MEMBERS OF THE BOARD ELECTED - Part 01

MEMBERS OF THE BOARD ELECTED:

Kosta R. Andrews, Spiro Saunders, Van Petroff, Michael Neshevich, Louis George, Steve Mandel, Chris Neshkov, Peter Stoyanoff, Tommy Trentos, Kosta Constantin, George Dronoff, Chris Vasilevich, Todor Christoff, Steve Todorovich, John Givens, James Saunders, Louis Pandel and Reverend Atanas Popov.

The new board of directors held its first meeting on June 11, 1964. The roll call was called off the newly elected directors by Chris Neshkov and showed 14 present, 3 absent.

The directors appointed the following members to be the officers of the corporation:

President: K. R. Andrews Secretary-treasurer: Michael Neshevich First vice-president: Elia George Second vice-president: Steve Mandel Secretary: Tommy Trentos With the above appointments, the meeting of the board of directors adjourned.

From the executive committee meeting, held on June 11, 1964, the minutes read:

Following the meeting of the directors, Mr. Van Petroff was elected to remain chairman for the executive committee meeting. The roll call showed 25 present, 16 absent.

At this meeting, a letter of resignation from Don Pappas was read and discussed. In the opinion of the committee, there was no valid reason for the secretary to resign. The lawyer of the church, Bill Andrews, was to write a letter to Mr. Pappas, accepting his resignation. Mr. Andrews was also to write a letter to the secretary of the church to release the minute books and other documents belonging to the church. A committee was elected to visit Mr. Pappas. The following were the elected delegates; Chris Neshkov, George Dronoff, and the Very Rev. Kiril Stoyanovski.

Mr. Spiro Saunders made a motion that we appoint a control committee to check the books and make a report to the members at the general membership meeting. George Dronoff , Peter Stoyanoff, John Givens and Gus Constantine were asked to act as the control committee.

At the financial meeting, held on June 18, 1964, I, John Givens, was elected chairman for the meeting. A letter from Michael Tallin's lawyer was read. The context of the letter was a demand by Mr. Tallin for repayment of the loan that he had made to the church. A copy of one of the loan certificates was read by Van Petroff. The loans certificate stated that, until January 1st, 1970, only interest is to be paid on the loan. The committee decided to ignore Mr. Tallin's demand. Kosta Andrews read a copy of a letter to be sent to the bank, authorizing the bank manager to release Messrs., Paul Bassil, Nikola George, Spiro Bassil, Michael Tallin and Don Pappas as guarantors. This event took place long after the church received the loan from the bank. By the time the above members were released from their commitment to the bank, the roof of the church and hall was partially installed.

Mr. Steve Chreston asked what was our objective. Mr. Andrews estimated that we were about $30,000.00 short towards putting the roof on both the church and the hall. A motion by Spiro Saunders proposed to elect a committee to collect money at the church picnic. The following were elected; I, John Givens, Spiro Saunders, James Saunders, Chris Neshkov and Jim Trentos. It was decided that the Very Rev. Kiril Stoyanovski make an appeal for donations at the picnic. It was decided to involve more people in our campaign for donations. The following groups of members were elected:

1. Mike Neshevich with Steve Todorovski, and Tome Dimchevski

2. Van Petroff with George Dronoff, Steve Mandel and Louis Pando.

3. Elia George and Jim Saunders.

4. Chris Vasilevich and Spiro Saunders.

5. Kotse Harboff and Spiro Talevski.

6. Gus Constantine and Angie Costantine.

7. Loui Opasinis and Louie Missios.

8. Paul Mangos, Tom Trentos, Alex Brown and John Givens.

9. James Trentos and Paul Constantin.

10. Chris Bozanin, Chris Neshkov and Alec Shappas.

11. Steve Neshevich and Mike Givens.

12. Josef Petkovski and Cane Neshovski.

On July 23, 1964, a special meeting of the executive committee was held. The problem of getting a mortgage was discussed and the preparation for the St. Clement of Ohrid banquet was also discussed. It was mentioned that the altar and icons might delay the finishing of the church. Very Rev. Kiril Stoyanovski assured the committee that the altar and icons would be ready when required. The building committee was given the right to; 1. Put the roof on the church. 2. Put all exterior doors and windows and glass to be ordered right away. 3. Have the steps in front of the church and hall completed. 4. As soon as the building is finished have the grounds around the church landscaped and 5. To have the heating put in.

On August 6, 1964, the financial committee held its meeting. At this meeting, Louis Opashinov was authorized to start work on the plumbing and heating. Mr. Opashinov predicted that both the plumbing and heating would be completed in two months. Mr.

Chris Neshkov made a motion to set a definite date for the completion of the church and hall. Mr. Stoyanoff stated that he would not commit himself because he was not getting full cooperation from the rest of the building committee, especially Peter Elias.

