Mabel Adeline (Addie) Aylestock (1909-1998)
Mabel Adeline (Addie) Aylestock was the first Black woman to be ordained in Canada, becoming a minister of the British Methodist Episcopal Church. Raised in the rural community of Glen Allan, Ontario, located northwest of Kitchener, in her early teens, Aylestock left home for Toronto. She supported herself through domestic work – the only form of employment open
to Black women at the time. Aylestock attended Toronto Bible College (TBC), while taking courses at the British Methodist Episcopal (BME) Church. By 1944, she had become a BME deaconess. In 1945, she graduated from TBC. As a deaconess, she was a spiritual and community leader, as there were no higher spiritual positions open to women at that time. Over time, she worked in the communities of Halifax, Africville (north of Halifax), Montréal, Toronto and Owen Sound. In the early 1950s, BME amended its rules to permit the ordination of women. Aylestock was ordained in 1951, becoming the first ordained woman minister of the BME and the first Black Canadian woman minister in Canada. From 1958 to 1982, Aylestock also served as general secretary of the BME Conference.
(Sources: The Canadian Encyclopedia)
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