UNITED CHURCH and its PREDECESSORS.

MORE  RECENT TOPICS WILL APPEAR 
as you CHOOSE TABS as you SCROLL RIGHT;
History 1997-2021, 
Stained-Glass, The Big Move,
The Building, Bell Tower, Church Suppers,  Ministers.





                                          SELECT HISTORY 1997-2021
                       to ENJOY again, through photos & text,
     some highlights of Hillcrest's 1997 to 2021 activities:
​
​           Dinner Theatre Nights, The Good Morning Group,  

       Guess-Who's-Coming-to-Dinner, The Gospel Group,              Messy Church,  Bring-Your-Pet- to-Church, and
               Farmers-Helping-Farmers Twinned Schools

G
To View all our Stained-Glass Windows and Read about Them, Click on any one of These Photos.
                                       The Big Move             
       In the late 1960's, many farm families in Valleyfield were selling their farms and moving to Montague, or beyond. Many of the farms were sold to immigrants whose religeous affiliations were not with the UCC.  It was becoming increasingly difficult for the congregation there to maintain its building, programs, and minister. In 1969 the Lower Montague United Church had closed and the congregations merged with that of Trinity United in Montague. The church building was too small for the resulting congregation.

            Many people now claim responsibility for coming up with the idea to close Trinity, moving the Valleyfield church to Montague and forming one wider congregation. There are motions recorded in the minutes of various committees and congregations; but they don't reflect the long process of discussions.  On May 16, 1971, the last service in the Valleyfield United Church before being moved to the present location and being rename Hillcrest United Church.

            At a meeting on March 23, 1971 the name for the new church was discussed and voted on. The name “Montague-Valleyfield” passed. The next recorded meeting, on October 3, 1971 was called to discuss the opening services of “Hillcrest United Church ...”. Sometime, somehow between March and October the name changed to “Hillcrest”.

                   In June 1971 when the first section of  the Valleyfield Church was travelling on the flatbed across the Valleyfield River at Sutherland's Hill, there were people praying that the bridge would give out and the section would crash into pieces in the river, bringing to an end a project which did not have their blessing. But there were even more people praying for the opposite, that it would make it, and beyond that, that the congregations would make it too, so that one strong congregation would result from the adventuresome move.




       Not only was it an act of vision and faithfulness to move the church in 1971 from Valleyfield to Montague, it was also a financial cost, $100,000. But the project proceeded under the assumption that the three congregations of Lower Montague, Montague and Valleyfield would pull together, pay the bills and become one. They certainly did.  The years have shown that the building, in pieces, did survive the move, and survived it well.

            In 1974, three years after the church building was moved to Montague,  a stone cairn was built in Valleyfield on the site of the original log meeting house. Inscribed on it are the church buildings and dates from 1842 to 1971. It also includes this quote from Psalm 119.90 A in Gaelic and English:

                        o linn gu lino tha d'fhirinn
          “Your faithfulness endures through all the ages”
​T      To continue reading this History of Hillcrest,
                       scroll to the top of this page and
                    choose the next tab THE BUILDING.

 
Picture
                                                  BUILDING UPGRADES:
            There have been many upgrades to Hillcrest since it found its spot on the hill in 1971.
            In 1984 a $204,000 addition was built along 20 of the 50 foot north wall. A primary purpose was to add space for Sunday School classrooms. It also permitted the addition of more general meeting places, a larger choir room and choir loft, and a larger minister's study.
            Then in 1991, in preparation for the arrival of a second minister, the addition was extended along the remainder of the north wall.
           During the same period, $50,000 worth of stained glass windows, choir gowns worth $10,000 and a new organ valued at $40,000 were also added. Anne and David White donated our beautiful grand piano in 2006, dedicated to the memory of Anne's mother and long time congregant Fran Shaw.
            In 2009, Edgar Dewar built a beautiful floor to ceiling choir cabinet, with a place to store music for every member of the choirs.
            In 2013 a $50,000 lift was installed, making Hillcrest truly accessible. The dream started in 2003 with an endowment from the Wigginton family in memory of Muriel Wigginton. Many years of research, UCW bake sale fund-raising and a major federal grant later, the dream became a reality.
          
