How it all started

Our story at Bayfair started back in 1935 in the hearts of Mr. G Attrell who began, with the help of his wife and four other families, a Sunday school work in a cottage on the west side of Frenchman’s Bay. This group gave birth in later years to a small Church by the name of Dunfair Baptist Church under the leadership of Pastor Moman.

Dunfair Baptist Church prospered over the years and in October of 1956 was accepted into the Fellowship of Evangelical Baptists Churches of Canada. In 1961, a small group of people under the direction and guidance of Mr John Jamison started meeting at Bay Road School and called themselves Bay Ridges Church. In March of 1962 Mr Clifford Schenk took over the leadership of this small group and served faithfully as Lay-Pastor until 1969.

This was a busy period for the Bay Ridges Church, moving to Bayview Heights School and then into a portable building. That same year a young pastor by the name of Jack Hannah was called to lead this young church. That same year Bay Ridges was accepted into the Fellowship of Evangelical Baptist Churches of Canada.

Bayfair Baptist Church was born in 1970 with the amalgamation of Dunfair and Bay Ridges. Pastor Hannah continued as the pastor of this new church and saw it blessed by God in many ways.

Seasons of growth

Sam Martin, a new immigrant from Scotland, became the Senior Pastor. Over the following 26 years, under the leadership of Pastor Martin, the Lord blessed Bayfair Baptist Church in many ways including several building projects. Also, numerous short term mission trips were organized and completed to areas throughout the world. During this period The Arms of Jesus Children’s Mission was formed by Pastor Martin and continues to meet the needs of children throughout the world to this day.

Bayfair Daycare was incorporated and has grown through the years to be one of the region’s largest and most respected daycare facilities.

In 2003, Phil Stairs became the Interim Senior Pastor for Bayfair. He and his wife Leila were a great encouragement to so many of our members and adherents.

Dan Collison accepted the position of Senior Pastor in 2004. Pastor Dan highlighted the critical importance of outreach from the local church to the local community and also unity among the churches of Durham Region.

Brian Wardlaw accepted the position as Interim Teaching Pastor at Bayfair for a period of one year. Pastor Brian has had a long relationship with Bayfair as a missionary in the Amazon area of Brazil.

After one year serving as the Interim Teaching Pastor, Brian Wardlaw accepted the position of Lead Pastor on June 1st, 2009. Pastor Brian has many years of cross cultural training and equipping experience which significantly benefitted our children and youth ministries. Under Pastor Brian’s leadership we became a more diverse congregation with a love for the truth of God’s Word and a clearer understanding of God’s Grace and Love for mankind.

Recent memory

In 2016, Steve Mills accepted the position of Interim Senior Pastor after Pastor Brian was led back into full time Missions work. Pastor Steve faithfully ministered the Word of God each Sunday morning with a deep burden for the spiritual well-being of God’s people.

In 2017, Bayfair transitioned from a Deacon Led leadership model to an Elder Led model and are trusting in the Lord to bless His church, as the Elders seek God’s will for the next 50 years of ministry.

In May of that same year, David Carter accepted the position of Lead Pastor. Pastor David had a passion for sharing the Word of God at every opportunity and began to build relationships within the community. His expositional style of preaching placed a high priority on scripture as the ultimate source for truth. In April 2023, David Carter was called to another ministry.

In September of 2023, Carlos Paul was hired as Interim Lead Pastor ending his eight-year ministry in Zambia where he served as a chaplain and professor at the African Christian University. We are blessed to have a lead pastor who is a strong Bible teacher with a heart for evangelism. Following his time as Interim Lead Pastor, he plans to return to the mission field according to God’s leading.