History of St. Saviour's,
Nelson, British Columbia
The HighWay

The first edition of the HighWay was published in December 1956. The Rev. Canon W. J. Silverwood, the rector at the Church of the Redeemer in Nelson, was the publisher with editorial assistance by Miss Leslie Holmes of the Nelson Daily News.

Dean Leadbeater placed a part of the Memorial Hall office at their disposal for reception and distribution of the paper. The first edition was sent to Bishop P. R. Beattie in Kelowna with the note, “We wait the verdict of all…with fear and trembling.”

The first edition (Vol. 1, No. 1) was a 4-page Quarterly that was sold for 5 cents a copy. The inaugural début included an editorial entitled, “Our Success Depends Upon Your Co-operation,”

The following quote is from the first editorial:
“In introducing this publication to the Diocese of Kootenay, we feel that we can confidently regard its future with both hope and faith. Resurgent Anglicanism in our times has encouraged us all, and in the Diocese the advance has been no less apparent than elsewhere in Canada.

Our Diocese is large. Excepting the vast Diocese of Yukon, it covers more square miles than other Diocese in the ecclesiastical province of British Columbia. But more than this, it is large in a broader sense, in its rich tradition of Church works and its men of faith. When we remember our great missionaries of the past like the intrepid Father Pat; the clergymen who followed labouring under adverse conditions in a pioneer land; our past Bishops of Kootenay, the late Right Reverend Alexander John Doull, the Most Reverend Walter Robert Adams, and the late Right Reverend Frederick Patrick Clark, whom memory holds so freshly dear, we realize the tremendous effort they expended in building the Diocese. Nor do we forget those of the laity who toiled patiently, steadfastly in their purpose. Men and women of the same Christian principle and virtue are with us today.

We hope that with the co-operation of the clergy and an interested readership, we will prove worthy of past endeavours and that we will be able to contribute, in whatever small measure, to greater vitality in Diocesan Church Life. Suggestions for future issues of The HighWay and general news items will be welcomed. It is recommended that parishes or deaneries appoint correspondents so that all parts of the Diocese will be adequately represented.”

The headlines were as follows: “Wells Campaign Launched at Kelowna in Effort to Double Parish Budget,” “Unity is Objective in Fruitvale-Salmo,” “New Parish for Keremeos,” Dean Leadbeater Goes to Calgary,” “Steady Growth in Caslegar Parish,” and “Kokanee Parish Starts Vicarge Fund.”

In addition to parish news, the following note on brevity in journalism read: “John Jones struck a match to see if there was any gasoline in his tank. There was. Age 65.”

Canon Silverwood personally wrote to 12 national and provincial business and industrial concerns asking for $25 advertisements in each quarterly issue. Of these, three contracted to advertise in the first issue Cominco, Eaton’s and the Canadian Bank of Commerce.

The total number of Anglican families registered in the Kootenay Diocese was 6,576. 6000 copies were printed, bundled and mailed to the clergy for distribution. Parishes were responsible for remittances at reduced rates. Remittance requested was a total of $133. Advertising brought in $85 for a total of $218 revenue. After printing and mailing costs of $170, a profit of $48 was expected. This was indeed a successful first issue. The hope was that they would receive more revenue from advertising in the future.

In April 1960 a Special Jubilee Issue was published, which chronicled the entire history of all the parishes in the Diocese of Kootenay from 1900 to 1960.

In 2007, after 50 years of publishing, The HighWay has come full circle. It is again being produced out of the same office at St. Saviour’s Memorial Hall as it was at its inception. However, now it's a section of the Anglican Journal, which is distributed throughout Canada with the respective diocesan newspaper.

Reflecting the times, the size of the HighWay has more than doubled and is in colour. The number of advertisers remains the same but the income from advertising is less. The cost per issue is sevenfold, and the distribution is half what it was. Nevertheless, the philosophy has remained the same as in 1956: to put a copy of the newspaper in the hands of every Anglican in the Diocese.

The new editor of The HighWay in 2007 is Jonn Lavinnder. He is also Webmaster of www.stsavioursnelson.org and secretary for the St. Saviour’s Pro-Cathedral and the Kokanee Region, since May 2006.