On August 19, 1964, the executive committee held its meeting. Elia George reported on the progress of the building of the church and hall. He reported that all material had been ordered and all contractors had signed except for glass for the windows, plasterers and a ceiling floor tile. Mr. Elia George predicted that the hall would be ready for business near the end of December, 1964.

Immediately following a special meeting of the directors, a regular executive meeting was held on September 2, 1964. William Andrews reported on a mortgage offered by a company and asked the board of directors to vote approval of the mortgage. After a brief discussion, the directors voted all in favour of accepting the mortgage. Thanks to the efforts by Mr. Peter Stoyanoff, the mortgage was arranged. Peter Stoyanoff reported on the progress of the building of the church and parish hall. He reported that the only contracts not yet signed were those of the curved ceiling for the church, and the floor tiles for the parish hall. The ladies' auxiliary had offered to undertake to decorate one meeting room, completely. It was also decided that all the future meetings were to be held at the church. Mr. Andrews promised to have some of the 1,000 chairs he had pledged ready for our next meeting, which was to be held at the church. The question of the icons and iconostas was raised. Mr. Simo Temovski presented references as a professional on icons and offered his services. Mr. Stoyanoff said that in his correspondence with Dedo Vladika (meaning Archbishop of Macedonia Dositej), he was authorized tо make the icons himself. Mr. Stoyanoff said that he would donate the icons to Dedo Vladika who, in return, would donate them to the church. After a considerable discussion on the subject, there was a motion to send an official letter to Dedo Vladika and ask him to give us the correct information regarding the icons, and to inquire as to what exactly Dedo Vladika had pledged and would donate to our church.

At the executive meeting, held on October 22, 1964, the roll call stated 23 present, 18 absent.

Louie George announced that Kosta Andrews had just given his cheque, in the amount of $3,200, for the chairs. The tables were ordered and ready to be assembled by volunteers. Tommy Trentos, Chris Neshkov, I, John Givens, and Paul Mangos volunteered to assist Louis Missios to assemble the tables on Saturday, October 24.

Tommy Trentos reported that the Trsyansko Drushtvo wanted to hold a dance on November 7th, 1964. He also reported that there were two more Trsyanski weddings on November 22 and November 28 and that they wanted to hold them in our church hall.

The rental prices were set for dances and concerts:

Saturdays $350, Fridays $250, other days $200.

Dances for the associations $100.

For any Macedonian's private events $175 dollars.

Kosta Andrews reported that a catering company, where Van Petroff was part owner, requested renting a small room in the basement for storage. The rental fee was to be $300 annually.

Peter Stoyanoff reported on the progress of the church completion. He presented contracts of $7,500.00 and $9,500.00 to complete the ceiling of the church. Peter Elias offered to make the ceiling for $6,000.00. Mr. Stoyanoff and Mr. Peter Elias disagreed on the type of curved ceiling and the price of the ceiling of the church. The final decision was postponed for a later date.

On Sunday, November 1, 1964, several members of the executive committee held a brief meeting. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss a very serious problem regarding the hall terrace. Water from the rain was seeping through the terrace floor. A new leak-proof floor was ordered, at a cost of $4,000.00.

We had a problem with the immigration department regarding the visa for our new priest, Atanas Popov. The question was raised as to whether he was coming to Canada as a visitor or immigrant.

At the meeting, held on November 12, 1964, it was reported that a special visa had been granted to the Very Rev. Popov to immigrate to Canada.

The question of the church ceiling was discussed and exhausted. Mr. Stoyanoff presented an unfinished model of his proposed curved ceiling. He insisted on his type of ceiling; a ceiling curved at the sides and flat in the middle. The majority wanted a ceiling completely curved. At this meeting, it was agreed to accept the contract that Mr.

Stoyanoff proposed for $7,500.00 . Next on the agenda was the moving of the church services. In order to have church services in the hall, we needed heat, a public liability insurance, and permission from the building inspector. Mr. Paul Constandinou said the public liability insurance was already arranged. Steve Todorovski, Kotse Harbov, Tom Trentos and Paul Constandinou volunteered to move the icons from the Thorncliffe Park Plaza to our parish hall on Saturday, November 7, 1964. The heating system was scheduled to be turned on, on Friday, November 6th and with that, the parish hall was open for business.

November 27, 1964 Executive meeting.

At this meeting it was reported, "As an information purpose, Mr. Paul Bassil instructed all the members of the executive committee that if the Royal Bank of Canada or any other bank or mortgage company calls on them to ask questions about the church, we should all reply to them that we are one hundred per cent behind this church." Cornerstone Very Rev. Kiril Stoyanovski, Your Worship the mayor of Leaside, Miss Beth Nealson, controller William Archer, Mr. President, members of the church executive board, brother and sister Macedonians, friends and gentlemen of the press, radio and TV.

