Items Donated to or Acquired by the LMPC
Items Donated to or Acquired by the LMPC – Exterior
Land on which the church stands: Donated by John Cook Thomson, likely the most important gift to the ‘East End Presbyterian Church’ (now the Little Metis Presbyterian Church).
Bell: Donated by Mr. and Mrs. J. R. Lowden, great grandparents of Barclay Morse, a Trustee of the Church, on the occasion of their 50th wedding anniversary in 1922. Mr. Lowden was a Trustee of the church for many years. While Mr. and Mrs. Lowden gave the bell, the gift meant the congregation and trustees had to find a suitable location for installation, and the bell tower was built in 1924. While the caretaker for many years, then trustees, and then children tolled the bell for many years, it was not until July 28, 2013 that Bart Morse, J. R. Lowden’s great grandson who came to Metis as a youngster, rang the bell for the first time, just over 90 years after the bell was donated and 88 years after completion of the tower.
In addition to manufacturing bells for use in the U.S., Meneely factories also manufactured the following bells for Canadian locations:
- Tower Clock of the old Parliament building, Ottawa
- Roddick Gates McGill University in Montreal
- Halifax Explosion Memorial Sculpture, Fort Needham Park, Halifax. Nova Scotia
- St Lawrence Hall, Toronto.
Front door lights: Donated “In Loving Memory of Alexander F. C. Ross 1870-1941” and “In Loving Memory of Ada Wait Ross 1877-1967” by Jean McEachran and likely installed in 1968. Secretary-Treasurer of the church in the 1920s, A.F.C. Ross and his wife were maternal grandparents of Mary Williams, later a trustee for many years and a past Treasurer of the church.
Lilac: Donated in memory of Roy Vining in 1995 by Donna Johnson, Charlie Vining’s mother-in-law.
Outdoor Benches: Donated in memory of Mary Hilda Freeland Stevens by Hilda’s sister, Marietta Freeland, and of Jack and Edith Savage, by Kerry, Peter, and Michael Martin. The benches were built in 2001 by Les Boul(es)ian Michel Marcheterre.
Bird House: Donated in memory of Hugh Savage by his son Ted Savage, built by past summer minister Reverence James Peter Jones, inspired by Hugh’s love of nature and Luke 12:6 “Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, and not one of them is forgotten by God?”
Picnic Table: Donated for use by the children of the congregation at the church school in 2010 by Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Blott.
Items Donated to or Acquired by the LMPC – Interior
Communion Table: Donated by James Neil Laing (believed to have served as Little Metis Presbyterian Church Trustee) and Florence Birks Laing in memory of their son Murdoch McLeod Laing who died in September 1916, when leading his men in the advance on Courcelette, France against the Germans.
Offertory Plates: Donated “In Loving Memory John C. Thomson” and “Presented to The Presbyterian Church, Little Metis, By C. Maude Thomson, 1919”. John Cook Thomson was the driving force behind the establishment of the East End Presbyterian Church (later The Little Metis Presbyterian Church). He bought the land where the church stands and donated it to the Ministers of the two Presbyterian churches, St. Andrew’s and Chalmers in Quebec City, to be held in trust for the Presbyterian Church in Canada. He died in 1907. Catherine Maude Thomson was Thomson’s oldest child.
Light Shades Over Hanging Lights and Light Fixtures: Minutes of the Trustees’ meeting, July 11, 1923 recorded that “The Chairman (Mr. J. C. Cowans) reported that he had received tenders for installing electric light into the Church, and he was authorized to sign a contract for the same at a cost of Eighty dollars ($80.00).” The minutes of the August 1, 1926 Trustees’ meeting: “The Chairman (Mr. J. C. Cowans) reported that the contract for the electric lighting of the Church had been completed at a cost of about $90.00. The Secretary (Mr. A.F.C. Ross) reported that the Chairman, Mr. J.C. Cowans, had very kindly, at his own expense, donated the shades covering the various lights in the Church, and the thanks of the Board were tendered to Mr. Cowans.” The light fixtures to which the shades were fixed may have been donated by Mrs. John Pullen: from minutes of the July 23, 1932 Trustees’ meeting: “The Trustees wish to acknowledge with deep appreciation, Mrs. John Pullen’s thoughtfulness in presenting the Church with Electric Light Fixtures, and the Secretary was instructed to forward to Mrs. Pullen a suitable acknowledgement.”
Hymn Books and Hymn Boards: Donated in July 1928 by Agnes Cassils Pullen in memory of her husband, John Pullen, a Church trustee whom she succeeded after his death in 1926. Mrs. Pullen was very involved in the church’s music programme and established a Ladies’ Choir.
First Board of Trustees Plaque: Minutes of the March 3, 1932 meeting show that the Trustees approved the making of a ‘Date’ plaque to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the ‘Foundation of the Church.’ Minutes of the October 7, 1932 meeting reference the ‘Tablet’ commemorating the 50th anniversary. At the July 23, 1933 service, the congregation was urged to give generously as the premium on the fire insurance had yet to be paid and a memorial tablet had been proposed. There was, as far as is known, no memorial tablet made, unless the tablet honoring the original trustees of the church was that tablet.
