60 COUNTRY-MAGAZINE.COM FEBRUARY/MARCH 2018E
ight years ago I moved
to the small town of
Winchester, Ontario.
I fell in love with this
place but was missing
the church I’d left behind.
I went to work at the hospital,
where I met a co-worker who
offered to take me to her church.
The next Sunday, off we went.
I walked into St. Luke’s Evangelical
Lutheran Church in Dunbar and
immediately felt at home. I was
welcomed with open arms, and the
pastor, Joachim Barkley-Probst,
and his wife, Sandra, included me
in the service by introducing me
to the congregants and thanking
me for attending.
Fast forward to today: St. Luke’s
has connected me with the Lord
and given me my church family.
When someone is unwell, goingthrough some financial hardship
or celebrating a special event, the
congregation is there to help.
Joachim is more than our pastor.
He and Sandra are our friends who
help create a familial atmosphere.
Joachim delivers sermons that go
straight to the heart.
Sandra is our organist and has
the most amazing singing voice.
The only time I can say she faltered
while playing the organ was when
a ladybug landed on the keys!
St. Luke’s Church hosts baby
showers, an annual potluck and
meetings. I often stop for a minute
or two and watch the hustle and
bustle of everyone setting up tables
and chairs and putting out enough
food to feed an army. Interspersed
with all this activity is plenty of
warm conversation and laughter.
We are truly a family.My husband, Tom, and I were
married in St. Luke’s. It was a
small gathering that included our
friends and relatives, which makes
the church even more special to us.
Every February, Tom and I host
“Soupfest.” We provide the soup,
and guests bring sandwiches and
dessert. It’s our way of enjoying
the fellowship of our loved ones
and chasing away the winter blahs.
We always have a wonderful time.
In this day and age, small
churches like ours are slowly
closing their doors. But St. Luke’s
endures, thanks to an especially
generous gift from one beloved
congregant we affectionately
call Uncle Graham.
If your travels should ever
bring you to Dunbar on a Sunday
morning, please stop in and say
hello. You will be welcomed!WORDS of WISDOM It isn’t the mountains that wear you out; it’s the grain of sand in your shoe.This congregation embraced
me the moment I stepped
through the doorway.
BY ELISSA ENNIS Winchester, Ontario
Pastor Joachim
and wife Sandra,
Elissa’s husband Tom
Kenyon, and Lynn
Allison (left to right)
enjoy Soupfest. Inset:
St. Luke’s Evangelical
Lutheran Church.‘We Are Truly
a Family ’
COUNTRY CHURCHES