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West Monkton Church

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West Monkton Church

West Monkton ChurchWest Monkton ChurchWest Monkton Church
Home
Contact Us
Site Content
Church Services
Upcoming events
Donate
How you can help
Life Events
Weekly Pause for Thought
Bell ringing
Church Projects
Community
Sustainability
Discover St Augustine's
Look back at past events
Safeguarding
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"Wedding Dresses through the Decades" review

By Kate Ayres

  

Over a weekend blessed with blue skies and sunshine, our Church was host to over 300 visitors who came to witness our “Wedding Dresses through the Decades” display. On approaching the church, a beribboned classic car loaned by volunteers from the County Classics Motor Museum on Saturday and a red MGB by Jaqui Besley on the Sunday, set the mood.  Upon entering the west door, gasps of delight could be heard as the impressive display of 22 wedding dresses from 1940 through to present day came into view. They were, indeed, a spectacle; raised on platforms, their beauty enhanced by the church architecture and the diffused glow from the sun through the stained-glass windows, happiness, warmth and nostalgia in the air was palpable.


Each dress was identified by its own name plaque and a photograph taken on the wedding day. Visitors were invited on a journey, following a specially prepared brochure containing a memory from the day, recalled by our blushing brides and their grooms.


The granite pillars of the church were adorned with wall hangings containing individual paper roses, hand-crafted out of vintage book pages by members of the congregation and community. These were mirrored by the pew ends, where vintage hearts also captured the theme of love. Marriage registers dating back to 1710 were available to look through and many were able to see their own entry, having married in the church.


Pausing for a cup of tea and choosing from a selection of delicious cakes, provided by church and community alike, many people stayed for a couple of hours or so and viewed the exhibition more than once – there was so much to look at.


It was widely agreed that the whole weekend was an unqualified success; it raised the sum of £1500 through donations alone and generated a stream of overwhelmingly positive comments about the vision and delivery of the project.  We reflect with pride and are hugely thankful and encouraged that we were able to welcome so many new friends into our space and, most importantly, that church and community came together – working side by side to deliver this vision together. This is the way forward …

    Dresses and memories of their wedding day

    Performing At West Monkton Church

    Yvette Staelens & The Voice of the People Choir

    (Apologies from the cameraman)

    Take your pick

    Join us for Sunday Services

    Join us for Sunday Services

    Join us for Sunday Services

    West Monkton church internal

    We welcome you to our Sunday services, where we come together to worship, take communion at our various weekly services across the month. Stay for refreshments and a chat after the service. For our service schedule click on the picture. We look forward to seeing you there!

    Upcoming Events

    Join us for Sunday Services

    Join us for Sunday Services

    Our church regularly holds events, whether to raise funds, community get togethers, working parties and coffee mornings to name a few. To see our upcoming events schedule click on the picture, take your pick and come along.

    Donating

    Join us for Sunday Services

    Lend a hand

    Friends of St Augustine's West Monkton

    Our lovely church costs well over a hundred pounds a day to run, not including maintenance. There are many ways you can donate, whether standing order, join the 100CLUB and contactless pay by card or phone in the church.

    For more ways you can donate click on the 100CLUB.

    Lend a hand

    Try something new

    Lend a hand

    West Monkton Volunteering

    The list is endless and any time, skill, knowledge, fund-raising ideas you can contribute is very much welcome.

    Remember two things. Firstly it's volunteering, so any time is apricated, you don't have to clock in or told off if you are late.

    Secondly, there is always tea & cake.

    See our how you can help page.

    Try something new

    Try something new

    Try something new

    Bell ringing


    Come along to one of our ringing practises and have a go.

    Friendly people, not too physical just the steps.

    No cake though only chocolates.

    Practice every Thursday evening, for more details click the bells.


    Open Gardens

    Wonderful and stunning as ever...

      

    As always West Monkton Open Gardens is a wonderful colourful event and it certainly was again this year.

    So many cakes to choose from and trust me they were all delicious, not a fan of coffee and walnut but there was none left so I am sure it was as well. 

    Oh, and the gardens they were just stunning in so many different ways.


    Rolling lawns, secluded pathways, secluded spots and tranquil ponds for us all to wonder along, admire and envy. An abundance of colours, smells and wildlife nestled amongst the widest shades of foliage. 

