History

The Church of God of Prophecy in Ottawa was founded on July 15.1978, by two beloved sisters, Diana Holder, formally Diana Dobson, and Carolyn Wright, formally Carolyn Wallace. Carolyn Wallace migrated to Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, in September 1975. Occasionally, she took the bus from Ottawa to Toronto to attend Pape Ave Church of God of Prophecy. After Diana Dobson migrated to Ottawa in June 1976, she and Carolyn Wright continued to visit Pape Ave Church of God of Prophecy.

While attending the church in Toronto, Bishop Hubert Martin and Bishop A.R.  Morrison advised Carolyn Wallace and Diana Dobson to attend Montreal West Church of God of Prophecy, a closer local church. They attended the church in Montreal and expressed to Pastor Aston Cole the vision to start a local church in Ottawa. Pastor Cole agreed to arrange a meeting with them and Bishop Van DeVenter, the Overseer for the Church of God of Prophecy in Eastern Canada, on his next visit to Montreal. 

On one of their visits to Montreal, Diana Dobson, Carolyn Wallace, and Juliet Mendez, a member of the Church of God who migrated to Canada, spoke to Bishop Van DeVenter about the vision for a local church in Ottawa. His advice and encouragement were greatly appreciated.   With his blessings, they embarked upon a journey to make the vision God had given them reality.

In 1977, Diana Dobson and Carolyn Wallace attended the New Testament Church of God in Ottawa frequently. During their visits, they spoke with other Church of God of Prophecy members who migrated from Jamaica. They had weekly prayer meetings in their home and the late Jarius Miller’s home, who moved to the city from Montreal to join the new mission. They were steadfast and passionate about the work of God by going from house to house, on the bus, and in any public space where they were permitted to hand out gospel tracks.

In the latter part of 1978 and early 1979, church services were held at the YWCA/YMCA on Argyle Street, and after that, they gathered at the Connaught Public School gymnasium at 1149 Gladstone Ave for services. Bishop Hubert Martin and Bishop A.R. Morrison drove from Toronto to Ottawa to help with the groundbreaking work and preached during the services. Pastor Aston Cole would drive to Ottawa from Montreal to assist when Bishop Hubert Martin and Bishop A.R. Morrison were unavailable. Diana Dobson moderated and preached when the pastors were not available.

The Official Opening Service of the Church of God of Prophecy  in Ottawa was held on July 15, 1979, at the Connaught Public School Gymnasium. Bishop Hubert Martin and Bishop A.R.  Morrison moderated it. Pastor Sigismund Morrison and his family were in attendance. Sigismund Morrison was appointed the local church pastor. He started his tenure as Pastor in 1980.

Two members were baptized, Carmen Campbell and Beatrice, and given the Right Hand of Fellowship, a covenanted ceremony to become Church of God of Prophecy members. Other candidates were taken into the church as members. Together, more than ten members were present to form the new church.

As a result of the work done by Diana Dobson and Carolyn Wallace, the church was officially moved to 41 Rosemount Avenue, Ottawa,  Ontario, with the following members: Juliet Mendez, the late Jarius Miller, Jennifer Anderson, Una Taylor, Beatrice, Carmen Campbell, Janet Francis, Millicent Gorden, Anita, Colton Brown, Steven Romer, Monique Romer, and Yvonne Miller. Other fellow laborers, Janet Sewell and the late Vashtie Reid, were very instrumental in the early work of the church. These hard-working people built on the foundation of Jesus Christ to create a vibrant community of believers.

These faithful pioneers of the work in Ottawa are confident of this one thing: God, who began the work in them, will continue to perform it until the day of Jesus’s return. They were very instrumental in the life of the first youth baptized in the church, Pastor Carlton Foster, who became a beneficiary of their work.