09/22/2025
East Plains United Church Needs Your Help!
Reverend Janet McCormick and the congregation request your assistance and it explains in this letter the situation that has just happened.
East Plains United Church has been an integral part of the Aldershot community for 182 years. More than a place of worship, East Plains, like all churches, has provided space for meetings and family celebrations, supported refugees, and the 7th Burlington Beaver, Cubs and Scouts as well as Embers, Sparks and Guides.
Child care has been available in the building for over 50 years. First as a Co-op Preschool and currently in the Aldershot Child Care Centre. The ACCC cares for 83 children in the state-of-the art daycare facility. Lifelong friendships have been made among Aldershot families through their children's activities and other out-reach programs at East Plains.
We are writing to you today because we face a huge financial challenge. East Plains United Church suddenly has a totally unexpected $100,000 expense. We had planned to use grant funds to replace a very old asphalt walkway to the Aldershot Child Care Centre.
That simple plan was blind-sided when a decommissioned 3,000 gallon oil tank, buried many decades ago, was discovered beneath the walkway .The law now requires removal of unused oil tanks for environmental reasons. On June 20, our contractor pumped out residual oil, water and soil from the tank in preparation to pull out the tank. As they were removing the soil around the tank, human remains were found! Work stopped immediately. The police, coroner and later a forensic anthropologist were contacted. The forensic anthropologist identified the remains as human, from a non-Indigenous coffin burial.
The Bereavement Authority of Ontario requires an archaeological Burial Site Investigation be carried out by a licensed archeological company when human remains are found. The law requires us to invite the Indigenous Nations who have inhabited this region throughout history to have a representative on site during the excavation. The Haudenosaunee Development Institute, the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation, and the Six Nations of the Grand River Confederacy will all send representatives. Once the archaeological excavation has reached a certain point, authorization will be given to remove the oil tank. The Burial Site Assessment will then continue with exploration of the areas which were inaccessible before the tank removal.
When the oil tank has been removed, the soil around the tank must be tested for contamination from possible oil leakage. If contamination is found, the soil must be removed to below the level of the contamination. If this is needed, it will be an additional cost. Since early July, our church leadership team has been researching for possible grants. Unfortunately, to date, none have been found.
We do not believe that the grave was disturbed during the excavation to remove the oil tank on June 20, 2025. The bones that have been discovered thus far are not intact, but are fragmented. They appear to have been in the soil for quite some time. Perhaps this grave was disturbed many years ago-- possibly during excavations for the addition to the back of the church or the installation of the oil tank in the late 1950s. If our suspicions are correct, it doesn't seem right that the congregation today should bear the financial costs of history, on its own. We turn to you for help through this difficult time.
Thank you for considering our request. We will issue a charitable tax receipt for donations $15 or more.
Cheques or E-transfers to East Plains United Church, 375 Plains Rd E, Burlington, ON L7T 3C2 (memo: Financial Challenge Fund, email: [email protected]) are gratefully accepted.
Note: With your donation, either by E-Transfer or cheque,
