Presbyterianism in Summerside 1853—2003 
     
    
   
   
    
     dent of Wedgewood Manor, Summerside. 
     
    

    
     The Women’s Rights Movement gained momentum 
     
     during the 19705 and 19805 within the congregation. 
     
     Following the early lead of church pioneer, Dolly G. Mat- 
     
     thew, the women of the congregation were further mo— 
     
     tivated to seek positions as Members of Kirk Session. 
     
     The first women to be elected to Kirk Session were 
     
     Lucy Bishop and Nancy Paynter (now Nancy Harvey) in 
     
     1977. 
     
    

    
     On another related issue, the Presbyterian Synod 
     
     of the Atlantic Provinces met at Summerside to dis- 
     
     cuss the ordination of women to the Presbyterian min— 
     
     istry. Not all ministers or members of the congrega— 
     
     tions were in favour. After much debate and lobbying a 
     
     crucial vote was taken. Consequently, women now play 
     
     a key role in both the administration and ministry of 
     
     Summerside Presbyterian Church. 
     
    

    
     Beginning in the 19705, the congregation of 
     
     Summerside Presbyterian Church recognized a press- 
     
     ing need for the church’s involvement in the world refu— 
     
     gee crisis. Between 1979 and 2002 four church-spon— 
     
     sored refugee projects were initiated. 
     
    

    
     In 1979 the Vietnamese refugee family of Hoang 
     
     Minh Le, his wife, Thuy, their daughter, Jennifer, and 
     
     their son, Jeffrey (who was born after their arrival in 
     
     Summerside), were sponsored by Summerside Pres- 
     
     byterian Church. They settled in Summerside and now 
     
     operate Minh-Wang Family Restaurant specializing in 
     
     Chinese cuisine. The sponsorship of this family was 
     
     the church’s greatest mission project and received no 
     
     assistance from Immigration Canada. The church pro- 
     
     vided a place to live, food, and total care for this family 
     
    
   
   
    
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