On behalf of the executive board and all the members of our congregation, I wish to express our sincere thanks and welcome you to this historic gathering.

On April the seventh of last year, in the presence of many people and at this very same place, we performed a religious ceremony to bless the newly purchased land for the building of our first Macedonian Orthodox church “Saint Clement of Ohrid”, in Toronto.

Since that memorable day and up to now, in less than one year in the name of our church congregation we are here again, but this time with much greater happiness and joy to lay the foundation cornerstone of our new Macedonian church.

The past year may have been the same as any other year, but to us, the Macedonians in Toronto and in Canada as a whole, this was a year of great historic importance. It was important because during the past year the church executive board and all the members of our congregation were working day and night to carefully plan and prepare for this great day! We prepared plans, obtained a building permit, raised the necessary finances and finalized all other requirements for the church and the most important achievement of all is the successful enlistment of the moral and material support of all the Macedonian people of Toronto and the rest of Canada.

On March first of this year a general membership meeting was held for the express purpose of deciding on the day to start building our church. And, on the basis of that momentous decision, we are here today to lay the foundation of our church. Here, in the name of our Patron Saint, Clement of Ohrid, and the Holy Synod of our mother church, the Macedonian Orthodox Church, we are performing the laying of the foundation of our church under which foundation we are placing in a strong box a document with all the names of our members and the many contributors and supporters.

Let this very day, April fifth, 1964, be a day of commemoration to our forefathers, fathers, mothers, brothers and sisters, and even the sons and daughters, who gave their lives fighting for the liberation of our people and for the re-establishment of our Macedonian church.

It is always important to keep in mind that all the sacrifices made by the dead and by the living should not be forgotten. Your direct support and co-operation to see and to have the Macedonian church and cultural centre fully and beautifully completed will be your expressions of unforgetfulness. When finally the beautiful project is completed it will not only serve the religious and spiritual needs of our people, but it will also serve the cultural requirements of the future generations to come. The Macedonian culture will undoubtedly enrich the Canadian culture as a whole.

At this time I want to describe briefly the setting of our beautiful church and hall. Our church and hall will be built of the most beautiful and expensive material available. Our church and halls will be of over two thousand sitting capacity. The Altar of our church, made by Macedonian craftsmen, will come directly from Macedonia. The art gallery below the church will display Macedonian history and culture of the past. The gymnasium below the main hall will at all times be available to the youth. The school rooms will be fully equipped to teach our children the Macedonian language, traditions, culture, and religion. The meeting rooms will be at all times available not only to the members of the congregation, but to all other Macedonians and Canadian benefit societies and groups who wish to use them. The main hall will have a sitting capacity of over one thousand. And its large stage at the north side of it will conveniently accommodate a large group of performers and, last but not least, the kitchens will be equipped with the most modern equipment available to serve large weddings and parties.

The front lawns of the building will be cultivated into attractive landscapes with ever green grass always to remind you of spring and with beautiful flower beds placed proportionally and with many young trees planted in array. Behind the building there will be a well spaced parking lot for one hundred and fifty cars. Next to the mezzanine on the east side of the hall there will be a well constructed terrace overlooking the four-hundred and fifty acres of Don Mills Park, which is now being developed. And yes do not forget that across the road from our church, the township of Leaside will develop a most modern and up to date park where we and our children will use its facilities to play and enjoy its comforts.

I hope I have succeeded in describing our beautiful church in the Thorncliffe Park settings.

I thank you all for your patience.

Secretary: Don Pappa Гoвoр на Дон Паппас Гoвoр на првиoт секретар на цркoвната oпштина, Дон Паппас пo пoвoд, пoставувањетo на камен - темелник на нашата прва Македoнска правoславна црква "Свети Климент Oхридски" вo Тoрoнтo, Канада.

Тoрoнтo Април 5, 1964 Мнoгу пoчитуван oтец Кирил Стoјанoвски, пoчитуван Градoначалник на Lеаsidе, Bеth Nеаlson, кoнтрoлор William Archer, гoспoдине Претседателе и членoви на цркoвната управа, браќа и сестри Македoнци, пријатели и гoспoда на печатoт, радиo и ТВ.

Вo име на Извршиoт oдбoр и сите членoви на нашата oпштина, сакам да ја изразам мoјата искрена благoдарнoст и да ви пoсакам дoбрoдoјдoвте на oвoј истoриски сoбир. На 7 Април минатата гoдина, вo присуствo на гoлем брoј луѓе на oва истoтo местo беше oдржана свечена верска церемoнија да гo благoслoвиме нoвo купенoтo земјиште за изградба на нашата прва Македoнска црква "Свети Климент Oхридски" вo Тoрoнтo.

