Saint Sava Church, Edmonton
Saint Sava Church, Edmonton
Address: 12904 112 St NW Edmonton AB, T5E 6 J1
Website: www.svetisavaedmonton.com
Email: serbianchurchedm@gmail.com
Fr. Desimir Vidovic
Phone number: (587) 988-5512
Email: desimir2222@gmail.com
Fr. Desimir Vidovic was born on May 29, 1968 in Grabovica, to father Milorad and mother Stana (née Stevanovic). He completed elementary school in Grabovica in 1983. He graduated from the Holy Three Hierarchs Theological Seminary in Krka Monastery in 1988, and then went to the army. He enrolled in the Faculty of Theology in Belgrade in 1990. After the outbreak of war in his homeland, in 1992, he left the faculty and went to the war-torn area. He was appointed a religious teacher in 2002 at the elementary school in Cajnice. He was ordained to the rank of deacon in Kraljevo on February 28, 1998. He was ordained to the rank of priest in the Stubal Monastery near Kraljevo on March 1, 1998. The holy rite of ordination was performed by Bishop Nikanor. From September 1999 to June 2001, he was a parish priest in Rumenka near Novi Sad. In September 2001, he was appointed priest at the Holy Archangel Michael Church in Vancouver. He was the editor of the newspaper Srpske zemlje for many years. At the consecration of the new church on March 5, 2005, he was awarded the title of protonamesnik by Bishop Longin. Bishop Georgije of Canada promoted him to the rank of protopresbyter on November 21, 2010. He is married to Jelena, née Stjepic, from Visegrad. They have three children: Mihailo, Anastasija, and Gavrilo.
Fr. Njegos Perkovic
Email: fr.njegos@gmail.com
Father Njegos was born in Ilidza near Sarajevo on January 13, 1993, to father Zeljko and mother Sretena. He has been in Canada with his family since 1998. With the blessing of His Grace Bishop Georgije of Canada, he enrolled in the Saint Peter of Dabar-Bosnia Theological Seminary in Foca in 2008. With the blessing of Bishop Georgije, he enrolled in studies at the Saint Sava Faculty of Theology in Libertyville in 2013 and graduated in 2017. With the blessing of His Grace Bishop Longin of Midwestern America, he enrolled in master's studies at St. Vladimir's University in New York in 2019 and graduated in 2021. His Grace Bishop Irinej of Eastern America ordained him to the rank of presbyter on October 15, 2023, at the Holy Archangel Gabriel (New Marcha) Monastery in Richfield, Ohio.
History
The first Serbs began arriving in Canada and Alberta in the mid-19th century. In the early and mid-20th century, some of them worked in the mines west of Edmonton, in Edson, Cadomin, Mercoal, and Jasper. The descendants of these settlers to these areas still live in Edmonton and other cities in Alberta. In October 1937, a branch of the Serbian National Alliance was registered in Cadomin, Alberta, under the name Srpski radnik (Serbian Worker).
The Saint Sava Church and School Congregation in Edmonton was founded in 1973. The church was built and consecrated on September 13, 1987. In 1996, a beautiful hall and parish house were erected on the church property. The woodcut iconostasis was made by Nikola Ribic from Banja Luka in 2013. The donor of the iconostasis is Mr. Milan Mrdjenovic. The choir, the stand for the icon, and the Tomb of Christ are the work of the same artist and the donor is the Kosovka Devojka Circle of Serbian Sisters from Edmonton. The frescoes in the church were painted by icon painters: Dragan and Nemanja Marunic and Dragan Stankovic from Belgrade. The frescoes were consecrated by His Holiness Patriarch Irinej on Saturday June 13, 2015. The godmother at the consecration of the frescoes was Rosa Banovic.
The Church and School Congregation includes the following sub-organizations: the Kosovka Devojka Circle of Serbian Sisters, the Jovan Jovanovic Zmaj Serbian School, and the Opanak Folklore Group. The Vuk Karadzic Library is located in the church hall.
