THE DIOCESE OF BUNBURY

AUGUSTA, MARGARET RIVER PARISH PROFILE

Part 1 – who we are and our mission

1. The Parish Mission Statement:

“Maturing our faith, enjoying our worship, enriching our fellowship, Serving our community”.

2. Introduction from Priest with Oversight:

The Parish has been without a fulltime residential Parish Priest for some time now. Although an interim ministry has been in place the numbers of attendances and the giving, have both dropped considerably. Several of the previous lay leadership have left the Parish and now worship elsewhere: due to internal conflict at that time. Even though this situation no longer exists, the residue of this is that parishioners are reluctant to take up those leadership positions.

The churchmanship of the Parish is mainly traditional Anglican, with some having a more evangelical preference. The Eucharist is the focus of Sunday morning worship. Augusta has two licensed Lay Ministers who assist with the distribution of communion. We have one non-stipendiary Priest assisting in the Parish (The Revd Mary Esslemont): and one retired Priest who assists where needed ( Fr David Hawkins).

There are four Centres in the Parish: Augusta, Margaret River, Cowaramup and Osmington. Both Margaret River and Augusta are the two main Centres. This year, for our Lenten studies we worked through the booklet titled “The welcoming Church”. From this the Parish Council has implemented a strategy to enable us to become more of a welcoming and inviting Church.

3. Brief outline of the Parish Council’s plans for the future.

We are endeavoring to be a welcoming church and encouraging our community to join us in worship and fellowship. We are striving hard to be able to employ a full time resident Priest.

4. Diocesan focus on "Every Member Ministry" and how it is implemented within this Parish

The "Mission Statement" for the Diocese of Bunbury is:We are a Diocesan Family

Growing into the likeness of JesusAll owning the ministry of Christ.

Therefore our "Vision" is to see every Parish transformed into a "Ministering Community in Mission": where every member is valued as an important member of the body of Christ: and is encouraged to identify their God given gifts, and then step out in faith to use their giftedness as a part of the ministry and mission of the Church.

Within the Parish we acknowledge the importance of “Every Member Ministry” and work hard on building a sense of unity. Members of the Parish are encouraged to discover their personal ministry gifts, and determine where their gifts can be used in ministry. However due to the age and personal circumstances of most of our Parishioners at present, the possibilities for ministries are limited.

5. Brief history of Parish:

This Parish was first established in 1926 through three members of the Brotherhood of St. Boniface – Brothers J J Moore, C R Smith and B W Tanner. Prior to this services had been held throughout the district in homes and local halls. The Brothers were later assisted by the Sisters of St. Elizabeth.

Throughout the history of the Parish, worship has been held in various Centres: colonial Churches were built and some have since been removed. Currently there are four Centres in the Parish as is mentioned above.

What was the original Rectory in Margaret River has now been fully renovated, and is used as the Parish Centre.

Part 2— our resources for ministry

6. List of Parish Leadership

Priest with Oversight: Fr Joe Hopkins (Diocesan Archdeacon) Associate Priest: Rev. Mary Esslemont Bishop’s Warden: Mrs Elizabeth CrimpParish treasurer: Mr Alan CarsonParish Council: Mrs Lyn Jones

Mrs Virginia Gilmore

Mrs Judy Bennett Mrs Helen Matheson Mr Alan Carson

Synod Reps: Mrs Virginia Gilmore

7. General information about the Community

The Augusta Margaret River Shire is located in the south-west corner of the South West region of Western Australia, approximately 270 km south of Perth. The Shire covers an area of 2,243 square km, and has a population of about 11,000, about half of whom live in the towns of Margaret River and Augusta.The Parish consists of 4 churches in the main Centre’s, of the Parish and one bush church in the outlying area of Osmington.It was a large timber area then became an agricultural area, with dairy, beef and sheep. Viticulture was the next agricultural pursuit and hobby farms are on the increase with a lot of the workers being FIFO and a regular tourist destination. There is a large number of backpackers. Who come for the seasonal work in the summer (vines and hospitality) and enjoy the local surfing.

8 Map - showing location of Parish and Churches

9 Information on each of the worship Centres and Parish buildings

St Elizabeth of Hungary Augusta47 Allnut Terrace

Some sixty years ago Augusta was nothing more than a small fishing village on the south coast reached by a rough gravel road from Vasse. By 1957 the township had an Anglican Church due the efforts of a number of enthusiastic retirees. The building came from the paddocks of Kudarup and had been built as a kiln for drying locally grown tobacco leaf. The refurbished Church held about 30 worshipers, sufficient for most of the year. A new building of multi – purpose design was constructed on the large site. It is full of natural light and is airy, with seating in comfort for over 150 people. The “old Church” was retained and adjoins the new one. This has been used for social gatherings, Sunday School and children’s ministry.The building lends itself to a variety of social activities and there is a loud speaker system and reverse cycle air conditioning.