Oд тoј незабoравен ден дo денес измина пoмалку oд една гoдина. Вo иметo на нашата цркoвна oпштина ние сме тука пoвтoрнo, нo oвoј пат сo мнoгу пoгoлема cреќа и радoст да ги пoставиме темелите, камен-темелник на нашата нoва Македoнска црква. Изминатата гoдина мoжеби беше иста какo и cекoја друга гoдина, но за нас Македoнците вo Тoрoнтo и Канада, вo целина беше гoдина сo пoгoлема истoриска важнoст. Минатата гoдина е важна, бидејќи, вo текoт на изминатата гoдина цркoвниoт Управен oдбoр и сите членoви на нашата oпштина рабoтевме дење и нoќе, внимателнo планиравме да се пoдгoтвиме за oвoј гoлем ден! Ние ги пoдгoтвивме планoвите, дoбивме градежна дoзвoла, ги oбезбедивме пoтребните финансиски средства, ги завршивме сите неoпхoдни рабoти за црквата.

А она штo е најважнo, ја дoбивме вашата мoрална и материјална пoткрепа oд целиoт Македoнски нарoд вo Тoрoнтo и пoширoкo вo Канада. На 1 Март oваа гoдина се oдржа генералнoтo членскo сoбрание сo една цел да се oдреди денoт за запoчнување сo изградбата на нашата црква. Тука, вo иметo на нашиoт патрoн Свети Климент Oхридски и Светиoт Архиерејски Синoд на нашата мајка црква, Македoнската Правoславна Црква. Ние ги пoставуваме темелите на нашата црква пoд кoи темели ние гo пoставуваме вo цврста кутија дoкументoт сo сите имиња на нашите членoви и мнoгубрoјните дарители и пoддржувачи. Нека денешниoт ден Април 5ти, 1964, биде ден на кoмемoрација на нашите предци, таткoвци, мајки, и сестри, па дури и синoви и ќерки, кoи ги дадoа свoите живoти бoрејќи се за oслoбодувањетo на нашиoт нарoд и oбнoвувањетo на нашата Македoнска црква.

Затoа секoгаш е важнo да се има вo предвид дека сите жртви направени oд страна на загинатите и oд страна на живите не треба да бидат забoравени. Вашата директна пoдршка и сoрабoтка да се види дека имаме Македoнска црква и културен центар целoснo и убавo завршен ќе oстави незабoравни сеќавања. Кoга прекрасниoт прoект конечно ќе се заврши, не самo штo ќе пoслужи за религиoзни и духoвните пoтреби на нашиoт нарoд, нo истo така ќе пoслужи за културните пoтреби на идните генерации штo дoаѓаат. Македoнската култура несoмненo ќе ја збoгати Канадската култура вo целина. А сега би сакал да ја oпишам вo краткo нашата убава црква и сала. Нашата црква и сала ќе биде изградена сo најубавите и најскапи материјали штo ги имаме на распoлагање. Капацитетoт на нашата црква и сала ќе биде пoвеќе oд две илјади седишта. Олтарoт на нашата црква ќе биде израбoтен oд Македoнски занаетчии кoи ќе дoјдат директнo oд Македoнија. Уметничката галерија пoд црквата ќе ја прикаже Македoнската истoрија и култура oд минатoтo.

Гимназијата пoд главната сала ќе биде дoстапна за младите. Шкoлските прoстoрии ќе бидат целoснo oпремени за да мoжат нашите деца да учат на македoнски јазик за нашата традиција, култура и религија. Прoстoриите за сoстанoци ќе бидат вo секoе време oтвoрени не самo за членoвите на цркoвната oпштина, туку и за сите дoбрoтвoрни друштва и групи кoи сакаат да ги кoристат oвие прoстoрии. Главната сала ќе има капацитет од пoвеќе oд илјада седишта, а гoлемата сцена на северната страна ќе биде удoбна за пoгoлема група на изведувачи. Пoследнo, нo и не најмалку важнo се кујните кoи ќе бидат oпремени сo најcoвремена oпрема на распoлагање и ќе служи за гoлеми свадби и забави. Зелените ледини на предниoт дел oд зградата ќе бидат израбoтени вo атрактивен пејсаж сo зеленилo, секoј пат да ве пoтсетува на прoлетта и сo мнoгу убави цвеќиња и мнoгу млади дрвца засадени вo низа. 3ад зградата ќе има дoбрo организиран паркинг за стoипедесет автомобили. Веднаш до мезанинот на истoчната страна на зградата ќе биде изградена тераса која ќе гледа кoн четиристoтиниипедесет хектари "Don Мills Park" кoј е сега вo изградба. И да не забoравите, преку патoт oд нашата црква oпштината Lеаsidе ќе изгради нoви и мoдерни паркoви, кои ние и нашите деца ќе можеме да ги кoристиме за игра и да уживаме вo нивната удoбнoст. Се надевам дека успеав да ви ја опишам нашата убава црква која се наоѓа вo oкoлината на "Тhorncliff Park".

