Staff and Leadership

Please find below an introduction to our church leaders and members of staff.


Pastor : David Whitmarsh Email David		Elder and Secretary : Bertie Coffey Email Bertie
David Whitmarsh (Pastor) was born in Lurgan, raised in Richhill and has been happily married to Alison since 1982. They are blessed with two wonderful daughters and four beautiful granddaughters (two in Rexford NY and two in Winchcombe, Gloucestershire). Since graduating from the Irish Baptist College in 1987 they have served God in Banbridge, Cheddar and Paulsgrove, Portsmouth (Baptist Churches). In 2001, David became the Company Secretary of Grace Baptist Charities in London serving over 50 churches in the South East of England. In 2008 he moved to be Managing Director of The Damaris Trust, Southampton and in 2010 became the Chief Executive of The Lodge Trust (Rutland), a Christian charity supporting people with learning disabilities. Both David and Alison are delighted to be back in Northern Ireland since 2019. David has served God in Ballynahinch Baptist, represented Compassion UK in N.I. and has now accepted the part-time role of Interim Pastor at Newcastle Baptist. Together they pray for the good of the town and everyone who lives and works here because they know true spiritual contentment comes through knowing Jesus as Saviour and Lord. At the end of the day, that's the most important relationship and we've good news to share with all who will listen.		Bertie Coffey (Elder) grew up in Downpatrick and became a Christian through a friend at Queen’s University. Involvement in the Christian Union at Queen’s and in particular friends in the music department CU group were a great help in bringing growth and development. An introduction to United Beach Missions whilst at university resulted in many years of leading teams both in the Republic of Ireland and in England, Wales, Scotland and the Isle of Man. Bertie was also involved with Downpatrick Baptist Church for a number of years prior to becoming a member of Newcastle Baptist in 1997. He became a Deacon and then Elder during the time of Pastor Peter Firth, Pastor Jonathan Murphy and Pastor Mark Patterson. After retiring from teaching at Down High School, Bertie attended the Irish Baptist College for four years, completing the Preparation for Ministry course and found this to be of great help in his role in Newcastle Baptist. His desire is that the local church might grow numerically and spiritually as it seeks to fulfil its motto ‘loving God, loving people.’

If you need to contact the Church then please visit the Contact Us page.

Hello and welcome to our church. If you are a new visitor, we have a page for you to get to know us and learn more about planning a visit.
Click here to see more.

Visitors click here.

Planning your Visit

A Warm Welcome!

If you're coming to our church for the first time here's some information you may find helpful. A warm welcome will await you when you come along.

We meet for worship (details here) every Sunday morning at 11.00 a.m. and every other Sunday evening at 6.30 p.m. - do check "What's On" just in case there are any changes!

Our Services

Our Sunday services are informal; we sing hymns and songs, pray together and read the Bible. A key part of our service is what we call the sermon. This is a Bible based talk of 20-30 minutes giving us teaching and instruction that we can apply to our daily lives.

Twice a month, as part of one of our Sunday services, we have what we call "Communion". This is where we set aside time to specifically remember the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ for our forgiveness. At this time we share bread and wine together. If you are not a believer, and not trusting in Christ alone for salvation, we are happy for you to stay and observe this part of the service.

We also meet each Wednesday night at 7.30 p.m. for Bible Study and prayer together. This is another informal meeting which lasts for about an hour.

Accessibility: There is wheelchair access, and a sound loop for anyone who needs it. There are disabled toilets in the main foyer.

Welcome

What about my kids?

We have programmes lined up for kids of all ages each Sunday morning:

Creche (birth to pre-school ) Children under 6 months are welcome but must be accompanied by their parent/grown-up at all times.
Shine (for Primary School Children. They will leave the service at approx 11.15 a.m.)

Children stay with their parent or grown-up at the start of the service. We really value worshipping God all together as a family. At the appropriate time someone will announce that it's time for the younger members to go to their various groups. You will need to go with your children to their groups and register them as part of our child safety policy.

The kids group activities vary depending on the age but there is a friendly welcome, bible stories, praying, music, craft, fun games and free play. Please don't forget to pick your children up as soon as the service finishes!

Getting Connected

Home Groups

While Sundays are a great way to meet new people, it is often in smaller gatherings that you can really get to know someone. Being part of one of our home groups allows you to make new friends, share together and support each other. Check out Home Groups and see if there’s one that you could join, or we can put you in touch with a home group leader who will be more than happy to invite you along to their group.

Other Activities

We also run the following ministries:

Men's Activities
Women's Ministries
Children's Activities
Senior's Activities

Get in touch with us to plan your visit

If you would like to come and visit the church beforehand you are more than welcome! Get in touch and we can arrange a time that suits you.

Name:

Telephone:

Email Address:
Comments / Questions or anything you would like to say?

Next, we will contact you by email to say hello and help arrange anything necessary for your visit.

Leadership


Pastor		Bertie Coffey
We are currently without a Pastor and will update asap		Elder & Secretary (secretary@newcastlebaptistni.org)

We hope that whoever you are, you will feel at home at our church.

Best Wishes