The congregation of a historic Finnish-language community church in the Thunder Bay area will celebrate a centennial in the new year.
It was in April of 1917 when a group of Finnish settlers in Lappe began keeping official records of devotional meetings that were rotated among the homes of different families. The following year, they started plans for Lappe Lutheran Church, and it hosted its first service in 1921.
Long-time Lappe-area resident Agnes Huotari chairs the 100th anniversary committee. She has researched the history of the church, which she believes is the oldest Finnish heritage church still in existence in the area.
Huotari said that although there have been numerous renovations and additions over the decades, a unique octagonal window installed in the front wall during construction around 1920 remains in place.
Services were originally conducted exclusively in the Finnish language, but as the original settlers passed on and Lappe's demographics changed, English-language services were gradually introduced. "With more English-speaking people coming into the area, and the pastors being bilingual, that's why it changed" to services in both languages, she said.
Although English-language services eventually took prominence, Finnish-language services are still conducted today on special occasions, such as on this New Year's Day, the first Sunday of 2017.
"There's going to be one this weekend to begin the 100th year anniversary. A pastor from the city will be speaking in Finnish and then our pastor will be speaking in English," Huotari said.
Many churches in the Thunder Bay area have struggled to stay open in recent years because attendance has fallen off, but Lappe Lutheran remains an important part of the community.
Huotari said even though regular attendance has fallen off, a core group of something less than 50 members participate in worship services weekly, "and if there is something special, then more people come."
She also believes there is potential for growth, with new families having established homes in Lappe and the surrounding area. "We're hoping for a little bit of re-growth. It would be really great if some of the younger people would be coming in."
Lappe Lutheran is located on Highway 589 at the intersection with Kam Current Road in Gorham Township.
