Evangelical Christian Church of Buffalo

About Buffalo Slavic Evangelical Christian Church

At the end of 1980’s, in the former Soviet Union, Christians were given the opportunity to come to the United States, Canada, and other countries of the world. People from Belarus, Ukraine, Russia and other countries of the former USSR began immigrating to the United States seeking a better place for their families. As a result of this immigration small, Russian-speaking communities began to form.

In 1989, the first family arrived in Buffalo. They were greeted warmly by the American people from New Covenant Tabernacle, together with their pastor, Paul Shank. For a while, the Slavic and American services were held together. In 1990, the Slavic congregation was given the opportunity to gather separately and hold their own services. The pastor of the small congregation at that time was Leonid Ostapovich. This was the beginning of the Slavic Church in Buffalo.

As time passed, many more families began immigrating to Buffalo, and the church increased in size. Many of these families stayed for a short while and moved on to different parts of US. There were several different pastors throughout the years. On February 14, 1998, Mikhail Shpakovskiy was chosen and ordained as the Pastor of the church.
In 2002, the congregation was officially registered as the Evangelical Christian Church. The need arose for a building which the church could call its own.  For two years the church prayed and asked for God’s guidance. God wonderfully and miraculously answered the prayers of His people.

On February 15, 2002 the congregation was able to purchase a building, which formerly was a Jewish Synagogue located at 345-351 Tacoma Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14216. After the needed repairs were completed, the congregation began to hold services in the new building. The building had a big sanctuary where services were held; it also had classrooms, a big cafeteria and a kitchen.

The church consists of immigrants from Belarus, Ukraine and Moldova. At this time services are held in the Russian, Ukrainian, and English languages. The choir, youth and the children take part in each service. There is Sunday school available to children, along with lessons where they learn in their native language.

In 2019 the congregation was able to purchase a new church building in North Tonawanda NY where the members currently gather.