The Ukrainian Orthodox Church of St. Demetrius was started as an idea in the home of some friends who realized that they needed a church on the west side of Toronto. 

The parish was officially organized in 1940 with property purchased on 10th Street in 1942.  That property was sold and the present site of the church with the lower portion constructed, consecrated and ready for use in 1954.  Soon after that the church proper was started and officially dedicated by Metropolitan Ilarion (Ohienko) during a service on May 11, 1958.  The first Divine Liturgy in the newly built church was in December of 1959. The builder was Yuriy Kodak, the iconostasis was built by Ivan Vronsky and the iconographer was Igor Sukhachov.

During the early life of the church, there were many priests that aided in the growth of the parish with their assistance and services which included Fathers Petro Sametz, Petro Zaparyniuk, Andrei Hykawy, Michael Yurkiwsky and Theodore Kisiliuk.  The list of official parish priests assigned by Metropolitans over the history of the church included Fr. Yuri Tsukornyk (1951 - 1954), Fr. Alexander Scherban (1954 - 1956), Fr. Fedir Leheniuk (1956 - 1963), Fr. Timofiy Minenko (1962 - 1967), Fr. Michael Bodnarchuk (1967 - 1991) and Fr. Walter Makarenko (1991 - to present).

During the Khram celebration on November 8, 1990, celebrating the parish’s 50th anniversary, His Beatitude, Metropolitan Wasyly (Fedak), presented the parish with a special Metropolitan’s Certificate elevating St. Demetrius to the status of a Pro-Cathedral (Sobor).

The church accommodates the following committees to meet the needs of all of the members: Calendar, Choir, CYMK - senior and junior, Sunday Fellowship, Finance, Order of St. Andrew, Sunday School, U.W.A.C. (Women’s Association, Sophia Rusova Branch) and Bandura School.

Since the very beginning, St. Demetrius has always been a very vibrant and active parish which sees to the needs of all of its members, adherents and friends and, with the grace of God, will continue to do so into the future.