MISSION COMMUNITY NEWSLETTER
w.b. 4th October 2026
Dear Friends
As the amber hues of autumn arrive, nature reminds us that change is a natural part of God's design. The crisp air and falling leaves show the grace in letting go, making room for quiet rest.
Yet, change is always difficult, stretching our faith as we step into the unfamiliar. We all need the Lord's help to guide our steps through every new season of life.
We welcome Louise back from her annual leave. We trust in God's strength and guidance. Therefore let us embrace what lies ahead together.
Revd Peter
Louise’s email address: [email protected]
Safeguarding
For any safeguarding concerns, please contact :
Katie Gray: [email protected]
For issues with rough sleepers:
Louise Grace: [email protected]
Please send all contributions for the newsletter to Gill Yates by Thursday evening.
Services and calendar for the week
Sunday 4th October (Harvest Festival)
10am…Holy Communion…St Margaret’s
10am…Holy Communion…St Luke’s
6.30pm…Harvest Evensong
Monday 5th October
7pm…Compline…Zoom
Tuesday 6th October
10am…Mini Messy Church…St Margaret’s
Wednesday 7th October
10am…Morning Worship…Zoom
1.15pm…Lunchtime Concert…St Margaret’s
2.30pm…Tea and Cake…St Margaret’s
Thursday 8th October
11am…Holy Communion…Watermeadow Grange
Friday 9th October
9am…Morning Prayer…St Margaret’s
Saturday 10th October
Sunday 11th October
10am…Holy Communion…St Margaret’s
10am…Holy Communion…St Luke’s
3pm…Forest Church…St Luke’s
3pm…Concert…St Margaret’s
The Zoom links and meeting IDs for all the Zoom events are on our pages on ACNY (A Church Near You)
All Harvest offerings will be donated to the Exmouth Food Bank.
Bookings
St. Margaret’s bookings are managed by Caryll Ingerslev.
Contact: [email protected]
Please book in for any use of the church including church meetings and events.
St. Luke’s Church and Church Rooms bookings are managed by Sandra Greedy:
Contact: [email protected]
St. Luke’s churchwarden can be contacted on:
[email protected] or phone 01392 271458
St. Margaret’s Churchwarden can be contacted on:
St. Luke’s Church is now closed during the week for the winter.
St. Margaret’s is open every day between 9.00 a.m. and 5.00 p.m.
Does anyone know the whereabouts of St. Margaret’s wheelchair?
Mini Messy Returns Monday, 12th October!
We are delighted to let you know we are bringing back Mini Messy starting on Monday, 12th October from 9:30 AM to 11:00 AM in the back of the church.
This will be a weekly drop-in space once again for young children and their families to gather for stories, songs, and friendly connection. No pre-booking is required—just pop in, and please help us spread the word to any local families who would love to join us!
Katie Gray (Mrs)
Parish Safeguarding Representative
The Musical Lunchbox – Wednesdays at 1.15
Free lunchtime concerts!
The next one is on Wednesday 7th October, Topsham Singing Groups – the Decibels and The Barolotones directed by Matthew Gardner
ORGAN AND BAROQUE CELLO RECITAL AT HOLY CROSS CHURCH, TOPSHAM
David Davies (organ) and David Shead (baroque trumpet)
Sunday 4 October, 4 - 5 p.m., followed by refreshments
Tickets (free) are available through the events page of the Holy Cross website (www.holycrosstopsham.org). There will be a retiring collection to cover the costs of the concert, and to raise money for St Petrock’s, Exeter, and Médecins Sans Frontières.
St Margaret’s Church, Topsham Sunday 11th October 2026, 3 p.m.
Come & Sing with Exeter Singers
conductor: Tony Yates organist: Matthew Wright, hymns to well-known Classical tunes including Dvorak’s Largo (Hovis bread), Beethoven’s Choral Symphony, Charpentier’s Trumpet Tune (Eurovision), Holst’s “Jupiter” theme, and “Finlandia” by Sibelius with 20th Century Choral Music sung by Exeter Singers
Admission free: donations to local care charity, FORCE.
Help us stock our Baby Bank at St Margaret’s
We’re excited to be setting up a Baby Bank at St Margaret’s, providing practical support to local families who may be finding things financially difficult.
We’re looking for good-quality, clean items that can be passed on to families and put to good use. We’d particularly welcome:
Baby and children’s clothes (newborn–5 years), freshly washed and in good condition
Sleepsuits, babygrows and sleepwear
Coats and warm clothing
Socks, tights and hats
Nappies of all sizes
Unopened baby wipes
Unopened baby toiletries, such as baby wash, shampoo and lotion
Baby feeding equipment such as bottles, cups and bowls
We’re especially grateful for everyday essentials that families can use straight away. If you have clothes that your children have grown out of but are still in lovely condition, or unopened baby essentials that you no longer need, we’d love to receive them.
We’re hoping to create something that is welcoming, practical and dignified for local families, with a good selection of things that parents and carers can genuinely choose from and use.
Please email me to organise any donations before bringing to the church - [email protected]
Thank you for helping us get our Baby Bank off the ground and for supporting local families in our community.
Coffee and Cake
We look forward to welcoming you on Wednesdays between 2.30-3.30 - not just for coffee, tea and an array of cakes, but also for friendly chat and a warm welcome. There's no charge, and we'd love to see you, whether you're Christian, or of a different faith, or of none at all!