          In 2021, a UCC Faithful Footprints grant enabled Hillcrest to install six heat pumps, an electric hot water heater, all new LED lighting, and four new basement windows were installed.  In the course of completing this project it was discovered that our 30 year old oil boiler was in desperate need of replacement; so two smaller efficient boilers were installed. 

           
            The newly formed technology team also replaced aging computers and began purchasing equipment to offer better digital streaming of services and events.
            The upgrades do not include the many smaller building projects carried out over the years by tireless volunteers, keeping the building in good repair and adapting it to changing needs.  
       To continue reading this history of Hillcrest,
                 scroll to the top of this page and
                      choose the tab THE TOWER. 
         
               From 2015 to 2019 Stewards & Trustees carried out a major campaign to repair the bell tower and reclad the entire building with vinyl siding, including a layer of rigid insulation and many new windows and doors.  The bell tower has its own fascinating history, including a lightning strike which split the filial in half on Valentine's Day, 1991. Keir MacLeod's repaired the damage and turned a new filial. The old one has a place of honour just outside the choir room.
       To continue reading this History of Hillcrest,
                scroll to the top of this page and
              choose the tab CHURCH SUPPERS.
​

    The Hillcrest Annual Congregational Turkey Dinner

             These congregational dinners, organized by the UCW, have been an institution since Hillcrest's inception. They were also a long tradition at Trinity and Valleyfield before theY merged to form Hillcrest.               
            The first and long-time “Boss” aka “General” of the kitchen was Lois MacLeod. Overseeing this annual feat, which sometimes fed up to 600 people, was not for the faint of heart. In fact, it was such a tremendous effort that it took three people to take over the reins after Lois retired her apron!                

             Margaret Campion and Miriam Nicholson took over the kitchen and Lois Matheson organized the troops for serving, clearing and desserts. The intrepid Donald Nicholson sold tickets and guarded the movement of diners from the waiting area in the Sanctuary to the coveted dinner table in the Valleyfield room. A bazaar was set up in the Chapel to distract rumbling stomachs from the delicious aroma of food wafting up from the basement kitchen.

             The turkey torch next passed into the capable hands of Elizabeth LeLacheur and Margie Tesselaar. They are still at it, with support from the UCW and so many capable and generous volunteers. Although Covid 19 has meant pivoting to take-out, even a world- wide pandemic couldn't stop the beloved Hillcrest Annual Turkey Dinner!
         To continue reading this History of Hillcrest,
               scroll to the top of this page and
                     choose the tab MINISTERS.
                              MINISTERS WHO HAVE SERVED
                    HILLCREST AND ITS FOUNDING CHURCHES

 VALLEYFIELD CHURCH                         MONTAGUE METHODIST CHURCH

1850  Rev. Alexander Munro                                1872   Rev. John Astbury
1885  Rev. Roderich MacLean                              1874   Rev. William Fenna
1907  Rev. A. S. Stewart                                          1877   Rev. Douglas H. Lodge
1916  Rev. J. M. MacLeod                                        1880   Rev. E. Bell
1920  Rev. J. A. MacLennan                                   1882   Rev. Joseph Pascoe
1928  Dr. D. M. Sinclair                                          1883   Rev. William Wass
1936  Dr. A. J. Ebbett                                               1884   Rev. John F. Estey
1941  Dr. J. Milton Fraser                                        1886   Rev. John Goldsmith
1944  Rev. A. D. Sterling                                         1890   Rev. Richard Opie
1947  Rev. E. C. Evans                                             893   Rev. William Lawson
1948  Rev. A. C. Fraser                                            1896   Rev. H. Penna
1955  Rev. Fred MacKinnon                                  1900   Rev. F. Frizzle
1961  Rev. Supply Ministers                                 1903   Rev. L. J. Wason
1963  Rev. Graeme Fraser                                     1907   Rev. F. A. Wightman
1967  Rev. Russell Burns                                       1910   Rev. B. O. Hartman
1969  Rev. David Shaffelburg                               1913   Rev. H. Miller
                                                                                    1916   Rev. William J. Donville
MONTAGUE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH            1919   Rev. Christopher Graham
                                                                                   1922   Rev. H. A. Brown
1876  Rev. Peter Melville                                       1924   Rev. E. A. Westmoreland
1877  Rev. John MacKinnon                                     
1884  Rev. W. H. Spencer                                          

