Stories, faith, and mission in print
In 1878, Baptist women launched a small publication with a big purpose: to keep mission circles informed, inspired, and connected.
The first issue of The Canadian Missionary Link was produced by a small group of women in Toronto after missionary A. V. Timpany encouraged them to create their own publication to share news of mission work. A trial issue was mailed out on July 1, 1878. More than 1,000 women sent 25 cents for a yearly subscription, confirming that the new magazine had found its audience.
Through its pages, readers followed the stories of missionaries, learned about the lives of women in other parts of the world, and discovered ways they could pray, give, and serve. The magazine also provided devotional reflections, teaching, and practical resources for mission circles meeting in churches across Ontario and Quebec.
In 1890, a second publication, The Baptist Visitor, was launched to highlight home mission work. For decades, the two magazines ran side by side until they merged in 1927 as The Link & Visitor, reaching more than 11,000 subscribers.
Remarkably, most of the editors served without pay, offering their gifts of writing, leadership, and vision as a ministry. Among them was Ernestine Whiteside, who guided the magazine for more than twenty years with wisdom and careful attention to the missionary cause.
Over time, the magazine evolved, eventually becoming live magazine—a publication that continued to inform and inspire Baptist women for nearly a century and a half.
When its final issue appeared in March 2024, it marked the end of 148 years of mission reporting, storytelling, discipleship, and connection—a written record of generations of women serving Christ together.
Today, that connection continues in new ways – through a monthly digital newsletter, a website, and social media, women across Ontario and Quebec are still sharing stories, encouraging one another, and participating in God’s mission—carrying forward the same spirit that first filled those printed pages.