The beginning of the River East Mennonite Brethren Church, in Winnipeg, started when Jacob Ens befriended the Japanese families. He began Sunday School classes for the children because they did not know German which was the language of all the MB Churches in the area. The classes grew and soon the parents were requesting that worship services be held as well. Services were held in a school. In 1962, the leadership committee was asked if it was possible to organize a church. Many people in the congregation were part of the North Kildonan MB Church. Five couples from the mother church were released to organize this new congregation. In 1963, the congregation had a chartering service and renamed themselves the Springfield Heights MB Church. In 1964, Sunday School was held in the school for the last time before moving to their new building. To avoid confusion with the Springfield Heights Mennonite Church, the name changed to River East Mennonite Brethren Church. The leaders of the church included: Ernest A. Isaac (1965-1973), John B. Epp (1976-1987), Norm Neufeld (1988-1990), Karen Heidebrecht-Thiessen (1991-1998), Christine Longhurst (1998-).