Fonds F3713 - Joyce Sasse Fonds

Joyce Sasse (b. 1940) was a United Church rural minister and an overseas missionary. She was adopted and raised on a farm-ranch in Milk River, Alberta. Sasse felt the call to rural ministry at a young age when she noticed a disconnect between the local ministers and the rural community. To become a minister she studied theology at the University of Saskatchewan and focused on rural issues and historical initiatives like the credit union movement. As a result she earned a Bachelor of Arts (1962), Bachelor of Theology (1965), Bachelor of Divinity (1968) and Master of Divinity (1987). She was ordained as a United Church minister in 1965. To broaden her experience she served as a missionary in Korea working on community development from 1967-1971. Upon her return to Canada she served as Executive Director of the YWCA. From 1974 to 1978 she worked as Saddle Bag minister in Moose Jaw Saskatchewan as part of the Division of Mission’s experimental project on rural ministry. From her ordination to her retirement in 1998, Sasse served at the following charges: Morse/Chaplain (1965-1967), Moose Jaw (1974-1978), Tugaske (1978-1986), Rockford (1986-01989), and Pincher Creek (1989-1996). To further rural ministry during her career, Sasse worked with the International Rural Church Association, helped found the Canadian Rural Church Network and contributed significantly to the Centre for Rural Community Leadership and Ministry (CiRCLe-M). Upon retirement in 1998, Sasse continued to support rural ministry through speaking engagements and publications. More recently she has been working on the Annora Brown Art and Life Legacy Project.