the link issue 55 autumn 14

The Link Autumn 2014 1

Autumn 2014 Issue No. 55The LINKA shed load of help

• The legend that was Vernon ‘Ginger’ Coles • Air Ambulance benefi ts from Berkshire Freemasonry• Your guide to Twitter and how to ‘Tweet’ for the fi rst time

BMC replaces stolen school shed - Page 2

2 The Link Autumn 2014

Next Issue 56January 2015

Deadline 1st December 2014

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Toastmaster Provincial Grand Master’s address to Provincial Grand LodgeTuesday 23rd September 2014 The following is a summary of the key points made by The Provincial Grand Master when he addressed the Provincial Grand Lodge of Berkshire. The full text of this address can be read at www.berkspgl.org.ukThe Provincial Grand Master commenced his address by thanking the members and Provincial guests from other Provinces for their attendance. He then recounted some remarkable highlights and successes from a record breaking year:The record turnout out of 374 attendees, including many local Civic Dignitaries, members and guests who heard presentations from recipients of Grand Charity grants which brought tears to many an eye.The wonderful support received from the Provincial Grand Officers and Ruling Masters of Berkshire Lodges throughout the year, especially their record attendance at the Quarterly Communications of Grand Lodge in March and June.The bi-centenary meeting (Berkshire’s first) of the Etonian Lodge of St John attended by the Pro Grand Master and the centenary meeting of The Berkshire Masters Lodge.The response to the challenge to arrest the long term decline in membership:• The growth in members and memberships since January 2014• The very successful ‘Introduction to Freemasonry’ initiative• The support given to Lodges in difficulties by the Provincial Support TeamThe Provincial Grand Master then issued a challenge to every lodge in Berkshire to grow by at least two members by September 2016. He pointed out that Freemasonry is universal and age is no barrier. There has been a very pleasing influx of younger members but he also read a lovely letter from a new member, aged 71, proving that you are never too old to join.We live in a fast changing world and earlier in the year the Provincial Grand Master

posed the question “Is Freemasonry keeping up with these changes?” He recognised that much of our enjoyment of Freemasonry derives from its ancient traditions and whilst continuing to honour these, we must always be reviewing and improving what we are delivering to ensure Freemasonry achieves its full promise – not only to Masons and their extended family but also to the community. He congratulated those who had received a first appointment or been promoted and special mention was made of three Provincial Officers who retired at the meeting: W Bro John Gilbert who has been an excellent Provincial Grand Almoner for the past seven years. W Bro David Lewendon who has held the office of Provincial Grand Mentor ever since it was first introduced and who built the mentoring scheme almost from scratch to make Berkshire one of the most advanced Provinces in developing and applying mentoring. W Bro Alan Spearman who has served the Province with diligence for the past four years as Provincial Assistant Grand Secretary. The Provincial Grand Master welcomed their replacements to the team: W Bros David Jarvis, Anthony Howlett-Bolton and Ian Clark.The Provincial Grand Master concluded with a positive view of the future: “Overall, we can be well pleased with the progress made over the past year and I am sure the year ahead will be no less challenging or exciting but we will not get there without the support, enthusiasm and creative thinking required from each and every one of us.”

New BMC Shed Easter 2014 saw the callous theft of a shed from Sulhampstead and Ufton Nervet Primary School. The pupils favourite toys were left strewn all over the playground with some being damaged beyond repair by the weather. The Berkshire Masonic Charity has stepped in and completely funded the cost (£1500) of a new shed for the school. Class teacher Jane Evans said “We are delighted to have the new shed and are very grateful tor all the help and support from the BMC”. David Jarvis of the BMC said “It was a great privilege to be able to help and to see the smiles on the faces of the children”.

Above: Classmates were not happy that their Reception class shed was stolen. Cover picture : BMC’s David Jarvis gets a high five from a much happier Jessica Gibson (she is pictured above in the front)


Light Blues visit Grand Lodge

The Deputy Provincial Grand Master VW Bro Colin Hayes made a special visit to The Christopher Wren Lodge No. 4855 in March to present W Bro Harry Benford with his ‘60 Years in Freemasonry’ certificate. W Bro Harry was quite overwhelmed with this presentation which was followed by W Bro George Coates presenting him with a silver salver on behalf of all the Lodge members. There were twelve Grand Officers also in attendance.

