Oral history is focused on your own stories, thoughts, and perspectives. Don’t worry about “talking too much,” and take the time you need to reflect!

Use these suggested questions to guide the stories you tell, but feel free to address other topics or include other information you think might be valuable.

1. Please begin by stating your name and location or church association.
2. Answer as many of the questions below as you like. Provide specific dates when possible.

• Did you have a faith background growing up? How did you get connected with Christianity and the church?
• In what church(es) or denomination(s) did you grow up, if any? What do you recall about your first church? Please state the years in which you attended.
• To what church(es) and denomination(s) did you belong as an adult? Why? Please describe your experiences. Please state the years in which you participated in each church/denomination.
• Did you attend any associational or denominational meetings as a child or adult? What were those like? Are there any moments or debates that you remember? What happened?
• What recollections do you have about church or denominational leaders during your lifetime?
• Who were major individuals that influenced your faith? Please state and spell their names and say more about their influence on you.
• How has your faith changed over the years? Can you describe any key moments/experiences in your faith journey?
• In what ways were church services and activities different in your early experiences from how they are today? How, in your experience, has church and denominational life changed during your lifetime?
• What roles were available for women, people of colour, or other minorities in church and denominational life? Did you note any discrimination against these or other groups? Did you note any changes in attitudes or actions toward these or other groups?
• What is your current church like? How are you involved there?
• What is/was your connection to the Baptist tradition? What does being a Baptist mean to you?
• What other important information from your own experience do you want to make sure future generations know?

Submit Your Story

Ready to submit your story? Click below to be redirected to our submission form. You will need your recording in an audio-only format, and you may also wish to find a picture of yourself to include!

President of Acadia Divinity College; Dean of Theology at Acadia University; Director of Andrew D. MacRae Centre for Christian Faith and Culture. Interviewed 1/13/2022 by Hannah Roberts (58:51).

Content summary: Faith background; Central Baptist Church (Sunday School, Pioneer Girls, Christmas pageants, care by community, clergy); Baptism; Getting involved in children’s and youth ministry; Journey into full-time ministry and study at Acadia Divinity College; Challenges for women pursuing ministry; Discussions at Oasis; History of racism and colonization; Efforts needed to address diversity and reconciliation in churches and at ADC; Personal travel and missions trips; Living in the UK and observing churches close; Church decline in Atlantic Canada; Effects of COVID-19 pandemic; The challenge for churches to respond to cultural shifts; Involvement in CBAC and with Baptist Union of Great Britain (Evangelism Commission of the Eastern Valley Association, Faith and Unity Executive, delegate to Baptist World Alliance); Comparing opportunities available for her in UK vs. Atlantic Canada; Baptist identity and distinctives; Addressing future listeners

Location tags: Central United Baptist Church, Saint John, NB; Acadia Divinity College, Wolfville, NS

Featured on podcast

Former Associate Pastor at First Baptist Truro, NS. Interviewed 3/30/2022 by Hannah Roberts (34:24).

Content summary: Faith background; Education at Acadia Divinity College (issue of women seeking ordination, college leadership, serving at First Baptist Dartmouth, early distance learning, colleagues, ministry placements); Candidating on PEI; First Baptist Truro (music, leadership, services, congregation, boards, relationship to Atlantic Baptist Fellowship, personal ministry focus); Moderator of Colchester-Pictou Association; Influences from time in the CBAC; Mentorship from senior pastor at First Baptist Truro; Noticing racially divided congregations

Location tags: Acadia Divinity College, Wolfville, NS; First Baptist Church, Truro, NS; First Baptist Dartmouth

Featured on podcast

Deacon at Morristown Baptist Church, Morristown, NS. Submitted to project 12/31/2021 (17:29).

Content summary: Early faith experiences; Joining Morristown Baptist Church; Serving as a deacon; Family involvement at church; LGBT experience; Son’s personal statement

Location tags: Morristown Baptist Church, Morristown, NS

Moderator of the African United Baptist Association; Deacon at St. Thomas Baptist Church, North Preston, NS. Interviewed 10/22/2021 by Ginny Wilmhoff (36:34).

