On Sunday 18 February, a baby grand piano, which had been donated to the church, was dedicated by our Minister and then played in our church for the first time by Ken Vincent. The instrument is a welcome addition to the musical life of The Beacon.

On Sunday 11 March we welcomed the Rev. John Hellyer, chairman of the Methodist South East District, who preached at a special Circuit Service at The Beacon. We were also pleased to welcome the assistant chairman, the Rev. Peter Neatham.

We celebrated Easter with a number of special services and activities, from Palm Sunday, through Maundy Thursday and Good Friday to the Saturday Vigil and Easter Day itself.

Our Easter Sunday family service included Holy Communion and an Affirmation of Faith by more than 20 people who have joined The Beacon during the past 15 months.

We have been pleased to welcome some international visitors to our church. On Sunday 27 May (Pentecost) a family from the United Methodist Church in Stuttgart, Germany, worshipped with us, having just arrived in Dover at the start of a two-week holiday. They came to our service after finding our church website on the internet. On Sunday 10 June we were pleased to welcome some visitors from British Columbia, Canada, who were in Dover and came to our service before embarking on a cruise liner.

On the afternoon of Sunday 27 May, we joined in a special Pentecost Praise service at Granville Gardens, on Dover seafront. We celebrated the birth of the church - despite the rain!

On Saturday 23 June, we held our Beacon Cream Tea Afternoon at the Oast House, Upton Wood, Shepherdswell, and we were grateful to all those who supported it, despite the weather! We raised more than £250 for the building project.

On Sunday 22 June we held a special service at River Methodist Church when we said farewell to our Superintendent Minister, the Rev. Dr. John Johnson and his wife Eileen, and wished them well in their retirement. A service of welcome for our new Superintendent Minister, the Rev. Jim McKnight and his wife Alice, will be held on 28 August at Trinity Church, Deal.

We welcomed our new Superintendent Minister, the Rev. Jim McKnight and his wife Alice at a special servce at Trinity Church, Deal, on 28 August.

The former United Reformed Church building in Dover High Street - St Columba - was severely damaged by fire in September, just as work was nearing completion on converting it into flats.

On Sunday 11 November, we brought our "Love In A Box" boxes which are being taken to children in Romania.

Sunday 18 November was a very special day for us at The Beacon. Our family service included the baptism of Matthew Singh, and it was good to welcome our newest arrival into the family of the church. After the service, we all met in the hall for a Faith Lunch, where a special cake was cut - and shared - to celebrate Matthew's Christening. Our Junior Church children brought toys and games they no longer wanted to they could be sent to children in the Ukraine, via British Humanitarian Aid. And we also held our Junior Church prizegiving. We were grateful to Shirley Carr for presenting the prizes.

On Sunday 18 December, we held a special Songs of Praise service to mark the 300th anniversary of the birth of Charles Wesley.

We celebrated Christmas with a special presentation of the Nativity, performed by members of our Junior Church using puppets, a Candlelight Carol Service, Christmas Eve Communion and Christmas Day praise service.

We have been saddened by the deaths of Win Moon, Lou Young, Fred Whitnall, Eileen Ward, Sue Moat and Joyce Reynaert, as well as a former member of our church, May Griffin.