Saint Sava Church, Vancouver

Mar 5, 2025 - 13:11 Updated: Sep 9, 2025 - 15:31

Saint Sava Church, Vancouver

Address: 505 East 63rd Ave. Vancouver, BC, V5X 2K3

Fr. Vuk Milisic (dean)
Parish: First Vancouver Parish
Phone: (778) 957-9991
Email: vuk_83@yahoo.com

Fr. Vuk Milisic, MA, was born on February 19, 1983 in Trebinje, where he finished the Vuk Karadzic Primary School. In 1998, with the blessing of the then Bishop of Zahumlje and Herzegovina Atanasije (Jevtic), he enrolled in the Theological Seminary of St. Peter of Cetinje in Cetinje, Montenegro, which he graduated as an excellent student. After a school year spent at the Belgrade Faculty of Theology, he went to the Orthodox Theological Faculty of St. Sava in Libertyville, Illinois, where he successfully graduated in 2008. After completing his basic studies, he went to postgraduate studies at the Faculty of the Holy Cross in Boston, as part of which he attended lectures at Harvard University. He spent the 2009/10 school year in Athens, at the Faculty of Philosophy of the University of Athens, studying the Greek language, culture and traditions of the ancient Greek people. Upon his return from Greece, he served as secretary to the Bishop of Zahumlje, Herzegovina and the Littoral. In December 2011, the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church appointed him to the position of professor at the Theological Seminary of St. Peter of Dabar-Bosnia in Foca, where he taught and served as the chief educator for the next six years. He was ordained a deacon on January 2 and a priest on February 7, 2016, by the Bishop of Zahumlje and Herzegovina Grigorije (Duric). At the personal request of the Holy Synod of Bishops, he was relieved of his duties as a professor of theology in 2018, when he became a cleric of the Diocese of Canada, where he serves as a priest in the city of Vancouver (British Columbia). Father Vuk holds a Master of Theological Sciences. He is married to his wife, Milja née Dabic, a doctor of dentistry. He is the proud father of three sons: Petar, Lazar, and Pavle.

Fr. Marko Radmanovic
Parish: Second Vancouver Parish
Phone: (604) 600-2922
Email: markoradm@yahoo.com

Fr. Marko Radmanovic was born in 1985 in Vukovar, to parents Dragan and Milena (née Radmanovic). He was ordained to the rank of deacon on the Feast of the Protection of the Most Holy Theotokos on October 14, 2011, and to the rank of priest on the Sunday of the Holy Forefathers, on the day of Saint Spyridon, December 12, 2011. His Grace Bishop of Canada Georgije ordained him, as of March 1, 2012, as a priest at the Church of Saint Sava in Vancouver. With the blessing of Bishop Georgije, he entered into the holy sacrament of marriage with his chosen one: Dragana (née Tubonjic) from Waterloo, Ontario.

History

Beginnings

According to many historical and chronicle records, the immigration of Serbs to British Columbia can be divided into several periods. The first – the beginning of immigration can be taken as the very beginning of the 20th century or the period before the First World War. This is the period when Serbs began to immigrate to the areas of British Columbia, to mining settlements and to places where there were wood processing factories. For economic and social reasons. The second – the period between the two World Wars, especially between 1926 and 1928 – for economic reasons. Also to Vancouver itself and its immediate and distant surroundings, Serbian emigration came in increasing numbers. The third – after the Second World War – political emigration. The fourth – in the early 1970s – for economic reasons. The fifth – perhaps the most numerous emigration caused by the war in the areas of the former Yugoslavia immigrated to Canada in the period from 1991 to 1999. It is estimated that during this period alone, 8,000 to 10,000 Serbs settled in Vancouver and the surrounding area.