Content summary: Coming to faith; Role models; St. Thomas Baptist Church (church name change, baptisms, Harvest Sunday, music, COVID-19 pandemic); Community perceptions of church; Personal role in church; Youth ministry; Personal faith journey; Serving in various roles (moderator of AUBA, deacon, youth counsellor, Sunday School teacher); Baptist identity

Location tags: St. Thomas Baptist Church, North Preston, NS

Featured on podcast

Former Deacon at First Baptist Church, Halifax, NS. Interviewed 11/5/2021 by Ginny Wilmhoff (42:45).

Content summary: Faith background; First Baptist Church Halifax (history, characteristics, music, sermons, congregation); Baptism; Experience of Sunday School; Personal faith journey; Baptist distinctives; Personal study; First Baptist leadership and changes over time; LGBT inclusiveness; Comparing First Baptist identity with other Baptist churches; Interest in university student outreach; Value of religion and changing role of religion in society; Serving as a deacon at First Baptist; How faith informed his work as a surgeon; Christian identity and relationship with Baptist identity (including reputation of American Southern Baptists)

Location tags: First Baptist Church, Halifax, NS

Featured on podcast

Member and Church Historian at New Horizons Baptist Church, Halifax, NS. Interviewed 4/28/22 by Hannah Roberts (41:45).

Content summary: Involvement at New Horizons Baptist Church; Early church experiences; Personal connection with church; Church events and activities; 190^th anniversary celebration; Working as church historian; Church name change; Church work in the area of racial discrimination; Building renovation; Women leaders; Personal faith experiences; Faith experiences in congregation; Baptist identity; Current church direction; History of the church

Location tags: New Horizons Baptist Church, Halifax, NS.

Attends Port Williams United Baptist Church; Retired minister who served several Baptist churches including First Baptist Moncton and First Baptist Truro. Interviewed 2/25/2022 by Hannah Roberts (27:18).

Content summary: Faith background and attending Belmont United Baptist Church; Education; Serving at several Baptist churches; Serving as a chaplain at Acadia University; Deciding to join the United church; Serving at First Baptist Truro and eventual resignation; Attending Port Williams United Baptist Church

Location tags: First Baptist Church, Truro, NS

Featured on podcast

Member of Wolfville Baptist Church, Wolfville, NS; Graduate of Acadia Divinity College; Masters in Counselling Student at Acadia University. Interviewed 10/15/2021 by Ginny Wilmhoff (21:41).

Content summary: Moving to Canada; Faith background; Korean Presbyterian church; Choosing a Baptist seminary; Egalitarianism; Baptist theology and identity; Acadia Divinity College chapel; Wolfville Baptist Church (worship style, diversity, accessibility, and Christian Education board); Key moments for personal faith and journey into ministry; Diversity and ordination of women

Location tags: Acadia Divinity College, Wolfville, NS; Wolfville Baptist Church, Wolfville, NS

Featured on podcast

President Emeritus of Acadia Divinity College; Former Executive Minister of the Convention of Atlantic Baptist Churches; Member of Kentville Baptist Church in Nova Scotia. Interviewed 1/13/2022 by Hannah Roberts (37:55).

Content summary: Middlefield Baptist Church (earliest experiences, services); Personal faith journey; Studying at Acadia Divinity College; Observing church renewal and growth in the Maritimes in the late 1970s; Influential people; Support for women in ministry; Serving in the Convention of Atlantic Baptist Churches; Serving as President of Acadia Divinity College; Changes at the college (distance education, updating building, theological education model, impact in the Convention); Work done in the areas of racism and reconciliation; College affiliation with NAIITS; Current work (college support, preaching, coaching leaders, supporting leaders affected by COVID-19 pandemic); Baptist distinctives; Family members

Location tags: Middlefield United Baptist Church, Queens County, N.S.; Acadia Divinity College, Wolfville, NS

Featured on podcast

Minister at First Baptist Church, Ottawa, ON; Former Chaplain at Mount Allison University, Sackville, NB. Interviewed 10/28/2021 by Ginny Wilmhoff (57:51).

