About Us
Our Purpose
Based on the foundational aspects expressed in Our Covenant, McDougall United Church seeks
- to bridge the gulf separating spirituality with institutional religion
- to encourage everyone’s spiritual journey
- to be a place of spiritual renewal and growth
- to worship God to find comfort, connection, healing and inspiration
- to respond to the needs of the wider community
Our Covenant
As a Christian faith community in downtown Edmonton:
- We are rooted in worship that continues to reflect a pioneering spirit through innovative and traditional liturgies, variety in music, and the active engagement of the worshipper.
- We are committed to welcoming into community and, according to their gifts, into leadership, persons of any ability, race, age, sexual orientation, gender, and gender identity or expression.
- We are dedicated to programs, services and opportunities which nurture spiritual and theological growth, and which demand that we work toward a more just and compassionate society.
- We actively and prayerfully seek partnerships with the wider community.
- We believe God is not limited to the notions of the past, nor of our time.
- We recognize that our knowledge of God is partial and confined, and that there is more light and truth to be discovered.
- Such is the joy and excitement of the Christian quest of McDougall United
Church.
Growing Into a New Community of Faith
In the spring of 2024, the community of Garneau United Church began worshipping together with the McDougall community, after having lost their church building to a major flood earlier in the year. The two communities share the same enjoyment of a progressive approach to worship and a commitment to social justice, and an abundant welcome to all people. In December 2024, both communities voted to explore a full integration into a single community. We are now taking the time to explore what that means.
United Church of Canada
In July, 2022, the General Council of United Church of Canada elected the Rev. Dr. Carmen Lansdowne (she/her), Kwisa’lakw, to a three-year term as Moderator and spiritual leader of the denomination.
Ordained in 2007, the Rev. Dr. Lansdowne is only the second Indigenous person to be elected Moderator, following the Very Rev. Stan McKay, who served as Moderator 1992‒1994. A member of the Heiltsuk First Nation, she was born in Alert Bay, British Columbia, and has been a lifelong member of the United Church. She is committed to an Indigenous way of being in the world.
In articulating her vision for The United Church of Canada, the Rev. Dr. Lansdowne speaks of a church committed: “To build new connections and rebuild old ones. To work towards social change that sees a world cared for, and human dignity honoured. To walk together every day in repentance and reconciliation. To march and fight and change unjust systems together. To pray together. To sing together. To discern together.”
The United Church of Canada is a Protestant Christian denomination in Canada. It is the largest Protestant Church and, after the Roman Catholic Church, the second largest Christian Church in Canada.
The United Church was founded in 1925 as a merger of four Protestant denominations: the Methodist Church of Canada, the Congregational Union of Ontario and Quebec, two-thirds of the congregations of the Presbyterian Church in Canada, and the Association of Local Union Churches.
Structure
In structure, the United Church has a “bottom up” governance, where the congregation selects its clergy, rather than clergy being appointed by a bishop or other body.
The policies of the church are inclusive and liberal: there are no restrictions of gender,
sexual orientation or marital status for a person considering entering the ministry.
Interfaith marriages are recognized; communion is offered to all Christian adults and children, regardless of denomination or age.
Governance
Our national body is the Denominational Council (national), headquartered in Toronto, and our Moderator, elected every three years, is the highest official position. The three courts of governance are:
- Communities of Faith (congregations)
- Regional Council (regions)
- Denominational Council (national)
At the Regional level, McDougall United Church belongs to the Northern Spirit Region.
People of McDougall
Our Minister
The Rev. Mickey Wilson
Our Staff
Dolores Bell
Office/Programs & Events Administrator
Celia Conway
Office Administrator & Rentals
Kimberley McMann
Director of Music
Peter Tinning
Site Custodian
Governance
The Council of McDougall United Church is responsible for the governance, ministry and operations of the church. Members are elected by the congregation and serve two-year terms. The Council meets every third Wednesday of the month.
Council Members:
Chair
Larry Derkach
Vice-Chair, Property
Gerald Watts
Secretary, Ministry & Personnel
Velia Watts
Acting Treasurer
Larry Derkach
Members-at-Large
Group Representatives
Choir – Janis Dunmore
Affirm – Gary Simpson
Minister
The Rev. Mickey Wilson
Committees & Groups:
Affirm Ministry (2SLGBTQIA+)
Gary Simpson
Worship
Velia Watts
Power Point
Gordon Dunmore
Nancy Jacobsen
Music
Kimberley McMann
Ministry & Personnel
Sharon Provost
Velia Watts
Communion
Joan Seath
Offering Counters
Gordon Dunmore
Archives & Memorials
Angeles Espinaco-Virseda
Trustees
Sara Coumantarakis
George Knowles
Gerald Watts
Our Early History
McDougall is the original and oldest Protestant congregation in Alberta.
The church was named after an early Methodist missionary by the name of Rev. George
McDougall (1821-1876) who arrived in Edmonton with his wife Elizabeth Chantler in
1871.
Construction of the first church was completed in 1873.
A second church was built in 1892 helped to accommodate the growing congregation.
The current sanctuary was built in 1910 and seated 2,000 people. That was when Edmonton had a population of 20,000 and the church was the crossroads of the community.
After 1925 the congregation was merged with three other de nominations, Presbyterian, Congregational and Methodist to form the United Church of Canada.
The old wooden 1873 church (white building on left) was moved to Fort Edmonton Park in 1977 where it now serves as a museum on 1885 Street.
The spirit for this congregation was set by it’s founder, Rev. George McDougall, and it has been an historic cornerstone in this city for over 100 years.
Culture, politics and community service were all part of our intentional, innovative beginnings. In the early and mid 19th century, the Christian values of the Church
became the values of Canada and of Edmontonians.
For over 100 years, the current building (1910) has served as a pillar and the
crossroads of the community. It cost about $70,000 to build. But McDougall Church is more than the sum of its parts. It is history…
- World War I saw the Ladies Aid send thousands of packages to soldiers
overseas and sewed thousands of garments for the city’s poor. - During World War II, McDougall served as a social hub for many of the visiting servicemen in the city.
- We housed a Red Cross plasma-collection centre.
- McDougall was the first home of the predecessor of the Edmonton Symphony.
- It was the original home of the Edmonton Opera.
- We were home to music festivals.
- McDougall was the first home of the Salvation Army.
- It was the site of suffragette rallies in the 1900s and served as a union hall.
- We were the site of the University of Alberta Convocations.
Today, McDougall United Church continues its proud tradition of community outreach
and social justice, and is a spiritual home for a diverse congregation. As well, we continue to open our doors to the wider community in partnership with this great city and its people.