Our History

History of the First Baptist Church of Smoky Lake
Our church history began with a visit! Mrs. Kate
Jarema of Smoky Lake was visiting her sister in Edmonton in 1944 when she met Pastor
Roman Horban. In response to her invitation, he came to Smoky
Lake and held a gospel meeting in a home. That summer Roman and
his wife Jean held meetings in the school house in Smoky Lake.
Five converts were baptized in White Earth River, including Kate
and her brother Tom Halisky.
Later the same year Lucille Shurstanko and Vera
Musikoff arrived as missionaries. They did house-to-house
visitation and held Vacation Bible Schools from Thorhild to
Ashmont under the auspices of the Slavic Gospel Association.
Kate's young daughter Stella accepted Christ during this time,
and became a missionary in Quito, Ecuador.
Lucille married John Kushnerik in 1945 and the
two held meetings in homes and country schools, conducted youth
and children's meetings and visited homes and hospitals.
The Kushneriks wanted to build a chapel in Smoky
Lake, but because of opposition to the gospel, could not obtain
land. In 1947 Kate's husband Joe invited them to build on his
property on the south edge of town, which they did.
The next project was a summer Bible camp. They
rented property at Hanmore Lake and held the first camp in 1949
in very primitive conditions. Later the congregation was able to
purchase the property, and Pioneer Bible Camp has developed into
an amazing facility now 70 years old (in 2019).
When the Kushneriks left in 1955, Bill
Kapitaniuk ministered for a year, followed by Bill and Mary
Danko. Early in 1961
a member of the church bought a lot in Smoky Lake and
transferred the title to the Slavic Gospel Association. Building
commenced immediately, with the generous help of believers near
and far, and by summer the new church was ready.
Other pastors eventually followed the Dankos.
The next step was affiliation with a denomination. This happened
in 1978 when the Smoky Lake Evangelical Church, as it had been
called, was accepted as an affiliated church with the North
American Baptist Conference. That same year the church renamed
itself "First Baptist Church" and welcomed its first NAB pastor.
On August 4, 2019 the First Baptist Church of
Smoky Lake celebrated the 75th anniversary of the Gospel coming
to Smoky Lake, and the 20th anniversary of the
ministry of their Pastor Keith Axford and his wife Helen.
Sources:
-
A research paper
by Herb Bachler, former FBCSL pastor, written around 1990
-
Memories of church pioneer Lucille Kushnerik shared in 2014
Author: Sharon Pillips
History of the NABC
Started by an immigrant missionary, meeting spiritual and physical needs, adapting to a changing world, the NAB Conference of churches has a rich history that reveals God at work and a future rooted deeply in His truth, mercy, mission and power.
Consider these key events:
- 1843: New Country – New Life • Immigrant Konrad Fleischmann (pictured to the right) baptizes five new believers to start The German Church of the Lord that Meets on Poplar Street in Philadelphia, Penn.
- 1851: Four Churches Band Together • Believing they can accomplish more together, four German Baptist churches assemble for the first German Baptist Conference. See a list of our oldest active churches.
- 1858: Training Center Becomes Reality • The first assembly’s dream to prepare men and women for effective ministry is realized by launching Rochester Theological (now Sioux Falls) Seminary.
- 1882: Overseas Outreach Initiated • Emma Rauschenbusch is appointed to India – the first overseas missionary.
- 1940s: Transition to English • A 1919 vision of English as the primary language is realized.
- 2009: Moving Forward Together – Laser-like focus is established as conference leaders zero in on three key initiatives: leadership development, ministry multiplication, and the best cared for missionaries in the world. Announcement of a new website and logo at Triennial.
Because of the commitment, dedication and sacrifice of our founding church leaders and those who followed, the NAB Conference has grown into a family of churches representing many cultures and heritages throughout Canada, the United States and around the world. Let’s be inspired by God’s work in our history and courageously follow Him into the future together.