Content summary: Faith background; Early experience at Wolfville Baptist Church; Journey into ministry; Studying at McMaster Divinity College; Early ministry experiences in Ontario; Chaplaincy at Mount Allison University and ministry to university students; First Baptist Ottawa; Baptist theology and identity; Personal faith journey; Theological diversity in Canadian Baptist churches

Location tags: Wolfville Baptist Church, Wolfville, NS; Mount Allison University, Sackville, NB

Featured on podcast

Former CEO of Canadian Baptist Ministries; Served 40 years as a Baptist missionary on five continents. Interviewed 4/29/22 by Hannah Roberts (38:23).

Content summary: Corn Hill Baptist Church (Early faith experience, baptism); Faith journey and education; Call to missions while at Highfield Baptist Church; Appointment to Canadian Baptist Ministries; Language study; Going to Angola; Support from home; Transition in missions approach; Work in Congo-DRC; Personal study in anthropology; Serving as General Secretary of CBM; Influential people; Virginia’s work; Return to Canada; Serving as Diplomatic Liaison for CBM in Ottawa; Serving as European Liaison for CBM in Slovakia; Changes in Albania; Changes in India; Changes in Bolivia; Personal faith; Baptist identity; Denominational leaders; Advantages of rural and faith-based upbringing

Location tags: Corn Hill Baptist Church, Corn Hill, NB; Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton, NB; ANGOLA; CONGO-DRC; SLOVAKIA; ALBANIA; INDIA; BOLIVIA

Featured on podcast

Past Chair of the Board of Deacons at First Baptist Church Halifax where she has been a member for 65 years; Retired social worker; Member of the Order of Canada. Interviewed 2/18/2022 by Hannah Roberts, with additional comments recorded 3/04/2022 (28:35).

Content summary: Faith background; Value of the outdoors affecting worship values; Influential Sunday School teacher; Childhood experience with advocacy; Attending Aubin Road Baptist Church in Windsor, ON; Involvement with summer camp; Education in modern languages; Attending First Baptist Church in London, ON; Exchange program to Germany with the Student Christian Movement and Evangelical Church of the Rhineland; Experience in post-war Germany; Childhood impression of the war effort; Serving with the Royal Canadian Navy in intelligence work; Attending First Baptist Church Ottawa (controversy over church organist); Attending First Baptist Church in Halifax (involvement, roles for women); Provincial work in social services and advocacy (child care housing, LGBT discrimination); Baptist identity; First Baptist Halifax through the years (current involvement, COVID-19 pandemic, roles for women, LGBT non-discrimination, facing declining numbers)

Location tags: First Baptist Church, Halifax, NS

Featured on podcast

Former Pastor of Youth and Family at Nashwaaksis Baptist Church, Fredericton, NB. Interviewed 1/13/2022 by Hannah Roberts (42:50).

Content summary: Faith background; Bridgewater United Baptist Church (Sunday School, characteristics, services, music); Education and path into ministry; Relationships and support between churches in the CBAC; Experiences at Oasis, Tidal Impact, and Springforth; Influential people; Nashwaaksis Baptist Church (worship style, congregation, music); Comparing CBAC and CBWC (baptism and membership, church networks); Changing attitudes and availability of roles for women; Diversity, reconciliation, and racism; Major issues in youth ministry (technology, intergenerational connection, LGBT experience); Summer camp ministry at Green Hill Lake Camp

Location tags: Bridgewater United Baptist Church, Bridgewater, NS; Nashwaaksis Baptist Church, Fredericton, NB; Green Hill Lake Camp, Greenhill, NB

Featured on podcast

Pastor Emeritus at First Baptist Church, New Glasgow, N.S. Interviewed 5/2/22 by Hannah Roberts (29:51).

Content summary: Early life; Serving as Senior Pastor at First Baptist Church New Glasgow; Experience at Kingston Bible College; Baptism; Ordination in Advent church in Simonds, NB; Experience at Acadia Divinity College; Influential people; Personal ministry experiences; Changes over time (church services, worship practices, Baptist culture); Addressing presence of minorities and women leaders in churches; Baptist identity; Personal faith

Location tags: First Baptist Church, New Glasgow, NS; Kingston Bible College Academy, Kingston, NS; Acadia Divinity College, Wolfville, NS

Former CBM missionary to India and community health consultant; Member of Middleton Baptist Church, Middleton, NS. Interviewed 1/14/2022 by Hannah Roberts (39:13).