W Bro Harry was very pleased to have his brothers present, VW Bro Ken Benford our Provincial Grand Superintendent and W Bro Colin Benford who is Master of the Lodge. An excellent Festive Board at the Castle Hotel in Windsor, followed the Meeting ended a very memorable day for us all.

The Light Blues Club organised a visit to the United Grand Lodge of England (UGLE) on Thursday 29th May by coach. 35 Light Blues and their guests were treated to a guided tour of Grand Lodge which included the Library, Museum and Main Temple. The guide ably described the interesting points of the Grand Lodge building and temple in which the ceiling coving was a sight to behold. The tour ended with a visit to the UGLE shop and a buffet lunch in a private room at the Prince of Wales pub. 35 satisfied customers then travelled back to Sindlesham. Many thanks to Steve Gotting and the Light Blues committee for organising the day. Peter Sullivan

Ruby Gong for Harry Scotland comes to BerkshireAround 100 brethren turned out to see a team of 19 Glasgow Masons from the “Lodge Tower” come to Sindlesham, to demonstrate a “3rd Degree Ceremony of Raising” (Scottish Style).We had been warned that this would be quite serious for our volunteer candidate, Brother Peter Tarlton and he had been told that he was not allowed to fight back.This was going to be a serious trial of his Fortitude and Fidelity.I do hope that the candidate was able to understand the working performed on him (with the aid of the items in front of him) and all that was said had a few people commenting on the strong Glasgow accent. It all made it very authentic.Everybody there appeared most impressed and interested, including the Opening and Closing of each of the Degrees.A thoroughly enjoyable afternoon was followed by a very friendly Festive Board at which the brethren assembled very kindly donated £600. This was to be split between our own Berkshire Masonic Charity and the charity of choice of the visiting Scottish brethren.I am sure that the brethren of the Pangbourne Lodge were extremely grateful for the support given to this meeting by all who attended.

Terry Speight


Vernon ‘Ginger’ ColesVernon ‘Ginger’ Coles, an engineer on midget submarines who steered attacks on German warships hiding off Norway As Editor of the LINK for the last 7 years it is with regret I learned of the passing of Vernon Coles. I interviewed and photographed him for the cover of the second Link I edited as he installed his grandson into the Chair of Theale on Holybrook Lodge. A remarkable man of that there is no doubt and a man I am honoured to have met.

Coles returning from Bergen and leaving X24 immediately following the attack on the floating dock Chief Engine Room Artificer Vernon “Ginger” Coles, who has died aged 94, took part in the Second World War in several daring raids using four-man midget submarines, known as X-craft. X-craft were 51ft long, 5ft 9in in diameter with internal headroom of 4ft 8in and powered by a reliable 42-horse power Gardner diesel engine giving a range of 1800 nautical miles. Each carried two 2-ton explosive charges to be placed under the bow and stern of the target and detonated by a time fuse, set from inside the submarine. For Operation Source, the attack using midget submarines on the heavy German warships Tirpitz, Scharnhorst and Lützow, which were hiding in the northern Norwegian fjords,

Coles was the designated engineer and steersman of X-9. He recalled: “As the German fleet would not come out to fight, X-craft were the only means of sinking German ships that was likely to work.” Coles as a stoker in HMS Faulknor at the beginning of the war The craft, manned by

passage crews, were towed by normal submarines into position off the Norwegian coast, where attack crews were to take over. “During the training exercises,” Coles continued, “it was realised that the manila tow-ropes stretched under tension and, after anything up to five days, snapped. The best tow-ropes were the nylon ones used by the RAF for towing gliders, however the RAF were only willing to supply three ropes.” When, on September 11 1943, six X-craft left their base at Loch Cairnbawn, one of the suspect manila ropes was attached to X-9. “The line snapped at the parent submarine end and the weight of 500ft of wet 4in manila rope attached to the bow of the X-craft