TRINITY UNITED & LOWER MONTAGUE
1902  Rev. Robert Sinclair
1909  Rev. David Wright                                             1925   Rev. John Sterling
1919  Rev. John D. MacKenzie                                   1931   Dr. J. R. Saint
1924  Rev. John Sterling                                            1932   Rev. Gordon Pringle
                                                                                         1935   Rev. Arthur Long
                                                                                         1939   Rev. S. E. Hayward
HILLCREST UNITED CHURCH                                  1943   Rev. A. S. Adams
                                                                                         1949   Dr. A. D. MacKenzie
1971  Rev. David Shaffelburg                                    1952   Rev. J. Murdock Fraser
1972  Rev. William A. Amey                                       1962   Rev. Russell F. Burns
1977  Rev. Ron Vincent                                             1969   Rev. David Shaffelburg
            (for 6 months in 1980 as part of a Clergy/Church
            exchange – Rev. Ron Elliott of Australia was minister)
1986 - 96 Rev. Lloyd Burrows
1990 - 92 Rev. Paul Vavasour
1997 - 2003 Rev. Lorna McQueen
1997 - 2004 Rev. Melaney Matheson
2003 - 10 Rev. Scott Hillier
2010 - 18 Rev. Martin Dawson
2019 -21 Rev. Bonnie Fraser
2022 Je-Sep Jim Harbell (student minis.)
2022 Nov -  Timothy Wisnicki (student minis.)
        Use this LINK to see photos and text about amazing
         OUTREACH and CHRISTIAN EDUCATION 1997 TO 2021
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  • HOME
  • I'M NEW
  • ABOUT US
    • BELIEFS
    • HISTORY >
      • PRE-1997 HISTORY
      • 1997 - 2021 CHRISTIAN EDUCATION & OUTREACH
      • 2007 - 2021 DINNER THEATRE
      • STAINED-GLASS WINDOWS >
        • WINDOWS Information 1
        • WINDOWS Information 2
        • WINDOWS Information 3
      • BELL TOWER
  • LIFE & WORK
    • BOOK CLUB
    • BRIDGE CLUB
    • BULLETIN PACKS DELIVERY
    • CHRISTIAN EDUCATION
    • CHRISTIAN EDUCATION & OUTREACH 1997 - 2021
    • COMMUNITY GARDENS
    • FARMERS HELPING FARMERS
    • FRANK'S COMPUTER COLLEGE
    • GREEN TEAM
    • GUATEMALA
    • KNITTING GROUP >
      • MITTEN TREE
    • MANSE COMMITTEE
    • MUSIC >
      • JOYFUL SOUND CONCERT
      • FAMILY AND FRIENDS CONCERT jULY 24, 2022
      • FIDDLERS SONS
    • STEWARDS & TRUSTEES
    • TECHNOLOGY COMMITTEE
    • UCW UNITED CHURCH WOMEN
  • WORSHIP
    • WORSHIP COMITTEE
    • MUSIC
  • MISSION & MINISTRY
    • MONTAGUE PASTORAL CHARGE >
      • 2022 ANNUAL REPORTS
    • MINISTRY & PERSONNEL
    • NOMINATING COMMITTEE
    • SESSION
    • MISSION & SERVICE
    • MEDIA TEAM
    • CHRISTIAN EDUCATION
  • CONTACT
  • DONATE
  • CALENDAR