Ви благoдарам на сите за Вашетo трпение.

Секретар, Дoн Паппас How much did the building of St. Clement of Ohrid Church cost?

During the construction of the St. Clement of Ohrid Church, my primary responsibility, as a member of the board, was to gather all the delivery slips of all of the building materials delivered to the building site, making sure that the delivery slips were signed by a member of the building committee.

During the construction, the supply companies were offering a 10% discount if paid on time, that is, within 15 days from the deliveries. Therefore, I would gather all the delivery slips and the amounts charged, calculate the discounts for each company and then submit them to the treasurer, showing the total amount, the discount and the final amount to be paid. This was usually done at weekly meetings of the board.

Many times the building committee submitted delivery bills without the receiver's signature, and I had no choice but to refuse to accept them and because of that, there were many complaints to my father about me. Some people were saying that I did not trust them. However, soon enough, the building committee got used to signing the delivery slips before submitting them.

By using this method, through the construction of the church, I was able to keep records of companies, invoice numbers, amounts charged, discounts and the final amount paid by the church committee. These are my records that I kept during the construction of our church.

1) George Christie (architect) church plans $3500.00

2) Jas Mckay and Sons escavating $1620.75

3) Deciantis Rase Ltd. footings $2400.00

4) Paul Julkunen soil survey $2490.00

5) York Steel Construction construction steel erected $48820.29

6) Toronto City Hall building permit $660.00

7) Artex Construction Ltd. precast slabs $19350.00

8) L. Schleret $549.25

9) Midtown Reproduction Services extra plans $70.75

10) Town of Leaside sure canal, water connection etc. $1526.82

11) River court Memorials cornerstone $250.00

12) Opasini Plumbing plumbing and heating $19841.40

13) Macotta Co. of Canada steel door frames $480.05

14) Diamond Clay Prod. Co. $774.58

15) Angel Stone Limited $63.26

16) G. F. Sterne and Sons $53.07

17) Canadian Crittal Metal Windows $2654.72

18) Home Lumber Co. $7058.11

19) Hardware nails, brushes etc. $38.68

20) E. Quipp & Co. Ltd. crane Services $43.74

21) Crane Services Limited $82.50

22) Tool Shack $230.00

23) T&D Contracting Co. floor concrete and stairs $14259.00

24) General Concrete Co. concrete Blocks $7630.11

25) Domtar Construction Materials bricks $7811.92

26) Laval Construction Co. main construction co./bricklayers $26977.40

27) Racket Sheet Metal Co. $847.63

28) York Block & Tile Supply $74.69

29) Carpenters $2381.73

30) Etobicoke Ironworks Ltd. $4896.65

31) Birchcliff Sheet Metal Co. ventilating fans $950.00

32) Tele-automation Sound public address system main hall $628.71

33) Rousemount Tile & Terazzo $450.00

34) Bonafide Roofing Co. all roofing $4574.00

35 Home Lathing & Insulating placing corner bits on hall $200.00

36) The Consumers Gas Co. gas supply connection $20.00

37) G. Boichevski carpentry- washrooms and kitchen $1750.00

38) Bertoia Bros. plastering- Main & under church hall $3100.00

39) The Wells Lumber Co. plywood and nails $189.71

40) Acme Crane Rentals $175.00

41) Continental Railings Co. Balcony& church mezanin railings $1006.34

42) Imperial Metal & Wood Industry steel supply for the dome $288.40

43) Tower Crane Services $64.75

44) Central Woodworking main church door $636.00

45) Dyer & Miller Bros. fire Extinguishers $119.48

46. King Tile tile on main fl. & under the church halls $5622.15

47) Canadian John Manville Co. installation of acoustic tiles $5507.00

48) Kappel & Gaspar Architect shop drawing inside church $150.00

49) Birch & Co. finishing inside the church $7664.46

50) All Risks Insurance $526.70

51) Telephone Co. temporary telephone services $65.95

52) Big John Services $245.86

53) Endy Electric Co. electrical wiring and fixture $8894.50

54) Fairbank Hardware $11.86

55) Toronto Hydro temporary service installation $217.30

56) Sayvette Hardware $11.86

57) Lansing Building Supply $48.86

58 Albion Glass Co. $3595.15

59) Exclusive Paints $29.37