dragged it down to below the safe diving depth and beyond. The towing crew, Sub-Lieutenant “Paddy” Kearan, Able Seaman “Darkie” Hart, and Stoker “Ginger” Hollet were all lost. “I honestly thought Tirpitz would have been blown sky high,” Coles continued. “And if everything had gone to plan she probably would have been, what with 12 tonnes of explosive under her – that would have broken her back without a doubt. But the real problem was the tow ropes. I lost three very close friends. Three dedicated people – Ginger Hollett in particular. He and I were the only two engine room people in the crews and he was a bubbly fellow, full of life and always working, doing something for the betterment of the boat.” As it turned out, three of the remaining boats, X-5, X-6, and X-10, (later portrayed in the film Above Us the Waves (1955) starring John Mills,) extensively damaged Tirpitz. But nine men had been lost (three in X-9) and six taken prisoner. Two VCs, four DSOs, one DSC, one CGM and three MBEs were awarded. Next Coles teamed up with the Australian X-craft captain Lieutenant Max Shean, first lieutenant Joe Brooks, and diver Frank Ogden for Operation Guidance. A lesson of Operation Source was the potential for confusion during multi-craft attacks, so on April 14 1944 Shean’s X-24 was towed to Norway for a solo attack on shipping in Bergen harbour. Explosive charges were successfully laid under a German merchant ship, Barenfels, and 24 hours later, sick and suffering from headaches caused by the stale air in the boat, Shean and his crew rendezvoused at sea with the submarine Sceptre to be towed home. Coles had steered X-24 continuously for 19 hours. Shean was awarded the DSO for his courage, and Coles was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal, the highest award then available to ratings for bravery and resourcefulness, barring the VC.

Coles (left) with Max Shean and Joe Brooks who were crew on X24 “Max [Shean] was the only captain I would sail with,” Coles said later. “When we went into Bergen one would have thought we were going on exercise. He was cheerful, confident

Vernon in St Nicholas’ Church Newbury viewing the dedication the HM Submarine Tigris which was adopted by Vernon’s home town Newbury during the Second World War

and pleased that we were doing something useful with no thought of not coming back.” After D-Day the X-craft were deployed to the Far East for Operation Sabre. When the experienced submariner, US Admiral Chester Nimitz, Commander-in-Chief, Pacific Ocean Areas, first saw one of the midget submarines he declared it a “suicide craft” which had no place in the Allies’ order of battle. But when orders came from Washington to cut two underwater telegraph cables off Japanese-occupied Saigon, he soon pressed them into service. Shean designed special grapnels to hook the cables and Coles manufactured these in the workshops of the depot ship before they set off, once more under tow, from Queensland to the Mekong river. On July 31 1945 they began a submarine trawl for the cables, and after Coles had steered X-E4 across the river several times he snagged a cable and was suddenly brought to a halt. Just 13 minutes later a diver, Australian Sub-Lieutenant Ken Briggs, returned with a short length of cable as souvenir. Coles continued to steer underwater across the Mekong, and a second cable was found an hour later; this time Sub-Lieutenant Adam Bergius emerged from the airlock brandishing a length of cable as proof that it too had been cut. Coles was mentioned in despatches. Vernon Coles was born on April 16 1920 at Tilehurst, Berkshire. Orphaned at the age of 5, he was brought up by an uncle and aunt. He left the local school at 14 to become an apprentice toolmaker at Huntley Boorne and Stevens, manufacturers of biscuit tins which are now collectors’ items. Inspired by Sunday school outings to see the fleet in review at Weymouth, he joined the Navy in 1938. His first ship was the destroyer Faulknor, one of the hardest working destroyers in the fleet, which was the first ship to sink a German U-boat, and in which Coles took part in the Norwegian Campaign in 1940, served with Force H in the Mediterranean on the Malta convoys, and escorted convoys to Russia and across the Atlantic. He volunteered for submarine service in 1942.


Our money, in the form of BMC and Grand Charity grants, have helped towards saving this boy’s life. As Masons we should be very proud to support the Air Ambulance as no one that got up in the morning ever thought they were going to need it. Most didn’t. For everyone that has had a free ride in the helicopter it was not a ride they would have wished for but was one that they were very grateful for. Ed

