In 1914 Mr. Ed Hume, who taught Sunday School in the Presbyterian Church in the Dalesboro district, heard of revival meetings being held at Trossachs, Saskatchewan. Mr. Hume decided to attend these meetings and invited his Sunday School class to accompany him there. Miss Eva Eaton (Sargent) was one of the young people who travelled by train to Weyburn, where they were met by some of the camp members who drove them out to the camp site.
The camp meetings were held in a large tent and those attending brought their own tents in which to stay. This visit to Trossachs Gospel Camp instigated the meetings that were held later in the Carlyle Rural area. These meetings, held in the early 1920’s were conducted by Rev. and Mrs. M.V. Brown with the assistance of Mr. and Mrs. Hart, Mr. J. Erickson and Mr and Mrs. D. Aikenhead, all lay ministers of the Trossachs Gospel Camp Meeting Association. During the summer months the meetings were held in a large tent which was first pitched about six miles north of Carlyle in a well shaded poplar bluff, to which some 100 people attended, coming from about a 20 mile radius. When cold weather came the meetings were held in a restored log house about 3 miles east of town.
As time went by the need for a permanent church building became apparent. Rev. M.V. Brown, pastor of the church obtained lumber prices from various BC lumber companies and a car load of lumber was ordered. This load of lumber arrived in the fall of 1928, at a cost of $600.00. This load consisted of the needed lumber to construct the church building. Mr. Howard Eaton brought his team from town, and he and Rev. Brown hauled the lumber to the church site. The construction of the church building started in the spring of 1929 with Mr. Dave Moore as chief carpenter and with volunteer labor. The finishing material was supplied by Mr. Mills of Mills Lumber Yard of Carlyle.
The official opening of the Carlyle Full Gospel Church was held on October 29, 1929. This day was remembered by the 10-12 inch snow fall that occurred that day, and the snow stayed for the rest of the winter.
In 1944 the congregation obtained a house from Mr. E.E. Graham, which would be moved to the church site to be used as the pastor’s residence. With this building costing $275.00 and another $100.00 to construct the basement, Mrs. Howard Eaton proceeded to raise the needed funds.
She had read in the Reader’s Digest that Bing Crosby was donating his royalties made from his recording of, Silent Night, to charity, so Mrs. Eaton wrote to Bing Crosby, telling him of the project and of the need of funds to accomplish this. To this request Bing Crosby sent a donation of $25.00. The basement was finished in the fall of 1944 and in the early spring of 1945 while Rev. Fred Assman was pastor of the church. The two-story house was moved to its present site (now the site of the new sanctuary). The work was once again done with Volunteer Labor along with the use of two tractors driven by two sons of Mr. Archie Young.
In the early years the church was lit with gas lights but they changed to electric lights in 1945 when the manse was also wired. This volunteer work was done by Mr. E.E. Graham and Mr. G. Sargent.
In 1957 while Rev. P.S. Smith was pastoring the church, the growing Sunday School made it necessary for added classroom space. As a result the congregation decided that a full size basement was needed. This new basement was built by Mr. Nels Steffenson and his crew. Mr. Albert Wharren and his crew and equipment were volunteered and the church was moved onto the basement. The new entrance was added to the front of the church as well as the classrooms in the basement.
On September 3, 1979 the Carlyle Full Gospel Church celebrated its 50th Anniversary with a Church Homecoming. This happy and memorial day saw many former members and pastors returning to Carlyle and taking part in the special services at the church.
In the fall of 1983, renovations were done to the front of the church, with the entrance being moved to ground level and a new brickfront added to the exterior.
In September, 1984, the congregation felt they were outgrowing the old church building so a committee of the church board was set up to gather proposals and blueprints for a new church building.
In August 1985, the church congregation voted unanimously to enter into a building program to construct a new 60x60 church building to be attached to the existing building. September 1985, the church manse was donated to New Hope Christian Centre at Kisbey, the following month the basement was dug and construction began.
From October of 1985 to November of 1986, the construction continued with a lot of dedication and volunteer work from the men of the congregation. The contract work was done to complete the finishing work. In November 1986 the new sanctuary was ready for use, and everything was going as planned. In February 1987, the fellowship hall and kitchen facilities were completed and put to use. The new church facilities were dedicated during special services with the Moderator of ACOP, Wes Schindle. This dedication took place in September 1987.
With these new facilities the church was able to host District Conference, Crusades, Women’s Seminars, church weddings funerals, Annual Senior Suppers, successful Youth Rallies, children’s VBS and Kids Club. In 1988, Pastor and Sister Young desired to share their years of Ministry in Mexico by taking a group of 22 church members on a mission trip to Pueblo, Mexico.
The church has been involved in various outreaches over the years and supported overseas missions. CFG has had a heart for the youth of our community and over the years has run youth group weekly as well as organized special events like the Hocus Pick Concert in the late 90’s. They have also brought in Street Invaders and Life Force teams. In 2006 the church hosted the Heaven’s Gates and Hell’s Flames production which was a huge success. In 2014 the church put on an Easter Productions, Glorious Day, which was also a great success. The church has also been very involved in Trossachs Camp since its beginning.
As a church we celebrate the past and all that God has done, and we are looking forward now to the new things the future holds. We are thankful to be part of the Community of Carlyle and invite the community to come celebrate with us October 25-27th.
