Administrative History

The New Hope Christian Church in Delta, BC—formerly known as Kennedy Heights Mennonite Brethren Church and Strawberry Hill Mennonite Brethren Church—originated in 1944. A number of members of the Vancouver Mennonite Brethren and other Fraser Valley churches had set up residence in Surrey and Delta Municipal Districts. They met in the Kennedy Hall in order to organize a new congregation. Rev. David Quapp chaired the first meeting on November 11, 1944. The first moderator selected was Rev. Gerhard Wiens, assistant moderator Rev. J.J. Neufeld, secretary Henry D. Friesen, treasurer David J. Peters, and deacon H.D. Goertz.

The congregation joined the BC Conference in 1945, as well as purchased the Kennedy Hall, including 5 acres of land. The original building was added to many times and then, in 1970, a new building was erected on the same property. The sanctuary seated about 400 people.

Kennedy Heights Mennonite Brethren Church aimed to minister to the needs of the community, and over time, its membership grew more diverse in nature and English replaced German as the language of worship.

In the spring 2003, the Cornerstone Community Church in Surrey merged with members of Kennedy Heights Mennonite Brethren Church to form New Hope Christian Church. The new congregation met in the former Kennedy Heights sanctuary and was led by Cornerstone's pastor, Michael Brown. The congregation is a member of the British Columbia Conference of the Mennonite Brethren Churches.

In 2010, the congregation had 167 members and an average attendance of 107.

Leaders of the church have included G. Wiens, A.H. Toews, Paul Wiebe, Walter Epp, John Goertz, N. Willems, Rudy Janzen, Calvin Buhler (1981–1985), Art Willms (1986–1988), Henry Wiebe (1988–1991), Ken Dyck (1992–1996), Rey Nickel (1997–2000), Warren Schmidt (2001–2003), Michael Brown (2003–2005?), Chris Arney (2006?–2015?), Wayne Driedger (2016– ).