St Margaret of Scotland Margaret River11 Station Road

St Margaret’s is of high heritage interest. It was built by local craftsmen Les and Arthur Mann in 1926 and its original fabric is largely intact. It is also the only building of its type in Margaret River that has continued to be used for its original purpose since the consolidation of the town in the 1920s. The style of the building is classed as Inter War Gothic. It was dedicated to Saint Margaret of Scotland by Bishop Wilson on 30th January 1927. St Margaret is the Patron Saint of wives. Queen of Scotland, she died in 1093 and was canonised in 1250. Her dedicated Chapel is the oldest part of Edinburgh Castle. We hold services at 9.00am on Sundays and Thursdays. Special services are arranged on the major festivals of the Christian Calendar as well as occasional services as required.

Parish Centre Margaret River. 11 Station Road

The Centre is a fully restored heritage building just behind the Church. It opens on to decked areas and the veranda at the front is a pleasant feature. The Centre is available to approved local groups for regular meetings or functions. For a time this building had served as the Rectory for the resident Parish Priest. Recently Work has been undertaken to improve the grounds around the Church, and to improve parking. Shortly the boundary fence on the northern side of the block will be replaced, with a hitch and rail.

Parish Rectory:40 Riverslea Drive, Margaret River

The current Rectory is at present being rented out as we do not have a resident Parish Priest. This house was purchased as an investment property after the sale of a block of land next to the Margaret River Church, until a decision could be made about where the Rectory should be located within the Parish.

St Mary’s Cowaramup. Pioneer Park, Bussell Highway

Cowaramup is an Aboriginal word which translates to “place of the purple-crowned Lorikeet”. St Mary’s sits in a shady nook in the undulating grassed area of Memorial Park in the middle of Cowaramup. The old wooden Church is adjacent to a rose garden and a wall of remembrance commemorating many of the original settlers in the area. The town was gazetted in 1925. The community received a generous donation from Church of England Associates enabling the Church to be built. It was licensed for services in January 1929 and dedicated to St Mary the Virgin on 9th April that year by Bishop Wilson. Services are held at 11.15am on the first and third Sundays of the month. Special services are arranged on the major festivals of the Christian Calendar as well as occasional services as required.

St John the Evangelist OsmingtonOsmington Road

Located 5 km east of the Osmington and Jindong Treeton cross roads: St John’s Church is a charming and rustic Group Settlement Church. An unexpected gift of £100.00 from the Church of England Associates in England in the 1920s enabled the Group Settlers to consider building their place of worship. The Church was then built by locals Mr H H (Charlie) Williams and his 16yr old son Chas, and because of its age and location, it still has no electricity or running water. The first service was held on 27th December 1933 and the church was dedicated to St. John the Evangelist by Bishop Wilson on 2nd February 1934.

10. Parish ministries and groups:

Within the Parish there are two bible study groups:Augusta Bible Study 1:15p.m. MondaysMargaret River Bible Study 10:00a.m. Thursdays

A group of women within the parish, aided by others, knit blankets and beanies for the Mission to seafarers in Bunbury. They have also knitted baby garments to support the “fish and chips AIDS babies” in Africa: and have just sent off a quantity of jumpers, bunny rugs and caps for the infants in a Refugee Detention Centre in Darwin.For several years now, we have been providing morning tea and coffee to those attending hearings at the Local Court House as a Community service.Two new ministries for children have just been initiated within the Parish:

Augusta are to commence the “Joyful Joey’s” for the 0-4yrs. This is a ministry based on music and action, with parents and Grandparents

participating.Margaret River have now begun to make the Sunday morning Eucharist more family focused. Children are encouraged to be involved in various aspects of the worship.

We actively support the older community, by holding services at the local nursing home, once a month. In Augusta we bring the elderly to church. We organize special service on the fifth Sundays to bring the whole parish together.

11. Some Parish statistics:

We currently have 68 families on the Parish role.Last year there were 4 baptisms, 4 funerals, and 4 weddings celebrated in the Parish.The age spread of parishioners is between 1 and 91 years. In recent years the number of children attending services has dropped, and so we have commenced these two new ministries for children. Most of those currently attending worship would be over 50 yrs. Women currently outnumber the men attending services, and many of our people live alone (single).

12. Current Sunday Service Programme First Sunday of the month:

9.00am Margaret River Holy Communion9.30am Augusta Holy Communion11.15am Cowaramup Holy Communion

Second Sunday of the month:9.00am Margaret River Holy Communion9.30am Augusta Holy Communion11.30am Osmington Holy Communion

Third Sunday of the month:9.00am Margaret River Holy Communion9.30am Augusta Holy Communion11.15am Cowaramup Holy Communion

Fourth Sunday of the month:9.00am Margaret River Holy Communion9.30am Augusta Holy Communion

Fifth Sunday of the month:10.00am Whole of Parish Service venue changes.

13. Parish Financials.

Financial statements are available where appropriate.