60) Acadian Venetian Blinds stage curtain $305.00

61) Richarson Janson $3468.25

62) Canadian Wide Properties interest on land mortgage $2604.74

63) Canadian Insulating Co. dome insulation $250.00

64) Zenith Electric Supply church fixtures $379.65

65) Telephone Co. $115.86

66) S.T.O.P. Appliances Ld. $3285.50

67) J. Wagner Co. Ltd folding table legs and chairs $4137.50

68) National Refrigeration refrigeration equipment $513.78

69) Durable Equipment $360.00

70) Paul Konstantinu Insurance $1256.65

71) Acme Chemicals vinyl heel-proof mats $244.11

72) International Stove Equipment $220.03

73) Huntington Laboratories $200.00

74) Dust bane Products $395.42

75) Garvais Rentals $204.60

75) Hall advertisement $56.50

76) Small bills $300.00

-------------- TOTAL = $242198.31 St. Clement of Ohrid Macedonian Orthodox Church 5 year loans at 6% The following is a list of people who loaned money towards the building of St. Clement.

1) Andrews Kosta

2) Neshevich Michael

3) Todorovski Stefan

4) Andrews Sam

5) Neshkov Chris

6) Boglis Chris

7) Christoff John

8) George Elia

9) Givens John

10) Petroff Van

11) Bozanin Chris

12) Bozanin Spero

13) Vasilevich Chris

14) Constantin Gus

15) Brawn Alex

16) Bilkovski Chris

17) Tallin Michael

18) Mina James

19) Christoff Todor

20) James Thomas

21) Milosh George

22) Dronoff George

23) George Thomas

24) Triantifilous Peter

25) Constantinou Pete

26) Papalovidis Peter

27) Marangos Tom

28) Mangov Paul

29) Givens Mike

30) Pando Louis

31) Christoff Natso

32) Pandov Boris

33) Aloushev Petre

34) Theofanidis Tommy

35) Constandine Angie

36) Neshevich Steve

$12500

$5000

$1000

$1000

$1000

$1000

$1000

$ 7000

$500

$10000

$1000

$2000

$2000

$1000

$1000

$1000

$7000

$2000

$500

$2500

$1000

$1000

$1000

$200

$100

$100

$100

$100

$1000

$2000

$300

$1000

$500

$500

$500

$200

37) Tallin Alexandra

38) Evans Peter

39) Evans John

40) Evans Marline

41) Trentos James

42) Makrevski Dushan

43) Neshevich Mara

44) Trentos Tammy

45) Givens Mike

46) George Nick

47) Hunter F. Eleanor

48) Nesevich S Leffie

49) Saunders Spiro

50) Neshevich George

51) Floroff Chris

52) Kudefski Hope

53) Missios Victoria

$100

$1000

$1000

$1000

$1000

$100

$500

$100

$200

$100

$100

$100

$1000

$100

$2000

$2500

$2500

..........................

Total : $89100 Guarantors re-bank loan 1964

1) Andrews R.Kosta $10000.00 2) Peter Alousis $3000.00

3) Alousev Nick $1000.00 4) Andrews William $4000.00

5) Bozanin Spiro $3000.00 6) Chris Bozanin $2000.00

7) Bilkovski Chris $3000.00 8) Brown Alex $1000.00

9) Chreston Kosta $2000.00 10) Christoff john $1000.00

11) Constantin Gus $ 4000.00 12) Christie Ted $2000.00

13) Constantinou Paul $1000.00 14) George Dronoff $2000.00

15) Derlis Maneli $1000.00 16) Evans Chris $1000.00

17) Floros Nick $1000.00 18) Floroff Chris $2000.00

19) Georgievski Sime $1000.00 20) George Tom $3500.00

21) George Elia $7000.00 22) Gadjovich Sam $1000.00

23) Givens Mike $3000.00 24) Givens John $2000.00

25)

German M. Williams $5000.00 26) Kotsopoulos Tom $2000.00

27) Angelevski George $1000.00 28) Markulev Louis $1000.00

29) Mangos Chris $1000.00 30) Mangos Paul $1000.00

31) Mandal Steve $2000.00 32) Missios Louis $1000.00

33) Morihovitis Telly $500.00 34) Mortearroi Pete $1000.00

35) Neshkov Chris $2000.00 36) Neshevich Mike $4000.00

37) Neshevich Steve $1000.00 38) Nichopoulos S. $2000.00

39) Ntterson Peter $2000.00 40) Opashinov Louis $2000.00

41) Opasinis Thomas $1000.00 42) Opasinis S. $1000.00

43) Petroff Van $1000.00 44) Petrovski Josif $1000.00

45) Saunders James $1000.00 46) Shappas Alex $2000.00

47) Simon Spiro $1000.00 48) Stoyanoff Peter $5000.00

49) Strezos Anastas $1000.00 50) Trentos V. Tammy $1000.00

51) Trentos V. James $1000.00 52)Todorovski Atanas $1000.00

53)

Todorovski G. Steve $2000.00 54) Vasilevich Chris $2000.00

55) Flozos Tom $1000.00 TOTAL = $121000.00 The Executive Board and the Holy Synod Delegation in 1965 The St. Clement Church Executive Board of Directors, without the knowledge or approval from the Macedonian Church Holy Synod, was planning to ordain a priest in the Russian Church. They were planning to send Pop Cvetko to British Columbia, to be ordained by a Russian bishop.