Content summary: Faith background in both Baptist and United churches; Margaretsville Baptist Church (participation, services); Call to service in missions; Influential people; Education; Community health work in India; Becoming a community health consultant with CBM and travelling widely; Rewarding experiences in India; Participating in church in India (services, Bible study at the hospital, retreat for missionaries); Communication between India and Canada; Connections with other colleagues in India; Personal faith experiences; Working as Latin American representative after becoming community health consultant; Retirement; Considering how church is different today; Middleton Baptist Church (involvement, music, COVID-19 pandemic, ministries); Knitting for CBM’s 323 Collective

Location tags: Margaretsville Baptist Church, Margaretsville, NS; INDIA; BOLIVIA; Middleton Baptist Church, Middleton, NS

Featured on podcast

Pastor Emeritus, Bedford Baptist Church, Bedford, N.S. Interviewed 5/5/2022 by Hannah Roberts (25:23).

Content summary: Faith background; Bethel United Baptist Church (first name and building, leadership, baptisms, involvement, BYPU); Education and journey into ministry; Acadia Divinity College; Ordination process; Early ministry positions; Influences (leaders, Faith at Work movement, First Baptist Halifax); Debate around women in leadership; Changes to church over time; Involvement at Bedford Baptist Church; Baptist distinctives

Location tags: Bedford Baptist Church, Bedford, NS; Bethel United Baptist Church, Dartmouth, NS; Acadia Divinity College, Wolfville, NS

Lead Pastor at New Beginnings Ministries, Cherry Brook, NS. Interviewed 10/29/2021 by Ginny Wilmhoff (41:20).

Content summary: Faith background; Baptism; Guidance through dreams; Sensing a call; Secular work as ministry; Personal education; Moving from Nigeria to Singapore; Personal work and travel with students; Teaching philosophy and leadership studies; Serving at the International Baptist Church in Singapore; Returning to Nigeria; Journey into pastoral ministry; Choosing a Baptist seminary; Experience at Acadia Divinity College; New Beginnings Ministries (becoming pastor, church characteristics, COVID-19 pandemic); Christian identity and Baptist distinctives

Location tags: Acadia Divinity College, Wolfville, NS; New Beginnings Ministries, Cherry Brook, NS

Featured on podcast

Former Canadian Baptist missionary to India. Interviewed 4/1/2022 by Hannah Roberts (1:04:03).

Content summary: Faith background; Involvement at Sydney United Baptist Church; TUXIS movement; Acadia Divinity College; Influences towards missions; Choosing to serve in India; Missions preparation; Work in India; Sadie Cann’s work; Experiences of children at boarding school; Return to Canada and moving to Wolfville; Wolfville Baptist Church; Changes in NS culture and church culture over time; Serving in CBAC; Baptist emphases; Influential people

Location tags: Sydney United Baptist Church, Sydney, NS; Acadia Divinity College, Wolfville, NS; India; Wolfville Baptist Church, Wolfville, NS

Featured on podcast

Member of Cornerstone Baptist Church, Cornwall, PE. Interviewed 5/9/2022 by Hannah Roberts, with additional comments submitted 5/18/2022 (26:42).

Content summary: Faith background; Cornerstone Baptist Church (comparing with previous church experience, leaders, worship services, communion, volunteering, ministries); Relationship between multi-site church congregations; Alpha, baptism, and choosing membership; Attending church meetings; Faith influences; Changes in church culture over time; Roles available for women and people of culture; Significance of Baptist identity

Location tags: Cornerstone Baptist Church, Cornwall, PE

Senior Pastor of Wolfville Baptist Church, Wolfville, NS. Interviewed 10/19/2021 by Ginny Wilmhoff (1:06:05).

Content summary: Coming to faith and baptism; Early experience of Sunday School in an Atlantic Baptist church; Personal study; First Baptist Ottawa; Defining “high worship”; Issues of church membership and ecumenicism; Convention of Atlantic Baptist Churches and Atlantic Baptist Fellowship; Baptist identity and theology; Personal faith journey; Wolfville Baptist Church (history, community connections, COVID-19 pandemic, polity and leadership, diversity, outreach)

Location tags: Wolfville Baptist Church, Wolfville, NS

Registrar and Manager of Student Services at Acadia Divinity College; Lifelong member of CBAC. Interviewed 2/11/2022 by Hannah Roberts (46:58).