Ever since the division of the Serbian Orthodox Church on the North American continent, there has been a pressing need to create a proper church community on the west coast of Canada. The first meeting was convened on February 23, 1969, at the Georgia Hotel in Vancouver. A self-initiated committee of a small group of Serbs, consisting of: Milos Maskovic, Dusan Maskovic, Mirko Soldat, Mihajlo Zekic, Dusko Milosevic, Dobrivoje Paunovic, and several others, agreed to schedule a public meeting for the purpose of establishing a Serbian Orthodox church with a commitment to belonging to the Serbian Patriarchate. Three important decisions were made at the meeting:

to establish a Serbian Orthodox Community in the desire to spread the Orthodox faith, through Christian love and respect for all others;
to secure a construction fund for the construction of the temple and increase the membership with full enthusiasm for the realization of the plan;
A Board of Directors of seven members with full rights was elected.

It was later decided to contact His Grace Bishop of Eastern America and Canada, Dr. Sava (Vukovic), based in Cleveland, Ohio. Before his first arrival in Vancouver, Bishop Sava addressed the Orthodox community in his correspondence: "I beg you all in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom the soul of the Serbian people is firmly bound through the merit of our Saint Sava, to care for His Church as befits those who are Christ's not only in name, but also in their lives, and to advance it with the zeal of the first Christians. May the Lord kindle in your hearts love for Him and His Church as He kindled in His companions in the village of Emmaus on the day of His Resurrection (Luke 24:32), for it is said that only those who are on fire can kindle others." Bishop Sava arrived on September 26, 1969, for a several-day visit where he served and participated in the conference of the Saint Sava Church and School Congregation. The visit was useful, contributing to the suppression and resolution of the problem of the schism that had been prevailing in North America for seven years. In the meantime, until the community purchased a building, Fr. Krsto Rikic served the Holy Liturgy in the Anglican Church building at St. George on 2950 Laurel Street in Vancouver and the community prepared lunches (agape) after prayer.

Buying a Church

The first good news to the community was brought by Mr. Aleksandar Matic and Mrs. Vera Skokin, who announced that they had found and seen a church building for sale. Soon a unanimous decision was made to purchase the church and hall at 505 East 63rd Avenue in Vancouver. Previously, it was the United Church, which was built in 1913 (only the current hall) and the second part of the current church was added in 1937. The Church of St. Sava with the hall was officially transferred to the name of the Church on February 10, 1970. "Everything that was needed for the service was sent from the nearest parish – from Sacramento, California. "This Church and School Congregation of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary helped at a time when help was most needed," said Fr. Krsto Rikic, thanking the exemplary priest Fr. Miladin Garic, the parish priest from Sacramento. The debt and mortgage on the Church of St. Sava and the hall were finally paid off on February 26, 1979, when His Grace Bishop of Eastern America and Canada Christopher (Kovacevich), from Edgeworth, Pennsylvania, came to Vancouver for the first canonical visit.

Church Renovation

The action for the renovation of the church and preparation for the consecration began with the agreement of volunteers to build the altar apse, the altar table, the iconostasis, remodeling of the altar, the choir stage, and complete remodeling of the lower refectory. The enthusiasm was at a high level, so that everything that was planned and agreed upon was done. The paintings on the throne icons were done by artists Dita Cvitanovic and Agnes Naumovic. Academic painter Vladeta Petrovic painted Old Testament motifs in the lower part of the iconostasis and the figures of the Holy Apostles. The cross on the top of the church was made and placed by brother Branko Veleglavac.

Consecration

The rite of consecration of the church was performed on July 25, 1971. His Grace Bishop of Eastern America and Canada Dr. Sava (Vukovic) from Cleveland, with the concelebration of Fr. Miladin Garic, from Sacramento, Fr. Bogdan Zjalic from Calgary, Fr. Krsto Rikic, and Protodeacon Stevan Stepanov, Secretary of the Church Court. During this period, bells were purchased from the Svetomir Matic Fund to call the faithful to the Holy Liturgy, emphasize the most sacred moment of the Holy Mysteries, and greet our highest church dignitaries, and announce the deceased. In the lower room under the church, three offices were established, and a classroom for children and youth, as well as a library.