In Loving Memory of Harold Savage Plaque: Trustee minutes for March 26, 1942: “The meeting recorded with great regret the death of Mr. Harold Savage, one of the Trustees. Mr. J.E. Birks stated that Mrs. Savage had requested that she be allowed to place a small plaque on the wall of the Church near the pew which has been occupied by Mr. Savage for many years. This was approved.”
In Loving Memories of John Birks: Trustee minutes of August 1981 read “The Trustees ordered that a memorial tablet for the Church be commissioned in memory of the late John E. Birks. Tablet to be similar to the tablet now in the Church in memory of Harold Savage.”
Stained Glass Rondel Windows: Donated by Montreal’s Presbyterian Church of St. Andrew and St. Paul on the occasion of the Little Metis Presbyterian Church’s centenary in 1983. The two quatrefoils represent a cross and an anchor respectively.
Centennial Board of Trustees Plaque: Minutes of the Trustees’ meeting August 17, 1987 note that ‘Mr. C. B. Powell offered to present a centennial plaque to match the ‘founder’s plaque’ which is on the Church wall to the right of the pulpit. The Centennial plaque to be placed on the left.’
To Memorialize the Reverend Dr. David Jones: Commissioned by the Martin family in honour of a loved summer minister who died in 2008; David was the son of another beloved summer minister, the Reverend James (Jimmy) Jones.
In Loving Memory of Elizabeth Savage Martin: Betty Martin was a very strong supporter of the Little Metis Presbyterian Church for many years. The plaque was installed after her October 9, 2013 death and dedicated on August 3, 2014.
Pew Bibles (King James Version. American Bible Society): Donated in the majority by Barbara Macfarlane “In loving memory of James F. Macfarlane”.
Baptismal Font: Commissioned by Tim and Brian Price to be built by James Peter Jones for the baptism of John Evan Price (July 13, 1993) to replace the simple bowls that had been used to that time. The simple cross on the font matches those on the lectern. The design is intended to be ‘polite’ (consistent) with that of the lectern.
Celtic Cross: Designed, created, and donated by James Peter Jones.
Communion Service: A five-piece set consisting of a base, two glass holders with inserts, a deeper glass holder and a cover with a cross, with 18 glass communion glasses, was Donated by The Rev. Dr. David Jones and his wife Katherine in or around 2006. It was first used on July 15, 2012 with The Rev. Will Ingram officiating (no other celebration of Communion in this church is recorded in known records until this time, with a second service celebrated on August 12, 2012 with The Rev. Derek Macleod officiating. Happily, Communion since has been celebrated on a regular basis during the summer months.
Hammond Electric Organ: Donated by Margot Aird when the old Mason and Hamlin foot pump organ wheezed its last. Margot Aird had played the organ in an old mill in St. Bruno, Quebec that had formed a non-denominational church supported largely by the Birks family, and she had been given it in the early 1980s.
Yamaha CP33 Stage Piano: Donated by Ted Savage in 2008 when no more spare parts were available for the Hammond electric organ. James Peter Jones, using wood from what was once the front pew, made the surround and cover for this new organ, also opening up the space in front of the communion table allowing the celebration of weddings and baptisms to proceed in greater comfort.
The Book of Psalms: Donation of this “worship resource for reading or singing the psalms with optional refrains” co-ordinated by summer minister The Rev. Derek Macleod, who wrote: “The psalters were given to Briarwood Presbyterian church in 2006 by St. Andrews, Lachine for our support of their congregation as they struggled with the PCC over the question of ordination and homosexuality. I tried numerous times but ultimately in vain to have Briarwood integrate the psalters in worship. The psalters were boxed and put in storage until I sought their release a few months ago.”
Hymn Books: The Little Metis Presbyterian Church received, courtesy of David Jones, the 1972 version of the Presbyterian Church in Canada hymnbook from First Presbyterian Church, Brockville, Ont. when that church replaced their Books of Praise. The current hymnbooks were donated in 2012 by Anson McKim and Andrea (Ferguson) Ivory in memory of Joan McKim, Anson’s mother, and Judy Ferguson, Andrea’s mother. When the hymn books were dedicated, then summer minister The Rev. Derek McLeod chose ‘Now Thank We All Our God’ as a hymn, partly in thanks for the lives of the two ladies and partly because of the hymn’s line: “…and from our Mother’s arms’.
The Rev. Derek McLeod had encouraged acquiring the 1996 hymnbook edition to replace the 1972 ones, saying: “Growing up with the ’72 hymnbook, I am aware of its blessings and shortcomings. The ’96 is a better hymnbook, with more selection, fresher and more gender-inclusive language, and includes hymns like the cherished Metis hymn (“Shall We Gather at the River”)”. Derek noted that he had no illusions that a new book alone would bring in new people, but its acquisition would send an important message that we are trying to be current.
Chalice: Transferred courtesy of summer minister The Rev. Ian Ross-Mc-Donald: as the Presbyterian Church in Canada’s General Secretary, Life and Mission Agency, he has the role of, among other things, disposing of a congregation’s belongings should its church close. When closing Gateway Church around 2010, he found this chalice (from Cooke’s Church in Toronto) in poor condition and, finding no home for it, had it restored and given to our church.