Lucas’ StoryMarch 2013, the Air Ambulance was manned with Pilot Ges and Paramedics Gerry, Adam and Lee. In the ambulance control room in Bicester manning the Special Incident Desk (SID) was paramedic Clive. Paramedic Lee tells the story;At 17:09 Clive rang sending us to a drowning in a pond involving an 18 month old boy (Lucas) at a location in South Oxfordshire. We were airborne at 17:11.After five minutes flying we were overhead. We were all looking out for ponds and/or people. We could see neither. We contacted Clive to get a better location or to get someone outside to make themselves known to us. Meanwhile we did about 3 circuits of the village all desperately looking for signs of our patient. Then one of us spotted two women running into a field with one carrying a child.As soon as we landed at 17:19 we were out of the doors. Gerry got the child from Mum and started mouth to mouth CPR. Adam got an I Gel airway out for Gerry to insert. Adam then placed an EZIO needle into the patient’s leg. I connected the monitor and defib pads and took a temperature. The front paramedic seat was turned rearwards so that all three of us could have hands on the patient en route.Once completed we got the Mum and grandmother to move away from the helicopter. A land crew was also coming to the scene to look after and transport the family to hospital. We were now ready

to leave. All this had been done with the noise and turbulence of the rotors running.We took off at 17:26 heading for the John Radcliffe hospital in Oxford. Ges did not need to be told to fly as fast as possible. Likewise, the SID did not need to be told what our intentions were. Clive had already pre alerted the JR and had arranged a crew to meet us at the helipad. During the flight one dose of Adrenaline was given and CPR continued. We carried the child the short distance to A&E. From there it was a trolley push into Resus 3 where we were met by a full team of medical staff. He was placed on the hospital bed and a handover given.Sometime later whilst doing our paperwork we saw the desperate sight of mum and dad arriving. Before leaving to go back to the helicopter we received a glimmer of hope when we were told that the hospital had got a pulse back. Over the coming days we received regular updates about steady gradual improvement.Lucas made an astonishing recovery and amazed doctors and family. There is absolutely no doubt that little Lucas would not be here if it wasn’t for the speed at which he was treated and taken to hospital.

Air Ambulance

The Berkshire Masonic Charity belongs to each and every one of us in Berkshire but to derive the very best benefit from it, we do need to know how to apply for support from them when the need occurs. This is much more straightforward than you might expect. Firstly, any one of our Berkshire members can make an application. Preferably you would make the application through either your Lodge or Chapter Almoner or your Lodge Charity Steward who would directly contact the BMC Applications Secretary or, indeed if appropriate, to achieve speed or maintain confidentiality you can make the application yourself. The BMC Applications Secretary will present a form for completion which will then be passed on to the BMC Applications Committee who will carry out some background

research and present it to the BMC Management Committee at the very next quarterly meeting. The better the presentation the easier it is evaluated and the quicker it can be processed. The applicant’s name and contact details are very important at this stage as members of the Berkshire Masonic Charity Team may want additional information or feel that help may be available from alternative or additional sources.After the quarterly meeting, the applicant will be advised of the outcome of the claim and, if approved by the Committee, a cheque from the BMC will be provided directly to the applicant or to the source of the application for onward transmission.

Gerry Hann

Berkshire Masonic Charity - your charityHow to make an application


A team of volunteers from The Berkshire Freemasons helped CLIC Sargent by raising nearly £1,800 at Windsor Races selling raffle tickets to the punters attending the race meet and a bucket collection as guests were leaving. CLIC Sargent also had a big hospitality unit where they held a Dinner and an Auction which contributed to the substantial amount of money raised.

Jo Pugh, Major Events Executive for CLIC Sargent said:

“I wanted to say a very big thank you for all your hard work on the night, we really do appreciate it. I’m delighted to let you know that the final amount for the raffle and bucket collection was £1,788.70 which is amazing! This is more than we raised last year and couldn’t have done it without your wonderful volunteers. This amount has contributed to us raising £225,000 on Monday night which we are thrilled with”

This year the Education Committee is running the greatest number of seminars it has ever done. We have continued to develop new courses in response to requests and have some more planned during the year in addition to those below.

13th November Effective Speaking in PublicThis one evening seminar is intended to assist brethren who are not confident with public speaking.

27th November 2014: Learning the Ritual: a personal approachThe aim of this evening is not to teach ritual or practice it – that is for Lodges of Instruction. This evening is to give brethren ideas on how to help them learn and remember the ritual.

7th January 2015

Ambassadors for the Craft

Being able to discuss Freemasonry with prospective members knowledgeably, confidently and enthusiastically is a key skill for us all. This evening will give you lots of useful statistics, information and sound bites for you to use when talking to non-masons.

