Provincial Grand Lodge of Mark Master Masons of Hertfordshire
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Hertfordshire WanderersThe Wanderers is an informal group of Hertfordshire (and other!) masons with an urge to travel. Visits are arranged to Lodges in other Provinces, often to Meetings of special interest. Travel is usually by car on an expense sharing basis. Contact Geoff Goodman for details! |
Newsletter
Summer 2005From: W Bro Philip Hoy Provincial Information Officer Ambulance Presentation In 2001 a grant of £2 million was made by the Mark Benevolent Fund to the St John Ambulance, enabling every Mark Province throughout the country to donate a 'state of the art' ambulance to each St John Ambulance District. The Hertfordshire ambulance being presented at the Abbey Church and Cathedral of St Alban in May 2001. The Mark Masons of Hertfordshire were very pleased to play a part in supporting their local community in this way and felt they would like to fund their own Ambulance. Following a three year appeal by R W Bro H Keith Emmerson, Provincial Grand Master, more than £50,000 has been raised by the Mark Masons of Hertfordshire within 30 months. This money has been given solely by the members of the order from their own resources unlike many other groups who collect money from the public for good causes. It has enabled the purchase of a Crusader 900 Ambulance which is fully equipped to do everything from minor operations to resuscitating Heart attack victims as well as provide the first aid cover for which the St. John Ambulance is famous. The Hertfordshire Mark Ambulance was dedicated and formally handed over to St John Ambulance on Sunday 22nd May at the Abbey Church and Cathedral of St Alban. The service of dedication took place as part of the service of Choral Eucharist. The formal handing over ceremony took place outside the West Door.
The County Commander of the St John Dr Christopher Lund laid his hand on the Ambulance and replied “On behalf of the Prior of the Priory of England and the Islands of St John Ambulance, I accept this Ambulance. I thank you for your generosity in providing St John Ambulance in Hertfordshire with such an important and useful vehicle for the continuance of our work in the community”. The Chaplain of the Order of St John then blessed the Ambulance. On this occasion by special permission of the M W Grand Master, full Mark dress regalia were worn both inside the Cathedral during the dedication service and outside at the handing over ceremony. The St John members present wore ceremonial regalia and the Provincial Grand Master, his Deputy and Assistant wore their respective chains of Office.
Mark Masons support treatment into Prostate Cancer As part of their £2 million national initiative to support diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer, the Mark Fund of Benevolence have donated £29,000 to the Urology department at Barnet Hospital to buy a new state of the art Ultrasound Scanner. The presentation took place in the Boardroom, Barnet Hospital, at 3.00pm on the 30th March 2005. On presenting the equipment, RW Bro. Keith Emmerson, Provincial Grand Master for the Hertfordshire Mark Masons said, "On behalf of the Mark Fund of Benevolence, I am delighted to make this presentation today. It is hoped that by this national initiative, hospitals such as the Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals and other similar hospitals throughout the country will be able to provide an early and greater level of treatment for those suffering from this particular disease."’ In reply, Consultant Urologist Tim Briggs said “We are delighted to receive such a generous donation. Our department carries out over 650 biopsies each year to determine whether our patients have prostate cancer, this new equipment is essential to making the diagnosis.” The new scanner, which was also part funded by Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, is the replacement for an older such piece of equipment and will enable quicker patient diagnosis. Tim Briggs explained “Ultrasound assisted biopsies is a minimally invasive procedure which is performed under local anaesthetic. This piece of equipment will help to ensure a quick and accurate diagnosis for the patient.”
