St Mark’s Notes for February 2026 LOOKING BACK….. As usual, we put a Christmas card through every door in Herston – many thanks to our dedicated team. St Mark’s had a good Christmas, with a most enjoyable Christmas Dinner at the Village Inn, a post-Service Christmas party on the Sunday before Christmas (when we also celebrated Anne Roper’s 70th Birthday) and a more than capacity crowd at our immensely popular Carols by Candlelight on Christmas Eve. As usual, we hosted the Team Epiphany Service. A surprising number of people, from all 4 Team churches, and EBC, turned out on a very frosty night. Many thanks to our Choir and Band, and to Colin Burgess, whose vision, skill and patience are endless. The Junior Choir had a busy Christmas. They sang at the Christmas Tree Festival and a smaller group joined the adult choir to lead the singing at the Carols by Candlelight Service. A particular highlight was when the children joined the adults in singing “The Star Carol” by John Rutter. LOOKING FORWARD….. We had a very positive Church Committee meeting in January. We fixed dates for special events in 2026 and took further steps towards re-ordering the church to provide a more flexible space. We also set a date for the whole Committee to undertake the basic Safeguarding Training Course, recognising our responsibility to make St Mark’s a safe place for everyone. Our fortnightly Bible Study transforms into a weekly Lent Group from Shrove Tuesday; this year we will follow the Church of England Prayer Course, developed by 24/7 Prayer International. With reports of a quiet revival gaining ground, prayer is a vital skill for all Christians. As we look forward to 2026 we are always conscious of our purpose as God’s people. We not guardians of a listed building, not a music or flower-arranging society, not a social club or a self-help group; we are called to be Salt and Light in our community, and witnesses to the Good News of Jesus. We pray that all that we do will further His kingdom. David Richards, Resident Priest
ST. MARK’S NOTES FOR DECEMBER 2025 AND JANUARY 2026 We, at St Marks, have had another year full of wonderful events; including a concert, Pimm’s & Hymns, two afternoon teddy bear picnics, Harvest Festival, Wear It Pink Celebration, and two new events; a summer BBQ, (which was a great success and will now be added to our yearly social events,) and Ride and Stride, for the Historic Churches Trust. Many of these events were in support of various charities and raised several hundred pounds for local and national charities. Plus, two of our church members who independently did sponsored events raising significant amounts of money for charities; as John mentioned in last month’s edition. We also held a wonderful Licensing Service for Dave and Carol, by Bishop Karen, a great time of celebration. Our links with St Marks School continues to grow and flourish and we had our first baptism, in four years, with a local family being welcomed into the church family at St Marks. A truly wonderful year of events at the ‘Party Church.’ The reordering of the church and meeting room continues resulting in the meeting room now being warm and very welcoming. On November 9th, we held our Service of Remembrance, in the morning. Several of us then joined the Town Remembrance Service in the afternoon, when, as a town, we came together to reflect on and to honour the many service people who ‘gave their tomorrow for our today.’ Sadly, we have also said a fond farewell to some dear friends and members of our church family, sharing some tears, a smile, and a little laughter as we celebrated their life. As I write, we are preparing for Mary Dennis’ funeral on Monday the 24th of November, and for further details of Marion Booth’s funeral. We have our St Marks Christmas Dinner on Monday 15th December (details and a sign-up sheet in church) a time of great celebration. A big thank you to Uta for organising this event once again. Advent is here, and we now set our hearts, prayers, and worship to a time of preparation for God’s wonderful gift to us, his Son, our Savour. During Advent there are several events in town and our church services, a time for us to gather together as part of the Swanage and Studland Team in our preparation for Christmas. Our big event will be our wonderful Carols by Candlelight, at 4:30pm on Christmas Eve, when we welcome familiar faces, local children, and parents to this very special Christmas service. We also hope to welcome several visitors, to one of our Christmas services, with a smile and perhaps a mince pie and hot drink! In January, we will be hosting, once again, the Team Epiphany Carol Service on Sunday 4th January at 6:30pm, which, of course, will be followed by some warming and festive refreshments, in true St Marks style! We are already planning our many social events for 2026 and hopefully welcoming some new faces from the local Herston community to join us at St Marks. I pray, that over this time of Advent, you will have time to pause and ask the Holy Spirit to help you enter that first Christmas with delight, wonder and a sense of Peace, to fully rejoice that this is news of great joy, for all people, everywhere. I would like to leave you with a reading from the start of St John’s Gospel: (John 1: 1-4,9,14a) In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people…. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world…. And the Word became flesh and lived among us. Although a little early, as I write this in mid-November, may we wish you all a ‘Blessed and Joyful Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year’ May God Bless and Keep You Anne Roper Church Warden