Content summary: Faith background; West End Baptist Church (family history and involvement, church history, characteristics, experiences as a child, clergy, sense of community, youth group); Significance of denominational identity when growing up; Education; Congregational makeup and decline at West End; Roles for women at West End; Serving through drama and music; New Minas Baptist Church (involvement, ministers); Working at Acadia Divinity College and Crandall University; Observations of students and current trends (technology, COVID-19 pandemic, challenges faced by female graduates, transitioning from traditional to new ways of ministry); Baptist heritage and openness to other denominations; Influential people

Location tags: West End Baptist Church, Halifax, NS; New Minas Baptist Church, New Minas, NS; Acadia Divinity College, Wolfville, NS; Crandall University

Featured on podcast

Church Historian, Wolfville Baptist Church, Wolfville, NS. Interviewed 11/5/2021 by Ginny Wilmhoff (58:21).

Content summary: Early faith and church experiences; Challenges as a woman pursuing ministry; Influential and supportive people; Personal research on Silas Rand; Service at Wolfville Baptist Church; Effects of COVID-19 pandemic and health challenges on personal involvement; Community and history of Wolfville Baptist; Baptist identity; Baptism at Aylesford Baptist Church; Journey into ministry and guidance through a dream; Fulfilling the call to ministry through different avenues; Forming the Invisible Disabilities Association of Canada; Working as a counsellor

Location tags: Granville Ferry United Baptist Church, Granville Ferry, NS; Berwick Baptist Church, Berwick, NS; Wolfville Baptist Church, Wolfville, NS; Port Williams United Baptist Church, Port Williams, NS; Aylesford Baptist Church, Aylesford, NS

Featured on podcast

Former Canadian Baptist Missionaries to India. Interviewed 12/15/2021 by Dr. Melody Maxwell (14:16).

Content summary: Early life and church experiences; Influential people; Hugh’s experience with Mrs. Josephine Moore; Ministry in India; Various Baptist churches attended in Atlantic Canada; Hugh’s work in India and Atlantic Canada; How church was different in the past; Attending Atlantic Baptist convention as delegates; Experience of women in leadership; Lack of diversity; Personal history and family; Hugh’s work before retirement

Location tags: Prince William United Baptist Church, Smithfield, NB; Brunswick Street Baptist Church, Fredericton, NB; INDIA

Featured on podcast

Pastor of Belmont United Baptist Church and Bedeque Baptist Church, PEI; Chief Boiler Inspector for the Government of Prince Edward Island. Interviewed 10/26/2021 by Ginny Wilmhoff (36:28).

Content summary: Coming to faith; Serving as a deacon; Alpha course; Baptism; Bedeque Baptist Church (195^th anniversary, congregation, worship style, women in ministry, LGBT experience, theology); Journey into ministry; Belmont Baptist Church (145^th anniversary, relationship with Catholic church); Ecumenicism; Serving as pastor and working as Chief Boiler Inspector; Missions trips; Influential people; Personal study; Baptist identity; Changes to personal theology (e.g. concerning women in ministry)

Location tags: Bedeque Baptist Church, Central Bedeque, PEI; Belmont Baptist Church, Miscouche, PEI

Member of Cherry Brook United Baptist Church, Cherry Brook, NS; Past Treasurer of the African United Baptist Association of Nova Scotia (1998-2008, 2010-2021). Interviewed 5/14/2022 by Hannah Roberts, with additional comments recorded 5/10/2022 (39:26).

Content summary: Faith background; Cherry Brook United Baptist Church (childhood impressions, services, preaching style, personal involvement, baptism, youth involvement, not choosing membership, the church today, leadership); Influential people; Changes and controversy related to women in leadership; Experiences of the late Rev. Tracey Grosse in ministry; Involvement with Atlantic Baptist Women; Involvement with the AUBA; Racial discrimination and efforts towards change; Baptist and denominational identity

Location tags: Cherry Brook United Baptist Church, Cherry Brook, NS

Featured on podcast