In doing so, they wanted to ensure that the priest serving the St. Clement Macedonian Orthodox Church congregation was independent of the Macedonian Holy Synod, which would then defy the purpose of having a Macedonian church.

The rules laid down by the Macedonian Church were very clear; in order for a priest to serve at St. Clement, a Macedonian church, he would have be appointed and approved for that purpose by the Holy Synod in Macedonia.

To reiterate, only the Macedonian Church had the right to appoint clergy who were to serve in Macedonian churches and no one else!

What exactly was the St. Clement Church Executive Board of Directors attempting to do? One can only conclude that these people wanted our church to remain independent of the Holy Synod of the Macedonian Church. Obviously this must have been very important to the leading members of the board, to take such risks and to work so hard to achieve this.

Among the Macedonian Church delegates for the consecration of our St. Clement Church in Toronto, headed by his Eminence Dositej, Archbishop of Macedonia, and Bishop Naum. Bishop Naum was the first bishop to attend the United Macedonians Canadian Committee Ilinden celebrations held in 1962, at the same time that the Macedonian Church congregation in Toronto was being formed.

Also included in the delegation were Nestor Popovski, secretary of the Holy Synod of the Macedonian Church, Stavrofor Kiril Stojanovski and Deacon Kiril.

When the Macedonian Church delegation arrived, the church executive introduced Pop Cvetko as the priest of their choice, who was to be approved by the Holy Synod of the Macedonian Orthodox Church. This, however, was a complete surprise for the church delegates who were usually the ones who provided and approved the priests for the Macedonian churches.

Puzzled by all this, Archbishop Dositej said: “You all knew ahead of time that I and Bishop Naum were coming here for the consecration of your church, right? So why did you not wait for us to ordain him? Why did you send him to be ordained by a Russian bishop? This is unacceptable to the Holy Synod of the Macedonian Church!” Archbishop Dositej’s comments unfortunately made a sensitive situation even more sensitive and strained relations between the delegation and the church executive to a breaking point.

The next collision between the delegation and the executive took place during the presentation of the church by-laws, drafted by the Holy Synod in Skopje.

After our church in Toronto had been consecrated, anti-Synod propaganda intensified, making the situation even worse. A small group of board of directors, headed by Van Petroff, accused the delegation of stealing large sums of money donated by parishioners during the church’s consecration.

Van Petroff accused the delegation priest of having stolen a large sum (torbi polni so pari) of money. Petroff did this to deliberately discredit the church delegation in the eyes of the congregation, just before the church by-laws were presented. It was under these circumstances that the by-laws were put forward at the going away party. In spite of the accusations, however, the church delegation pushed hard for the by-laws to be accepted and signed by the church president, Kosta Andrews.

After a long and heated argument, church members, present at the meeting, forced Mr.

Andrews to accept and sign the by-laws. Mr. Andrews agreed under the condition that the by-laws be approved by the entire membership during a membership meeting, but instead of doing what he promised, Mr. Andrews decided to draft a new set of by-laws, combining existing corporate by-laws with those presented by the Holy Synod of the Macedonian Church.

After the new by-laws were drafted by Bill Andrews, our church lawyer and son of Kosta Andrews, who combined the corporate by-laws with those from the Holy Synod, the by-laws were passed onto the board of directors for review. The board of directors met a number of times to discuss and approve the new by-laws. The board was duty-bound to approve the entire by-law package before submitting it to the membership.

At the first special meeting, called specifically for that purpose, the church lawyer opened the discussion by reading a couple of articles, saying that there was no difference between the existing corporate church by-laws and those presented by the Holy Synod of the Macedonian Church. Being well-aware of the executive board’s attitude towards the Holy Synod, as a board member, I asked Bill Andrews, the lawyer, a simple question. I wanted to know on which by-laws were we going to base our discussions; on the existing corporate by-laws or the by-laws presented by the Holy Synod? Which set of by-laws would be our starting point of discussion?

Bill Andrews ignored my question and refused to answer. I was then overruled by presiding chairman, Kosta Andrews, who repeatedly insisted that I sit down. I refused and insisted that my question be answered. Unable to silence me, Bill Andrews got up and came around the tables to where I was located, threatening to physically make me sit down.

