St. Edmund's : Today & Yesterday

Welcome to the Roman Catholic Parish of St. Edmund of Canterbury! Our motto is "Love God, love neighbor, daily".

St. Edmund's Parish is known for its friendly atmosphere and numerous social and charitable groups such as Catholic Women's League, Legion of Mary, Justice, Development and Peace, Youth Group, Faith First for children (including the beautiful Our Father sang by the children every Sunday during Mass), Ministry of Community, Executives Available?, Meditation groups, Social Action, Parish Pantry, and Children and Adult Choir.

Our many community events include Visiting Speakers, Suppers, Wine Tasting Soirees, BBQs, Bridge Parties, Bake Sales, Movie Nights, Trips to Special Events, Advent Wreath Workshop, Christmas Carolling, Youth Enactment of The Way of the Cross on Good Friday and Nativity Play at Christmas, Gently Used Toy Sale, Christmas collections for Baskets and Presents, and Food Drives and Clothing Distribution?. St. Edmund's is known for its generosity in fund-raising campaigns supporting many charities, both local and international. Our parish is twinned with St. Martin de Porres Parish in Pucalpa, Peru.

Our Interesting and Amusing History:

Our dynamic parish was founded in 1956. The church was constructed in 1959-1960 at the corner of Beaconsfield Blvd. and St. Charles Blvd. in Beaconsfield, Quebec. The church dedication was presided over by Cardinal Leger and Fr. Mchanon.

For most of the 1960's a bus service, underwritten by the parish, brought parishioners to Mass from Pointe-Claire and Beaurepaire on Sundays.

In 1961 there was $31,000 in the Building Fund, $10,000 of which was raised by the Ladies' Guild.

In 1962 the parish priest threatened to lock the doors to the church once Mass had started, because so many people were coming late!

Late in the 60's "the Hatless Brigade" was admonished in the parish bulletin and reminded that St. Paul made it clear in his letter to the Corinthians that women must wear hats in the House of God when at prayer!

In 1969 the crucifix was stolen from the church, leading to the locking of the doors at 6 p.m.

In 1972 The Pillars Trust Fund was established by Bishop Leonard Crowley to help finance various organizations and projects that are part of the English- speaking community. St. Edmund's parishioners are noted for their generosity to this annual campaign.

In establishing the 1975 budget, the Wardens and Pastor came to the conclusion that the sale of the land to the north of the church, purchased in 1962, was the only solution to the church's financial woes.

In April 1976, approximately 1000 pounds of glass was collected by the parish and smashed into barrels by the Youth group as part of the West Island glass drive organized by S.T.O.P.

In January 1978 the Catholic Women's League was established in the parish, continuing and broadening the efforts of the Ladies' Guild.

In May 1979 the Parish council made a unanimous decision to set up a refugee committee in hopes of adopting a family. Parishioners pledged $35,000 to the project. The first family was to arrive in September, and a home for 9 people was needed. A second family from Laos was accepted from immigration in November.

In December 1982, 1746 votes were cast to elect two new wardens.

In 1990 the Church's sound system was overhauled so that the output had a more natural sound. The pastor noted, however, that the INPUT was as good as ever!.

In 1998, during the Ice Storm, the church was without electrical power for more than a week, but all Masses were held as scheduled.

In 2001 the pastor established the tradition of serving Irish Coffee after the St. Patrick's Sunday Mass for those who skipped the parade!

In 2002 St. Edmund's was the distribution base for the billeting of young people from all over the world on their way to Toronto for World Youth Day.

St. Edmund 's was asked to be one of the first parishes in Montreal to introduce the Faith First program, helping parents to share their faith with their children, and having Children's Liturgy of the Word at weekend Masses.

In 2005 the Justice, Development and Peace Committee completed the process of twinning St. Edmund's with the parish of St. Martin de Porres in Pucalpa, Peru. In addition to exchanging photos, parish banners, and stories of parish life, the children of each parish sent drawings to each other, and the parishes promised to pray for each other. St. Edmund's has organized fund-raising to help with special projects like a clinic, health procedures, and scholarships for those in need. The pastor of St. Martin's came to say Mass at St. Edmund's and share some stories about life in Pucalpa.

In 2006, another milestone was celebrated: the 50th anniversary of the Parish of St. Edmund's! The Way of the Cross and Baptism of Christ were unearthed from storage, lovingly restored, and replaced in the church in time for the special day.

In 2009 the Memories Charity Auction, a huge undertaking, was held to raise funds for Suitcases for Africa and Panama Health Project. It raised over?$10,000 for the worthy causes and a great time was had by one and all!

In 2010 a beautiful mural depicting our Canadian Saints was painted in the entry hall of the Rectory.