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Can you believe in 1920 there were over a thousand people in Big Valley and many, many different religions? A few of the many religions are: Jewish, Muslim, Christian, and Hindu.
The St. Edmund’s Anglican Church, built in 1919, was up on the hill west of Main Street. It was very shabby and white. Now it is blue and is in pretty good shape. People would go there for church services, weddings, and funerals. The Reverend for the Anglican Church in 1919 was Rev. Scallon. Now it is used only for weddings and a museum.
There was also a Roman Catholic Church in Big Valley in 1919. It was built in 1917 under the direction of Rev. Father Bazin. The first parish priest was Rev. L. Anciaux. It was used for baptisms, marriages, funerals, and church services. The church was enlarged in the summer of 1927. Today it is used as the Evangelical Free Church.
Before 1923 Big Valley had a Presbyterian Church. It was so small that they used to have church services in Campbell’s Restaurant. They built a second church, called the United Church, because the first church was too small. The town of Big Valley built the United Church in the same place it is currently located. The first minister for the United Church was Rev. Herbison. They used the church for weddings, funerals, baptisms, and church services.
Outside of these three religions there were many more. These three Christian churches enjoyed each other pretty well. There were several families of Muslims and Jews. They had no churches just for them but they held private services.
 St. Edmund's Anglican |
Big Valley is a very religious community. The main religion in Big Valley today is Christianity. Big Valley now has two churches that are functioning, the Big Valley Evangelical Free Church, and the Big Valley United Church. We also have St. Edmunds Anglican Church, also known as the blue church. St. Edmund’s Church is located on a hill near the border of town. This church is no longer in use, but is a historical site, and is used for weddings.
At the United Church the ministers are Rev. Garth Bogart and Rev. Orilla Bogart. In the year 1923, the church was built. This church is located 3 blocks west of Railroad Ave.
 Big Valley United |
Today, in 2004, during church there is a Sunday School for kids of all ages. The United Church holds a program called Explorers on Mondays after school. This group is for girls ages 9 to 12. Their goal is to become strong members of the community by helping out others through the word of God.
The church has many different programs. One of them is The Meals on Wheels Program. What they do is provide older people with a meal. They will call one of the restaurants and order food. Mrs. Ridley, a member of the community, will pick it up and deliver it to the senior citizens.
The United church also holds a Palm Sunday ham supper, and a fall turkey supper. The UCW (United Church Women) put on a tea and bake sale. They prepare dinners for funerals also. Not only do they do all these great things, they also support kids so they have enough money to go to a camp called Bar Harbour. About thirty-six people attend this church regularly. This Church starts every Sunday at 11:15 in the Morning.
 Big Valley Evangelical Church |
The next church of interest in Big Valley is the Evangelical Church. The "E. Free" church was started in the year 2000. At the time, the church did not have a pastor, but in 2002 they hired Pastor Carl Wilcox. Before the church became the E. Free Church it was a Catholic church. At the time they bought it, it was no longer in use, but was still owned by the Catholics.
The Church bought a small house across the street in 2002 for a clubhouse and a place for Youth Group. The Church also has three youth groups. One of them is called Kids Club, it is for ages 5 to grade 5, and is taught by Pastor Carl and Sylvia and Connie. There is also the Zionites youth group for kids from grade 6 to grade 9, taught by Sandy and Kevin. Chad and Serena, and Sue and Lee put on a youth group for teens from grade 9 to grade 12. Kids Club is held every Thursday of every week. The Zionites youth group is held once a month on a Friday. The Sr. Youth Group has youth night about every other Friday. They also have meetings for women. The church holds a service every Sunday at 10:30 in the morning.
The E. Free Church has a youth band that plays the last Sunday of each month. On the drums is Sonny, and Jesse plays the cello. There is also a violin and a piano. The violinist is Luke, and the pianists are Serena, and Ben. The singers are Chelsea (the leader of the band), Elizabeth, Natasha, and me, Lacey. Don’t forget the awesome flutist, Chantelle. The Big Valley E. Free church is located at 137 1 Ave. S.
Every summer the United Church and the E. Free Church get together and put on a program for kid’s ages 5 to 16 called D.V.B.S. (Daily Vacation Bible School). This program teaches kids more about the Bible, by learning verses, playing games, and doing crafts. This program will go on for 5 days (Mon.-Fri.), in the mornings, for only one week in the summer.
As you can see Big Valley’s churches do much more than just a service on Sunday. They do things from programs like Meals On Wheels to helping out with youth, because of this the religion in Big Valley is a big part of its culture.