15th January 2015 Explaining the First DegreeLast April 100 brethren attanded. This evening will be based in a temple. It will give the background to various parts of the

ritual. It was an outstanding evening and if you did not come in April make sure you put this date in your diary!

18th February

DCs and ADCs evening

This evening is for current and prospective lodge DCs and ADCs as well as those thinking about taking over those offices. It covers such matters as the role of the DC at meetings, installation meetings and Festive Boards.

10th March

Top Ten Tips for Junior Officers

…. Or ‘Everything you always wanted to know about being Inner Guard…but were afraid to ask’. This evening is open to master masons and looks at the ‘junior offices’ (IG, JD, SD, JW and SW) and offers help, advice and tips for each so that brethren who are about to take up each office know what is expected of them (and why).

If you would like to register now for any of the above seminars, please send an email to: [email protected] giving yourname, lodge, rank and the course you are booking.

Brothers help CLIC Sargent at the races

The ‘Have-a-Go’ clay pigeon shoot at Lains Barn near Wantage on Sunday 1st June was a great success. 80 Freemasons together with their friends and families enjoyed the glorious summer weather watching the action. Over 50 people of all ages and abilities had a go at the clays with expert tuition being given all afternoon.

The bar served soft drinks all day, and something stronger when the shooting was over, and the day was rounded off with a wonderfully tasty hog-roast.

Many people made the day the success it was but particular thanks go to: Henry Bishop who produced the shooting equipment and the instructors and set up the field (with help, or was it hindrance, from Len Starling); Alan Cottrell who provided the venue and the hog-roast; Finlay Gordon for all the admin; and last but certainly not least Doreen Bishop, Sue Dance, Clare Cottrell & Janet Starling for the food and bar serving.

Many people expressed a hope that the event could be repeated next year. More ‘shots’ of the day can be viewed at www.berkspgl.org.uk

Clay Pigeon Shoot at Wantage

Masons and volunteers at Windsor Races.

Education seminars

More shots of the day can be


Great ride out to Stratford on Sunday 3rd August. Seven members from the Thames Valley Motor Cycle Lodge (TVMCL), joined by four ‘almost members’ assembled on a variety of motorcycles at the H Café near Abingdon for the day’s ride-out. After greetings and a hearty English breakfast in the open air sunshine, we departed in staggered formation. With 11 riders we formed into 2 Groups with Marcus Hilsdon (SW – Triumph Rocket) leading the first group and Ian Hopgood (JD – Honda Blackbird) guiding the second.

Our 65 mile route took us around Oxford to join the A44, then out to historic Woodstock followed by open Cotswolds roads taking us through Enstone, Chipping Norton and Moreton-in-the-Marsh before descending the exhilarating ‘Fish Hill’ to Broadway. From there the B4362 country roads into Stratford where the 2 groups re-assembled in the designated motorcycle park. We chatted by the river in glorious sunshine over a drink and ice-cream for an hour before heading back.

Our return route followed the A422 to Banbury for a refuelling stop. From here the riders divided and re-grouped according to their homeward direction. The eastern-based riders headed towards Oxford and home while the western-based riders headed to Chipping Norton, Burford, Letchlade and home.

Many thanks to Marcus for planning the ride-out and to the members (Andy W, Ian H, David A, Roger, Graham & Jason) for their support and for making it a safe-riding day out. Thanks also to the ‘almost members’ (Paul, Andy, Mark & Richard) for their company.

Paul Wilding

Riverside Gardens, Stratford (L-R Paul, Marcus, Dave, Richard, David & Andy W).

Bikers Ride Out

“The Berkshire Masonic Charity’s School Charity Award” might be a bit of a mouthful but it’s a good description and will be starting its 5th year in September. From a pilot started by Wokingham Lodge for 8 local schools the scheme has grown to 72% of the 47 state secondary schools in the Province taking part. This year a major expansion has been agreed and funded by the Berkshire Masonic Charity

which will extend the offer to the 25 independent schools in the Province.

The scheme rewards a student in each school whose charitable work has stood out in the year. The student receives a £25 iTunes voucher for themself and a £30 donation to the charity of their choice, together with a certificate of achievement. The student nomination is made by the school and they are really good at spotting those who have spent significant amounts of their own time and effort in charitable work.

