Padstow Pioneer Community Members Remembered at Cemetery Service

On a sunny hillside south of the historic Rochfort Bridge near Mayerthorpe, in Lac Ste. Anne County, Bishop Stephen London, accompanied by RJ Chambers, office administrator, Diocese of Edmonton; and Janette Chambers, office administrator, St. Timothy’s and St. Margaret's, Edmonton; led a Remembrance Service, on July 27, for those interred at Padstow Cemetery.

Located in the center of four quarters of land farmed by the family of Wyatt and Coreen Soroka and their four children, Padstow Cemetery is all that remains of an Anglican churchyard that once included a log church built by pioneers and consecrated for worship in 1913. A plaque in the church honoured six settlers who had been killed in action during World War One (1914 to 1918).

The church was dismantled in 1960, and use of the cemetery was discontinued. In the ensuing years, it had become overgrown with brush.

Then, two years ago, Wyatt Soroka who knew of the cemetery’s existence, located several headstones amongst a forest of trees.

“Two years ago, Wyatt cleaned out the forest to find the graves,” said Wendy Soroka, Wyatt’s mom.

“When his skid steer pulled out a tree, roots and all, out came a pillow gravestone for Arthur (Art) Robert Arnold, Northumberland Regiment, March 31, 1941.”

Wendy reached out to RJ Chambers at the Synod Office to see if he had information that could help the Soroka family identify the graves.

Wendy and Joe had formed a volunteer group of friends and volunteers to restore and maintain the cemetery and they wanted to mark each grave with a white cross.

Fortunately, Chambers was able to provide a copy of the Register of Burials that was kept on file at the Synod Office. (The original burial register is kept at the Provincial Archives.)

The local committee hopes to one day be able to replace the temporary grave markers donated by Park Memorial Funeral Home with permanent markers.

At the Service of Remembrance, Bishop London said a prayer for each of the 23 people who were identified as buried in Padstow Cemetery.

The Diocese of Edmonton owns the cemetery and it is accessible to the public in a fenced-off area along Township Road 564 (Padstow Road). To the best of Chambers' knowledge, the Edmonton diocese owns 26 cemeteries and 4 additional memorial properties.

Read more about the Padstow Ceremony restoration in a story by Brad Quarin, editor of the Mayerthorpe Freelancer

Photos: Janette Chambers, Fran Marion