Lucille Marr ’67

NCC alumnus Lucille Marr sent us a wonderful email update on life since her days as a student at NCC:

“Pictures of the Belmont remind me of chapel and banquets in that amazing former ballroom. As a student (1963-1967) I had some idea of the history – my mother Naomi Heise Marr attended Ontario Bible School there in the 1930s, when her mother Ruth Brechbill Heise taught English there. But as a teen I was unable to fully appreciate the multiple layers of history and purpose that the Belmont held; nor could I fully absorb the spectacularly beautiful setting, or the gift that the education my sisters Connie Marr Harper and Phyllis Marr Harrison, my brother Ron Marr, and I were privileged to receive. 

“It would take volumes to fully describe where I have been and the experiences with which I have been graced since graduating from grade 13 in Canada’s Centennial year. Fifty years is a long time, but I will highlight a few things. After a brief stint at Messiah College, I returned to Ontario to complete a BA, an MA, and a PhD in history at University of Waterloo. In the midst of my studies I married Jean-Jacques Goulet and we were blessed with two children, André and Dora-Marie. 

“Since 1990 I have taught in a variety of institutions including St. Paul’s College at University of Waterloo, Conrad Grebel College, Waterloo Lutheran Seminary, Augustana University College in Alberta, and for the past decade and a half at McGill University and the Montreal School of Theology. It continues to be a real privilege to teach, to share in the complex relationship between knowledge, professor, and student that takes place in the classroom.

“My calling has also embraced pastoral ministry. In 2001 I was called from a tenured post at Augustana University College, to come to the Mennonite Fellowship of Montreal. The ten years in congregational ministry was a deep and meaningful period in my journey, both professionally and spiritually. “The focus of my ministry has shifted, and since 2013, I have served as Chaplain at The Presbyterian College, Montreal; for the past year I have also served as Academic Dean there. I continue to receive a great deal of fulfillment from teaching and working with students as chaplain and academic advisor. Some years ago I realized that all of my research and writing had been on church history, encompassing a broad swath of denominational concerns. I find teaching the theological students that come to us from a variety of denominational backgrounds Canadian Church History to be rewarding, and a high point in my academic journey.

“It has been 50 years since my NCC days – hard to believe – but I continue to be intentional about connecting with my Brethren in Christ roots through research and writing. I serve on the editorial board of Brethren in Christ History and Life, writing book reviews and publishing the occasional article in that journal. I was also honoured to be able to serve the broader Anabaptist-Mennonite community with the publication of Transforming Power of a century, featuring the work of Mennonite Central Committee in Ontario, part of which grew out of Brethren in Christ bishop Ernest Swalm’s ministry in the World Wars I and II era. Out of my research on Mennonite Central Committee has grown meaningful involvement in the Mennonite Historical Society of Canada, including a variety of publications in Journal of Mennonite Studies and Mennonite Quarterly Review.

“My journey as mother has been filled with deep meaning and beautiful relationship. My family has brought me great joy, including this stage of life as grandmother. As I write, I’m knitting another baby afghan. In the next weeks, my two year old granddaughter Elfrieda Dyck Goulet is looking forward to becoming a big sister. I look forward to our family’s love extending to embrace yet another little one.”

Lucille Marr, PhD
Chaplain/Academic Dean
The Presbyterian College, Montreal, QC