What's Going On? Pastor Brady's Farewell

Hey! Pastor Brady here!

My four-year internship at Mountainview Church is coming to a close at the end of August so this is probably the last one of these I’ll be writing for you all. I wanted to start by sharing the exciting news that I’ve accepted a call to First CRC in Barrie, On as Co-Pastor! My work will start there in September.

I made this announcement from the platform a few Sundays ago, but I thought it would be worthwhile to share it here as well and ensure that everyone is accurately informed.

Graduation

I was blessed to be able to celebrate my graduation from the Master of Divinity program from Calvin Theological Seminary back on May 16. I had to miss the All Ontario Youth Convention, but it was great to have Shannon, Madelyn, and my parents there to support me!

I am still completing my final two courses this summer, so my degree isn’t quite complete yet, but graduation was a celebration, nonetheless.

Now that I’ve accepted a provisional call to First CRC in Barrie, I know that my ordination exam will happen in Classis Toronto at their fall meeting at which point, Lord willing, I will become ordained as a Minister of the Word.

Farewells

Though I am still around for the rest of the summer, May and June have been full of farewell celebrations. We had our final Youth@Mountainview gathering on May 31 which was graciously hosted by Dave and Kari DeGraaf. They had planned a scavenger hunt in the woods where we had to locate nine pictures of my face that had been stuck to trees each with a letter that eventually spelt “Go With God”. A beautiful farewell message from the Youth and the volunteers.

The youth also had the opportunity to write cards for me to share a memory and offer prayers and encouragement. All of which I’ve kept!

The staff at Mountainview also threw a farewell barbecue where everyone had a chance to share some words with me. I don’t have a photo from this event to share, but it was an emotional evening for me. When I was asked to make a short speech, I could barely scrape together the words, “I don’t think I could express how grateful I am.” Their parting gift to me was a beautiful piece of artwork by Floyd Elzinga.

On June 7th Mountainview hosted a farewell service for Shannon and I. It was such a blessing to us both to hear from Amber, Jolene, Greg, and Spencer and especially to receive prayer and the laying on of hands from so many people who have played an important role in our lives.

Additionally, Shannon and I were blown away by the love and support that we received through the many cards and the thoughtful and generous gifts that came along with them!

Reflections

I’d like to end this blog post looking back on our time together these past four years. Our three daughters were all born and baptized as part of this community.

Preaching has quickly become one of my favourite parts of ministry. I really feel as though I’ve grown in this area over the past four years and have been encouraged by many of you about the way that God has gifted me to preach. I am grateful to be able to continue to serve God in this area, even if it won’t be at Mountainview anymore.

I had the pleasure and privilege of planning and preaching a sermon series on Jonah, one on Daniel, and a Lent series titled, “Who is This?”

We had the honour of hosting Youth Talks for the Youth of Classis Niagara in December of 2025.

In 2023 when the All Ontario Youth Convention was cancelled, we hosted our own local version that saw multiple churches from around Classis Niagara attend. We donated all of the money we made from registration back to the AOYC.

One of the events that I think I’ll miss the most will be Youth Camping which served as a kick-off for Youth@Mountainview the past four years.

I always loved preaching around the campfire on Sunday morning and singing worship songs together accompanied by a bluetooth speaker.

Every year at Youth Camping we stayed up late in order to host the “Annual Pastor Brady Memorial Invitational Darts Tournament Classic”. The name was a work in progress, but you get the idea.

Of course, SERVE and AOYC were annual highlights for me. I think being a part of the host team for SERVE Niagara in 2025 was the most memorable for me. Our youth really showed themselves as leaders. Encouraging their peers in their SERVE work but also through the way that they worshipped God and treated each other with love.

Here’s a photo of us visiting The Bridge in Niagara Falls.

I want to encourage you all to be empowered by the Holy Spirit to glorify God in prayer and worship, grow in relationship with God and each other, and go, sharing Christ’s love in words and actions.

We will forever be grateful for our time at Mountainview Church. We have felt so loved, supported, and encouraged. We have been built up in our faith and have had the opportunity to help build you up in yours. We will always be part of the Mountainview Family.

In Christ,

Pastor Brady, Shannon, Esther, Aleida, and Madelyn

Karin TerpstraJune 25, 2026