ST. MARK’S NOTES FOR NOVEMBER 2025 What a wonderful evening many of us had on 30 September! It was the service for the licensing of Rev Dave Richards and re-licensing of Carol Richards and Jane Hawksworth as Licensed Lay Ministers. It was good to have Bishop Karen with us and to welcome a good number of friends from the all the Team churches and churches from around the area. For us at St Mark's it was a great opportunity to mark this new stage in Dave and Carol's ministry among us and to give them a public thank you for all they do for us. I'm sure that the contingent from St Nicholas' feel the same about Jane. Bishop Karen reminded us of other recent occasions on which she had been in Swanage and she clearly enjoyed being here. Our musicians (choir, augmented by people from Studland and St Mary's and our band) did us proud as we sang the Vaughan Williams setting of "All People that on Earth do Dwell" and Amanda Jenson changed saxophones from one musical item to another and, at one point, gave us a burst of a familiar tune in 5/4 time. The whole event was topped off with excellent food and something to wash it down with. Thanks to all who came, all who helped with the organisation, the music and the food and every blessing to Dave, Carol and Jane in their continued ministry in Swanage and Studland. Then we moved into October and the joyful events kept coming! Farmer Teddy's Harvest Picnic on the 12th was a worthy follow-up to our earlier picnic for the youngest age group and was enjoyed by all who came. We had the usual joyful Harvest Festival on the 19th, followed by a convivial bring and share lunch, collecting gifts in the service for Swanage Food Bank and finally the Sunday on which we "wear it pink" and donate to Breast Cancer research. Sadness as well as joy. As well as the funeral of Mike Chinchen, we welcomed the family and friends of Paddy Rideal for a service in the church with which she was long associated. We were pleased to be reminded that she had produced the banner on our south wall showing St Mark's surrounded by children joyfully coming to worship. Quite often funerals provide an opportunity to renew links with the families of people previously in our circle of contacts and it is good to see the family members again, as well as to commend their loved ones to God's care. I mustn't let this review of the past months go by without mentioning the sterling efforts of those, linked with St Mark's and the other churches, who have raised money for deserving charities. The stalwart group who walked from St Mark's to Corfe Castle for the Ride and Stride event, Nicky Dolton's tremendous walk for Alzheimer's research and Mark Critchlow's phenomenal swim across Studland and Swanage Bays for the RNLI. Well done all - we were delighted to support you. Into November, the month of remembrance. As well as the usual and much appreciated events to remember those who gave their lives in war there is the "Service in Which to Remember" in St Mary's on 2nd November (All Souls Day). Then comes (all too soon!) the rush of activities leading up to Christmas. Have these dates in your diary - the seasonal market on 6th December and the Christmas Tree festival in Emmanuel Church on 11th - 13th December. The clocks will have gone back one hour before you read these words, the nights will be longer and the weather colder and probably wetter. Nevertheless, the work of God in this town will go on and the churches, including St Mark's, will be there to offer worship, teaching and fellowship. With all best wishes, John Way (Churchwarden)
ST. MARK’S NOTES FOR OCTOBER 2025 We celebrated a very special occasion on 24th August, when Luna and Arwen were Baptised. This was the first baptism at St Mark’s for 4 years. Luna and Arwen were formally welcomed to St Mark’s at the Celebration! Service on 31st August. This service is less formal, and particularly suitable for families. On Saturday 13th September a group of us took part in the Annual Ride and Stride walking from St Mark’s to Corfe, via Langton, Worth and Kingston – a distance of 8 miles. We stopped at all the Churches, and one or two also stopped at the Square and Compass. Money raised will be shared between Dorset Historic Churches Trust and the local Team. Thanks to Carol Richards and Anne Roper for organising the walk. Re-tyred, not retired. As I write this in mid-September, I’m looking forward to a special event on Tuesday 30th September when Bishop Karen will License me as Associate Priest, and will welcome Carol Richards and Jane Hawksworth, from St Nicholas Studland, as Licensed Lay Ministers. Why licences after working at St Mark’s for 3 years? The simple answer is that Dave’s Licence reflects the work he does within St Mark’s and the Team. Carol’s ministry was limited, because she did not transfer her LLM licence from Chelmsford Diocese to Salisbury Diocese when we moved, partly because our future plans were uncertain. Now, it seems, Swanage is our permanent home, so rather than retire gracefully, we are re-tyred for the journey ahead. Following up our spring Teddy Bear’s Picnic, Bella, the St Mark’s Teddy Bear, invites children aged 2-6 (and their teddy bears) to Farmer Teddy’s Harvest Picnic on October 12th. There will be games, songs, craft activities and a picnic with a Harvest theme. Children also need to bring at least 1 grown-up. Please spread the word. St Mark’s Harvest Celebration will be on Sunday 19th October. We will start the service at 11am and follow with a Bring-and-Share Lunch. This late date allows us to co-ordinate with St Mark’s School Harvest, so the children can enjoy the amazing Harvest decorations in the church. All gifts from the church and school will be donated to Swanage Food Bank. There are some changes at St Mark’s School. We welcome Mrs. Astle as the new Head, Miss Howe as the new Deputy (both shared with St George’s Langton), and congratulate Ms. Le Roux on her promotion to Assistant Head. We also welcome Cheryl Sutton, from St Mary’s, and Bridget Leary, from St Mark’s, as new foundation Governors. Please pray for staff, pupils and governors at the school, that the new arrangements will work well. As we move towards autumn, we give thanks for a great summer, and look forward to God’s continued blessing. Rev. David Richards