(L to R): R W Bro Keith Emmerson: Provincial Grand Master, Patricia Madden: member of Patients Forum & cancer fundraiser, Tim Briggs: Consultant Urologist, Tim Murray: Urology specialist nurse, James Gelister: Consultant Urologist, Alex Nunes: Chairman of Patients Forum, Julie Locke: Assistant Service Manager, Anne Somerville: Urology Specialist Nurse, Alison Palmer: Urology Specialist Nurse and W Bro Philip Hoy, Provincial Information Officer. At the last regular meeting of the Hemel Hempstead Lodge of Mark Master Masons No 1291 held on the 14 April, the Provincial Grand Master, RW Bro Keith Emmerson, together with members of the Provincial Team, undertook the delightful task of Dedicating a new Banner to the Lodge. The day itself was quite special in several ways. Firstly, this is the Lodge into which the Provincial Grand Master was Advanced into Mark Masonry. It was also decided to draw away from normal ceremonial protocol by inviting the Lodge ladies and other guests to be present during the ceremony of Dedication. The Banner was presented by the Lodge Treasurer, WBro Roy Fletcher, who had been particularly instrumental in designing the banner and with the organisation of the occasion.
W Bro Bill Sharpley with the Hemel Hempstead Lodge Banner The second highlight of the day was the father of the Provincial Grand Master becoming a Joining Member of the Lodge. It was felt that whilst Bro Alf Emmerson, who is in his 90th year and is a member of the York and North East Province, has been a most ardent and strong supporter of Hertfordshire since R W Bro Keith took office, it was high time he became a fully subscribing member.
At the end of the day the Worshipful Master, W Bro Bill Sharpley, expressed the views of all on what had been a very poignant and memorable day for both the Lodge and the Province. MTSFFC Fishing Day If you want to see the ideals and values of Freemasonry in action you would be hard pressed to find a better example that the Masonic Trout and Salmon Fly Fishing Club. I am sure that, like me in the past, you have assumed that this club is for fishermen who also happen to be freemasons and therefore of no interest to non-fishermen; believe me, nothing could be further from the truth. This wonderful organisation gives up it’s time and energy to bring excitement into the lives of handicapped and disadvantaged children and adults. They take them for a days fishing and give them the thrill of catching fish through their own efforts. The Provincial Grand Lodges of Mark Master Masons of Hertfordshire and Middlesex were very pleased to have jointly sponsored just such a day on the 22nd of June at Rib Valley Lakes near Ware. It was attended amongst others by our Provincial Grand Master R W Bro Keith Emmerson, R W Bro Peter Halls-Dickerson, the PGM of Middlesex and the Pro Grand Master of the Craft M W Bro The Rt Hon The Marquess of Northampton (Patron of the MTSFFC), R W Bro Gordon Bourne (President of the MTSFFC) as well as our Deputy Provincial Grand Master, W Bro John Oakley Smith, our Provincial Treasurer W Bro Colin Hellyer and our Provincial Charity Steward, W Bro Andy Golledge Pupils from 4 schools and clients of 2 Special needs adult centres totalling 60 participants attended the day. After a welcome and a Health and safety briefing they were given to the care of casters on a one to one basis. As well as learning to cast for fly fishing they were also shown ledgering and float fishing.
Fishermen in action
Ken Haslar was on hand to tell the tale of the one that got away but in total they had a good haul of 2 trout and around 60 silver fish (apparently fishermen will know what these are) Every participant received a certificate for taking part but special certificates were awarded for the biggest fish, best retriever and biggest catch with a special certificate going to the attending St. John First-Aider for managing to catch a Duck.
A raffle for a Mountain bike raised the amazing sum of £880. This was donated to an appeal on behalf of a young lady named Emma for an all terrain wheelchair. It was a highly successful day which brought enjoyment to the participants and the 150 helpers alike and something we can all be proud of supporting as a Province. Masters and Commanders Sunday Lunch Sunday April 10th at Mayflower place Hertingfordbury was the date and venue of this years annual Master and Commanders Carvery Lunch. It was fully subscribed and very much enjoyed by all although there has been some questions raised over the PGM’s design for a new uniform amongst the senior officers of the Province following his return from Australia.
Jim Sharpley, Colin Hellyer, Michael Roff & John Oakley-Smith model Items of news should be sent to Philip Hoy at info@hertsmark.org or by fax to 01279 817793. |
© 2008 The Provincial Grand Lodge of Mark Master Masons of Hertfordshire. All Rights Reserved. Updated:21st April 2008 |
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