About Us
Clothing Depot
Brief History of the Diocese
The Diocese of Keewatin came into being with the ordination of the Rt. Rev. Joseph Lofthouse as its first bishop on August 17, 1902. Prior to that time the territory that it now occupies was part of the both the Diocese of Moosonee and the Diocese of Rupert’s Land. At the time of Bishop Lofthouse’s ordination the diocese stretched all the way from the border with the USA in the south to the far reaches of the Arctic in the north. When the Diocese of the Arctic was formed in 1930 the Diocese of Keewatin gave up its territory north of Churchill.
The church has been present in the far northern parts of the diocese for longer than the history of the diocese. It was because of Bishop Lofthouse’s fine work as a missionary along the western and southern coasts of the Hudson’s Bay and down into the lowlands of the bay area that he was appointed to be the first bishop of the new diocese.
Two-thirds of the diocese is in First Nation parishes. There are five languages spoken in the diocese: Cree, Oji-Cree, English, Ojibwa, and Dene. Many of the clergy and lay people in the diocese speak at least two languages regularly.
There have been nine (9) bishops of the diocese to present – see list below. The cathedral (which is where the bishop is ordained and installed as the new bishop of the diocese) has been located at St. Alban the Martyr in Kenora, ON since ---- as the pro-cathedral and then since----as the actual cathedral.
Bishops of the Diocese
 Bishop Joseph Lofthouse 1902-1921 |
 Bishop Alfred D. Dewdney 1921-1938 |
 Bishop Joseph Lofthouse 1938-1953 |
 Bishop Harry E. Hives 1954-1968 |
 Bishop Hugh Stiff 1969-1974 |
 Bishop H. James P. Allan 1974-1991 |
 Bishop Thomas W. R. Collings 1991-1996 |
 Bishop Gordon Beardy 1993-1996 (Suffragan or Assistant Bishop) 1996-2001 (Diocesan Bishop) |
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Archbishop David Ashdown is the current bishop of Keewatin. He was ordained bishop on January 30, 2001 at St. Alban’s Cathedral in Kenora. He was elected and installed as the 16th Metropolitan of the Ecclesiatical Province of Rupert's Land in June of 2009. He can be reached at 807-547-3353, ex.1 or by email at keewatinbishop@shaw.ca. Archbishop David travels regularly throughout the diocese to visit parishes, do confirmations, ordinations and visit the elders. His schedule can be found on here. You can find more about what the archbishop has to say by going here.
Diocesan Council
The Diocesan Council is made up of the following people:
| The Archbishop |
Most Rev. David Ashdown |
keewatinbishop@shaw.ca |
| The Dean |
Very Rev. S. Hugh Matheson | thedeanstalbans@gokenora.com |
| Archdeacon of Keewatin | Ven. Larry Beardy | lijbeardy@shaw.ca |
| Chancellor |
Ms. Heather Dixon | heatherdixon@mts.net |
| Treasurer | Position not occupied at the moment |
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| Secretary of Synod | Ms. Cathryn Hare |
cathy_hare@hotmail.com |
| Registrar |
Position not occupied at the moment | |
| Ven. Lydia Mamakwa |
Northern Ontario Archdeacon | lydiam@kingfisherlake.ca |
| Rev. Solomon Beardy | |
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| Mr. Rod Winnepotonga | |
rodw@wunnumin.ca |
| Mr. Stanley Sainnawap | |
ssainnawap@wasaya.com |
| Ven. Pat Cleghorn |
Southern Region Archdeacon | pcleghorn@drytel.net |
| Rev.Richard Bruyere |
|
nancy_richard@msn.com |
| Ms. Barbara Larson | |
bjlar1@shaw.ca |
| Ms. E. Lynn MacDonad |
|
elmacdonald@mail.drytel.net |
| Ven. Gordon Swanson |
Northern Manitoba Archdeacon |
nswanson@mts.net |
| Rev. Lawrence Apetagon |
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| Mr. Ivan Moose |
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mooseman@gillamnet.com |
| Mrs. Elizabeth Beardy |
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The 2008 version of the Constitution and Canons are now available.
Diocesan Synod Office
The Synod Office is open Monday through Friday from 8 am to noon each day.
It is located at 915 Ottawa St., Keewatin, ON.
Staff
| Bishop’s Secretary | Mrs. Janet Shodin | dioceseofkeewatin@shaw.ca |
| Bookkeeper | Mrs. Bev Ollenberger | accountingdok@shaw.ca |
| Archivist | Mrs. Janet Shodin |
archivesdok@shaw.ca |
| Communications | Ms. Fiona Brownlee | keewatincomm@shaw.ca |
| Congregation Development | Mr. Michael Kurek |
outreachdok@shaw.ca |
Search Requests
Online forms are available for baptismal, confirmation, marriage and burial certificate requests. Please see www.dioceseofkeewatin.ca/searches
Clothing Depot
The Clothing Depot is run from 10 am to 4 pm Monday through Fridays in the basement of the Synod Office. Ms. Renee Peterson coordinates the Clothing Depot. The depot offers the chance to recycle good and gently used clothing to those who need them. The clothes are offered for sale at the depot and sometimes are shipped to communities in northern Ontario or northern Manitoba when there is a need for them. Good, gently used clothes can be dropped off during the hours that depot is open. The entrance to the depot is around the west side of the building and visitors are more than welcome.