James Saunders was seated next to me and, while looking for his support, I turned to him and said: “Why aren’t you saying anything?”, but Mr. Saunders, with his hands over his face and both ankles resting on top of the table, faced me and said: “I’m not going to argue like you do, I have my own way of doing things.” Saunders kept silent and said nothing; not a word. He did not argue for or against the question at hand. While Bill Andrews was on his way towards me, Louis George got up and stopped him. George then said: “Enough! There is a civilized way to settle all this!” By addressing the board, Louis George brought the situation under control and Bill Andrews resumed his presentation, without answering my question.

During the next Board meeting, called by Bill Andrews for the same purpose, in reference to article 36, Andrews, in a letter of invitation, wrote: “Our present problem arises because of that part of paragraph 36 in the suggested by-laws from the Synod which reads as follows: ‘…these by-laws will be in force upon being approved by the Holy Episcopal Synod of the Macedonian Orthodox Church in Skopje." By making this statement, Bill Andrews made it very clear, to everyone, that the Executive Board had a problem with the Holy Episcopal Synod of the Macedonian Orthodox Church in Skopje being involved in the church.

It is also important to note that the Executive Board’s intention here was to keep the Holy Synod out of our church by suggesting that the Macedonian Church was ‘An organization outside of this country' and, most importantly, ‘which is not a member of our Church'. So, what does all of this really mean?

If our church in Toronto was not considered to be a member of the Macedonian Church family, our church could not be part of the Macedonian Church in Skopje. What kind of a church was our church and to which family of churches did it belong?

We already have two existing Macedono-Bulgarian churches in Toronto. Both St.

George and St. Cyril are under the jurisdiction of the Bulgarian Synod. Given that both of these churches were built by Macedonians and attended by a Macedonian majority, would the Bulgarian Synod have allowed a Macedonian priest, ordained by the Macedonian Church, to serve in them? The answer is, definitely not! The Bulgarian Church has the final say in the workings of those churches. The same goes for the Greek Churches…

Both the Greek and Bulgarian churches, here in Toronto, are ‘outside of their respective countries’. They have been incorporated under the same corporation laws of Ontario that apply to the Macedonian Church, yet they fully abide by the rules of their respective Synods. Why shouldn’t the Macedonian Church do the same?

The only thing that mattered to the Executive Board, it seems, was the desire to be independent and to be able to conduct church affairs without the perceived meddling of the Holy Synod of the Macedonian Orthodox Church. The executive board knew very well that every Orthodox Church in North America was under its national mother church.

That’s the way things were done. So why did the Executive Board want St. Clement, the Macedonian Orthodox Church in Toronto, to be different? Did the executive board have something else in mind? Was there a plan ‘B’ for this church?

At one point, the executive board introduced arguments regarding by-laws as applied to Macedonian Churches in Australia. Overall, the theory of separating our church from the Macedonian family of churches was promoted by Van Petroff, who, in my estimation, was the ideological leader of this anti-Synod propaganda at St. Clement Church in Toronto.

The problem, which started with the executive board’s objection of by-law article 36, in a way, strengthened our ties with the Macedonian Orthodox Church Holy Synod in Skopje and limited the board’s ability to maneuver within church affairs. However, there was still the question; “Was there a loophole, a chance that this Macedonian-built church too, may end up in somebody else’s hands like St. George and St. Cyril, the Macedono-Bulgarian churches in Toronto?” Also, did anyone at that time, or at any time, think that the anti-Macedonian propaganda was sleeping? No! Anti-Macedonian propaganda was working overtime then as it has always been, in the past and in the present!

As a member of the board, I had the opportunity to oppose these dark scenarios by exposing them, not only at board meetings, but at all church functions where members of our church gathered. I did my best to explain the situation, as I saw it, to everyone. My aim was to uncover exactly what some board members were pushing for. Unfortunately, many board members were not aware of the stakes involved in this and because of this, they were compliant, accepting what was served to them by Bill Andrews, who was using scare tactics to convince people to see things his way. One of the things he used to say was: “We can no longer say that we are a non-political organization when we do not have the power to pass our own by-laws without the approval of the Church in Skopje.” By saying that, did Andrews mean that we were going to become a “political organization” if we were to join the Macedonian Church? Did he mean that the Macedonian Church was a political organization? Well let me say this; “The Macedonian Church was or is a political organization, as much as all other Balkan national churches are here, and in the rest of the world.” Andrews was misleading the board by bringing politics into our discussions, knowing very well that no one wanted to be involved in politics. How is it possible for the Holy Synod to bring politics into our church if we are the people who submit proposals to them for approval or disapproval?