    Standout architectural plants and ideas for your garden everywhere you looked as well as the views and backdrops complementing our Open Garden volunteer’s hard work.


    Bringing the Open Gardens event slightly earlier this year allowed us to see everyone’s beautiful blooming roses, all manor of varieties on display across the gardens. A little less time for our volunteers to fit in all their hard work but ride on lawn mowers look more of a pleasure than a chore and for those of you who met ‘Patrick’ it is a relaxing experience watching the grass get mowed automatically. 

    So not all back breaking work then.


    As always our volunteers did an amazing job, serving gallons of tea and cakes by the plate load, donated plants and flowers to buy, along with homemade jams.


    Through the kind generosity and hard work of Max & Vicki, Mark & Mary, Colin & Kate, Clive & Louise and Peter who opened their gardens, along with cake makers, plants and jam donations over £1300 was raised from tickets and donations which is amazing. Thank you to everyone who helped and those who came along to support this years event.


    So why not open your garden next year? It would be great to have even more gardens participate and don't be daunted by the hard work, its really just therapy, the overgrown patch you have not got around to sorting is your re-wilding area, you are more than half way there. 

    I'm opening mine up next year and have a two chance approach when it comes to plants. Flourish or compost heap. We hope to hear from you.

      Brass on the Grass

      Hey Juliet, Hey Jude...thank you everyone

      Wiveliscombe Town Band did us proud at our Brass on the Grass event. 

      Taylor Swift to The Beatles, with movie tunes from Marry Poppins and Jurassic Park amongst more traditional pieces. 


      The band members entertained us for over an hour and with guests tucking into their picnic and Pimms there was a wonderful atmosphere in the churchyard that afternoon,

      with the high note being over £550 was donated. 


      Thank you to the wonderful Wiveliscombe Town Band, Sally and her team, Jim for hosting and everyone who came and supported the event.

      Video of event on our Facebook page.


      Encore?   

      West Monkton Church and The Churchyard have proved again what a great place to stage an event. Stunning surroundings for all manner of musical genres.

      If there is a particular event, theme or just a good old fashion sing song, let us know and we will look into it.


      Village BBQ

      Village get together...it was lovely to see you!

      The sun came out just as planned for the village BBQ as people arrived  early to grab a spot in the churchyard.

      With a welcome glass of Pimms to get things going whilst the cooking commenced, villagers mingled, chatted and played skittles.

      With head chefs Gary and Mike cooking up tasty burgers and sausages everyone dug in for a afternoon feast.


      Thank you to everyone who came along and made it another success for the 2nd year and more importantly you got to know more of your fellow villagers.


      Special thanks to Gary & Mike who did an amazing job cooking for so many people along with our greeters, servers and helpers with the event and Rev Jim for the sunshine.


      Look forward to seeing you again next year!

      BBQ WEST MONKTON

      Somerset Arts Weeks @ St Augustine's

      Stunning art in a stunning venue

      If you missed Somerset Art Weeks at St Augustine's church then take a look below...

      Download PDF

      It was lovely to see you all at Christmas

        

      West Monkton Church was bursting at the seams with people singing along to their favourite Christmas carols at our annual Carol service. 

      It was wonderful to see so many people fill the church, lots of new faces, young and old.

      Whether reminded of school days singing Away in a manger or We three kings amongst others or those who are reminded of the real meaning of Christmas either way it was so warming to see the church so full at this special time of year.

      Christmas Tree Festival

      Let there be light

        

      There was much coming and going around the church on Friday by people preparing their entries for the Christmas Tree Festival. Eighteen Trees were presented for the festival, whilst a further 90-plus occupied every windowsill, nook and cranny.

      Later in the afternoon the delicious aroma of mulled wine crept around the building, and everyone started ‘to feel a lot like Christmas’.


      As 7.00pm drew near, the lights of the church dimmed, and the sounds of angelic choral singing filled the air. The tree owners, on the stroke of 7.00pm switched on their lights. Wow! The church was transformed.

      And then… the magic was shattered by every phone in the place screaming out the siren warning by the government of the Storm Darragh alert. People desperately scrambled into pockets and handbags to switch off their phones. Phew: amidst much laughter, joy in the moment returned – that alert was VERY loud!! 