🎂 🥮
Exmouth Food Bank
If you are kind enough to be planning to donate to us, we would be grateful to receive the following priority items:
Crisps/savoury snacks
Bottles of squash e.g orange squash
Jams/peanut butter
Tins of soup
Tinned meat meals such as stews, meatballs or curry
Tinned cold meats such as ham, chicken or corned beef
Tinned tuna
Tinned fruit, rice pudding or custard
Hair shampoo & conditioner
Thank you for your Kindness ❤️13-20
We are also really short of clean, large 'bags for life'
For further information email: [email protected] 07787758511
Prayers
For those who are ill or in need of our prayers:
Jill and Adrian, Jan, Jeremy, Graham Daurge
Marlene Gardner, Pam Wormald, Mary, Peter, John Heal, Gail Miller, Anthony Appleby
Housebound or in nursing/care homes:
Alfred Wonnacott, Georgina Lear, Paul Morgan, Fran Gollop
Please pray for Anne Plested supporting the work of Bethlehem Bible College, and Ben and Katy Ray in Tanzania, St. Luke’s CMS mission link.
Anniversaries
William Trigger
Hilda Copland, Daniel Wilson, Eric Hume
Recently departed
Gospel Readings for the coming week
Sunday 4th October Matthew 21: 33 - end
Monday 5th October Luke 10: 25-37
Tuesday 6th October Luke 10: 38 - end
Wednesday 7th October Luke 11: 1-4
Thursday 8th October Luke 11: 5-13
Friday 9th October Luke 11: 15-26
Saturday 10th October Luke 11: 27-28
Sunday 11th October Mathew 22: 1-14
Collect and reading for Sunday 4th October
Almighty and everlasting God, increase in us your gift of faith that, forsaking what lies behind and reaching out to that which is before, we may run the way of your commandments and win the crown of everlasting joy; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.
Matthew 6:25-33
25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life[e]?28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendour was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
Positions vacant
St Margarets’ Topsham and St Luke’s Countess Wear are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. All post holders and volunteers are expected to share this commitment. All appointments are subject to acceptable pre-appointment checks, including a satisfactory DBS check of the appropriate level for the role.
We are currently wishing to appoint suitable people to the following paid role in our parishes:
Cleaner
St Margaret’s Church Topsham is looking for a cleaner to work in our newly refurbished social area. The area includes a new toilet area, kitchen servery and communal area.
You will be employed to work for 2 hours a week (1 hour early in the week and 1 hour towards the end of the week). There may be an opportunity for additional hours after specific larger events.
This is a paid, contracted role at £15 per hour (holiday pay will be paid). All required health and safety training, products, equipment and PPE will be provided.
If you take pride in your work, have an eye for detail and want to be an essential part of our community creating a welcoming space for all, then we would welcome your application.
Email: [email protected] for an application form and full Role Description
We are currently wishing to appoint suitable people to the following volunteer roles in our parishes:
Cleaner for Main Body of Church
St Margaret’s Church Topsham is looking for more volunteers to join our team who clean the main body of the church not the new social area.
The role involves spending an hour every four weeks (or less frequently if we can recruit enough cleaners), working in a group of two. The work involved includes:
Vacuuming the carpets in the entrance, in front of the altar, and in the little side chapel
Sweeping the aisles and the pews
Dusting the woodwork (pews, choir stalls and any other woodwork)
It should not take more than an hour each time and you can arrange a time to suit your team.
Please do think about joining the team. Our group of volunteers is becoming smaller and some of the members have mobility issues and may not be able to continue for much longer.
If you take pride in your work, have an eye for detail and want to be an essential part of our community to create a welcoming space for all then we would welcome your application.
Email: [email protected] for an application form and full Role Description
Sacristan for St Margaret’s
We are looking for a new Sacristan to join our team and to prepare for the service on the second Sunday of the month. The successful applicant will need to spend approximately twenty minutes on a Friday or Saturday to make the required preparations in the vestry, in readiness for the Sunday morning service. Then on Sunday you would be required to arrive at 09:30 to lay everything out on the altar and spend time after the service putting things away.
Email: [email protected] for an application form and full Role Description
Volunteer in Forest church.
We hold a monthly service that needs volunteer support to assist in delivering activities alongside established leaders. A requirement will be to arrive early to help with the set up and read the plans for the session. You would then be expected to help in the clearing up afterwards. You would be needed from 2.30 pm until 4.00pm every Second Sunday of each month. The activity takes place at St Luke’s Church.
Essential requirement: experience of working with families.
Email: [email protected] for an application form and full Role Description
Volunteer for St Luke’s Intercessions
St Luke’s Church is looking for volunteers to lead the intercessions during the 10 o’clock Sunday Service. Volunteers take turns to lead the prayers once a month on a rota.
The successful candidates will need to liaise with the incumbent and leadership team. They will need to give approximately one hour preparation time in the run up to each service. Prayer resources are encouraged to be used.
Key skills: clarity and appropriate communication, confidentiality, awareness of current affairs and needs for prayer further afield as well as local, team player, humility and ability to convey pastoral care.
Email: [email protected] for an application form and full Role Description
Volunteer Second Lead for the Parent and Toddler Groups at St Margaret’s Church
St Margaret’s Church is looking for a volunteer Second Lead to help run our friendly ‘Mini Messy’ Parent and Toddler Groups and the ‘Kids Matter’ parenting programme.
St Margaret’s Church is seeking a warm, energetic, and compassionate individual to join our team as a Second Lead for our thriving Parent and Toddler groups. This role is ideal for someone who enjoys interacting with young children and fostering meaningful connections with parents and caregivers.
The Second Lead will support the running of our sessions, working closely with our group leader to create a safe, welcoming, and inclusive space for all attendees. These groups play a key role in our church’s mission to provide community support, foster spiritual curiosity, and offer encouragement in a non-judgmental and respectful environment.
Are you energetic, great with children, and love connecting with parents and caregivers? Join us in creating a welcoming space where everyone can feel part of a community, explore Christian values, and have meaningful conversations — no matter their beliefs.
Must be happy to chat, play, and support!
Email: [email protected] for an application form and full Role Description
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