A rededication ceremony was hosted on July 22 for a cemetery with roots dating back to 1927.
“The Society of Saint John the Evangelist was founded by an Anglican priest at Cowley, England in 1866,” an Ontario Heritage Foundation sign in front of the property at 9 Sadler Dr. reads. “Bound by vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience, members of the order devote their lives to prayer and community service. The Society began its ministry in Canada in 1927 when three Cowley Fathers arrived in Emsdale to take charge of the scattered Anglican missions in Muskoka. They established a monastery in Bracebridge the following year.”
Brother James Koester, Superior of the Society of St. John the Evangelist (SSJE), says the buildings on the property served as the hub of the community.
He explains they would often travel to the mission congregations throughout Muskoka to do Sunday service.
The basement of one of the buildings housed a print shop. On top of being used to distribute magazines and newsletters, Koester says ex-convicts were brought in to learn the printing business. He says woodworking was also taught on the property. In the winter, he adds the multiple buildings also served as a place for farmhands to stay while they attended school.
Koester says during the Great Depression in the early 1930s, they sold second-hand clothing.
“This place has been transformational in the lives of many, many Anglicans across Canada,” says Koester. “I’m one of the people whose life has changed by encountering the brothers here.”
He adds they left Bracebridge in 1983 because of a decline in membership. The SSJE is now located in Boston, Massachusetts.
A dozen members are currently buried at the cemetery. However, Koester says the wood crosses marking their graves decayed over the years.
The rededication ceremony Saturday was well-attended with Bracebridge Mayor Rick Maloney, Deputy Mayor Brenda Rhodes, and Parry Sound-Muskoka MPP Graydon Smith among the attendees.
“They really were a charitable arm of Bracebridge in their day,” says Maloney.
He adds the town is considered the “heart of Muskoka” and he credits the brothers with planting the seeds for that. “I see those seeds that were planted, those charitable works, activities and the folks that are looking to make Bracebridge a better place,” continues Maloney.
“It’s absolutely wonderful to see so many people from our churches here, from the community here,” says Archbishop Anne Germond of the Dioceses of Algoma and Moosonee also attended the ceremony.
She explains community members reached out to her a few years ago about the decaying crosses. She suggested they get ahold of Koester, who is based in Boston along with other SSJE members.
“We are remembering the past,” says Germond. “The past never keeps us in the past. It always brings us to the present and the future.”