      But, with alarms silenced, the magical atmosphere inside the warm church quickly restored, lights twinkled, carols played, mulled wine and mince pies were enjoyed, children found lollipops and chocolate, anxieties dissipated, and everyone enjoyed a rare, shared moment of beauty and peace. 


      Thank you to all our entrants, Sally's team and the visitors who braved the weather to support a wonderful illuminating event.


      The trees receiving the most votes were as follows - Children's category - Won by the Brownies. Winner for the adult entries was the Book Club There were 102 trees hidden in plain sight and if you would like the answers to the Christmas Quiz please contact us.

      If you missed it, some of the photos are below. 

      A reel tree

      See our County Gazette article following St Augustine’s being a hosting venue for Somerset Art Weeks

      See our County Gazette article following St Augustine’s being a hosting venue for Somerset Art Weeks

      See our County Gazette article following St Augustine’s being a hosting venue for Somerset Art Weeks

      See our County Gazette article following St Augustine’s being a hosting venue for Somerset Art Weeks

      See our County Gazette article following St Augustine’s being a hosting venue for Somerset Art Weeks

      See our County Gazette article following St Augustine’s being a hosting venue for Somerset Art Weeks

      Coffee & more

       Canine Insight came along to our March Coffee & more morning to talk about the wonderful work they do training rescue dogs to become assistant dogs for ex-servicemen suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Charlotte, Brian and Ferris demonstrated the skills the dogs are required to learn and different tests they must pass before being assigned to their new owner.

      If you would like to know more about their wonderful work or would like to donate to their charity, then visit servicedogsuk.org by clicking on Ferris.


      Thank you Charlotte, Brian and Ferris.


      Canine Insight

      Click on Brian & Ferris to visit servicedogsuk.org

      West Monkton Church group visits Salisbury Cathedra

      Didn’t we have a lovely day, the day we went to Salisbury

      Stunningly spiritual and astounding architecture

      Our West Monkton church community went off on it’s annual coach trip to Salisbury Cathedral this year for a guided tour of the cathedral.

      Beautiful windows, figurines and architecture old and new complimenting the mammoth structure of stone pillars and vaulted ceilings.

      The photos below do not showcase the beauty of the cathedral as in person. Worth taking a trip out to see it in all its glory.

      Where would you like our next day out to be?

      Drop us a line and let us know.

      Contact us

        VE Day 80 at West Monkton Church of St Augustine

          

        As the UK comes together to commemorate the 80th anniversary of VE Day, we at the Church of St Augustine in West Monkton invite you to join us in remembrance and reflection. Our church holds a deeply personal connection to the past, with the Rolls of Honour memorials detailing those from our local community who gave their lives in the First and Second World Wars. Wonderful detail about these brave members of the armed forces can be found here: http://www.roll-of-honour.com/Somerset/WestMonkton.html


        For those with an interest in family history or exploring their roots, our church offers a rewarding and meaningful visit. Inside, you’ll find an information leaflet providing information about the history of the church, and if you’re seeking more detailed or specific insights, we welcome enquiries via email, through our website, or by messaging us on Facebook. Our volunteers are always pleased to assist and can help direct you to additional historical resources relating to both the church and the wider parish community. 


        To mark this significant anniversary, our church will feature some poppy displays, as well as our remembrance altar cloth with poppy design. These visual tributes serve as quiet but powerful reminders of the courage and sacrifice of those who served.


        One of the most stirring parts of our commemoration will be the sound of our cherished bells ringing out across the village on the evening of 8th May. Our bellringers will be joining others across the country in a coordinated peal, echoing the joyful sounds that marked the end of the war in 1945. Back then, bells rang from churches, cathedrals, and even from naval ships like HMS Ocean, as a national expression of relief, victory, and unity.


        Today, the ringing of the bells continues to symbolise both celebration and solemn remembrance. It’s a way to honour the bravery of those who never returned, and to reflect on the lasting peace their sacrifice secured. This tradition has become part of our collective memory - an enduring tribute that resonates across the years.


        We warmly invite you to visit us during this special time. Whether you come to explore your family’s connections, learn more about our community’s history, or simply pause in quiet contemplation, we hope you’ll find a sense of connection, gratitude, and peace within our church walls.



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