By Rosalind Russell – Anglican Archbishop Anne Germond has announced she’ll retire next year as archbishop of Algoma and metropolitan of the Ecclesiastical Province of Ontario.
According to the release from the Diocese of Algoma, she was appointed interim primate of the Anglican Church of Canada in September 2024 and continued in that role as metropolitan and bishop of Algoma and Moosonee.
Having grown up in South Africa, she and her husband moved to Sudbury in 1986, and she became a deacon in 2001, and then a priest in 2002.
In February 2017, Germond became the first woman to serve as bishop of the Diocese of Algoma, and the following year, elected metropolitan of the Ecclesiastical Province of Ontario, becoming the first woman to hold that office.
Worshippers in Espanola were proud to welcome her at the 100th anniversary of St. George’s Anglican Church in 2024 where she presided over a special communion service and acknowledged the legacy of the local parish.
The Diocese of Algoma will elect its next bishop during Synod 2027, scheduled for May 4–8.
“Her episcopacy has spanned a period of considerable change, including the COVID-19 pandemic and its lasting effects on congregational life, changing patterns of ministry, and ongoing discernment about the future of the church,” said a joint statement Issued by the Diocese of Algoma and the Ecclesiastical Province of Ontario.
Her official statement: The Most Reverend Anne Germond, archbishop of Algoma and metropolitan of the Ecclesiastical Province of Ontario, has announced her intention to retire in 2027, following 10 years of episcopal ministry in the Diocese of Algoma.
Archbishop Anne was elected the eleventh bishop of Algoma on October 14, 2016, and consecrated on February 11, 2017, becoming the first woman to serve as bishop of the Diocese.
In October 2018, she was elected metropolitan of the Ecclesiastical Province of Ontario, becoming the first woman to hold that office.
Her announcement marks the beginning of a period of transition for both the Diocese of Algoma and the Ecclesiastical Province of Ontario, and an opportunity to give thanks for her ministry and leadership in the wider church.
“It has been one of the great privileges of my life to serve the people of the Diocese of Algoma and the Ecclesiastical Province of Ontario,” said Archbishop Anne.
“I am deeply grateful for the relationships we have built, the ministry we have shared, and the many ways I have witnessed God’s faithfulness at work in our churches and communities.
“As I prepare for this next chapter, I do so with a full heart and with great confidence in the people of this church and in all that God continues to call us to be and to do.”
Photos of Archbishop Germond celebrating St. George Anglican Church 100th anniversary by Rosalind Russell
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