North Peace Territorial Ministry

The Korean congregation is a young, vibrant group, made up of business people and professionals who have come to the Peace country seeking much the same things as the pioneers who came here in the thirties. They believe strongly in mission work and give generously to food banks at home and to disaster relief abroad.

The North Peace Territorial Ministry was established in 1998 and is administered by Strang Presbyterian Church, Dixonville. NPTM is providing outreach to many communities in the North Peace region, an area of approximately 47,000 square kilometres. NPTM consists of Strang Presbyterian Church in Dixonville and The North Peace Korean Ministry in Peace River. Rev. Kim conducts two services every Sunday, traveling around 120 kilometres. Many Koreans come in from outlying districts to the services and every two months Rev. Kim travels further afield, taking communion to many other Korean Presbyterians in this vast area.

The NPTM has seen its ups and downs in 2008. We have seen growth in the Korean membership and a decline in Strang’s membership, leaving us with a sum of 65 members.
The Korean congregation is a young, vibrant group, made up of business people and professionals who have come to the Peace country seeking much the same things as the pioneers who came here in the thirties. They believe strongly in mission work and give generously to food banks at home and to disaster relief abroad. We would like to do more but, with our small membership, it seems an impossible task.

Strang is an aging congregation in a farming community. Last year we lost seven of our old-timers. One of these was our beloved friend and faithful church worker, Josephine Hitz, who had been a member since 1945, missing very few Sunday services during the past 63 years. There is, however, a glimmer of hope. In a moving ceremony,
Rev. Kim baptised three children, from ten months to six years old, from one of the young families who joined us last year. These young ones had an amazing amount of extended family joyfully witnessing this event. We give thanks to God that the sacrament of baptism still has meaning to those who seem lost to the church and pray that they will join us in worship one day soon.

We had some fun times in 2008. The Clerk of Session dressed as a clown and distributed eggs with church humour inside for the congregation to read aloud on Humour Sunday. Koreans from the South Peace joined those from the North Peace for a picnic, in the rain. We held the service inside a camp kitchen and enjoyed all that great Korean food while several young people attempted to teach a rather senior elder to eat with chopsticks. The congregation at Strang happily stripped little brown envelopes off a tree. Each envelope contained ideas for gifts to the church – paper, stamps, soap – providing almost a year’s supply of necessary items. The Christmas Clothes Line - a collection of mitts, socks, scarves and toques for children
in need - participated in by both congregations was a moving and popular event.

We have been given another year to serve God, and are thankful for God’s grace and faithfulness.

—The Reverend B. Joanne Kim