Richard Grayson from Wokingham Lodge who runs the scheme says: “I have been genuinely astonished at the motivation, achievements, dedication and results of so many young people. In many cases the student and their chosen charity reflect a personal or family event such as injury, illness or death and I’m constantly struck by the immense personal struggles which a lot of them have had to endure. If a student’s chosen charity is “Advocacy After Fatal Domestic Abuse” there’s clearly a powerful and serious motivation.

Their charitable activities range from extreme physical challenges to long-term community work and acts of dedicated thoughtfulness. Many of the achievements would be remarkable for adults, for teenagers they are absolutely amazing. Here are just a few examples:

• A team of 3 lads swam The Channel which, allowing for adverse currents,

means they each swam about 12 miles, encountering jellyfish, planks of wood and of course large ships.

• 190-mile coast-to-coast walk

• Baking cakes for every school event for 5 years and selling them for charity.

• Raising money for the Air Ambulance after her sister only just made it to hospital by helicopter

• Volunteering at a MENCAP club developing arts, crafts & sports

• Helping to build homes for genocide orphans in Rwanda

• A girl shaved her head to raise funds & awareness for cancer research because one of her family died of it. Bearing in mind how conscious teenage girls can be about their appearance it was a very bold and brave step for her to take

• After undergoing chemotherapy & radiotherapy over a period of 2 years, a teenager & her family organised a concert for a cancer charity, raising over £15,000

The picture shows Ruth Hawes of Windsor Girls’ School receiving her award for her regular and thoughtful work for a number of local charities. Recognition by a body outside their school and family means a lot to the students and Richard has received many messages saying how proud and pleased they were to be nominated.

W. Bro. Richard Grayson making the award to Ruth Hawes of Windsor Girls’ School on 26th June

The Berkshire Masonic Charity’s School Charity Award


Twitter BasicsDifferent social media sites have different uses, strengths, and advantages. Twitter could be called a ‘real time social networking’ site, a place for sharing information as it happens, and for connecting with others in real time, often resulting in lasting friendships and contacts.In this year’s Link we will be presenting a series of ‘How-to’ articles to teach members how to use this fun, free, and useful tool. It can be a bit intimidating at first, but don’t be put off - with a little effort and some intuitive “feeling your way through”, you’ll soon be able to use Twitter well - and you might even become digitally famous!

Creating an Account and making your First TweetWe’ll kick off this edition with a quick guide to creating a twitter account, signing in and walking you through the steps to make your very first tweet!

1. Go to www.twitter.com and sign up for a free account. Do so by entering your name, email address, and desired password in the provided space or simply click on the Sign up for Twitter button.

Your AccountYou will be presented with a similar sign up screen, from here it’s a simple matter of filling in the appropriate fields.• The first field is your real name.

One way others can find you on Twitter is searching your name.

• The next field is your Username. Try to pick a username that is descriptive and unique to you. This will be the name your followers use when sending @Replies, @Mentions or direct messages. It will also form the web address (or URL) of your twitter page.

• Next, enter a password.

• Once you have entered a sufficiently strong password, please provide an email address. The email address is used to confirm your account before you can finish the signup process. You can determine whether or not you want to allow others to find you on twitter by searching for your email address.

• Next, twitter will try to make suggestions of profiles you should follow to help you build your network. Each time you select an interest, a list of suggested users is generated. Clicking the follow button next to a user’s name will add them to the list of users you are following.

• Twitter will also prompt you to log into gmail, yahoo or hotmail. Twitter would then scan your contacts lists and if it finds an email address that is associated with a twitter profile it returns that profile to you and you can choose to follow it or not. It’s another way of helping you build your twitter network.

• Twitter will offer you a screen to invite others in your accounts not on twitter to join. You can skip this step by clicking cancel.

• The last page gives you an opportunity to search for someone specific on twitter. You can click the blue Next Step button to finish.

Great! You’ve just set up your twitter account. Now you may begin editing your profile, finding people to follow and even start tweeting. Note that there is a twitter mobile app which can be installed on your smartphone. Once installed, it’s a simple matter of logging in using the same username and password you used to set up your account.


Learning to use the Twitter lingoIt’s important to understand some of the terms used in twitter. In this edition we’ll explore some of the basic ones you’ll need.

Tweet - a tweet is essentially a post or update containing 140 characters or less, which can include @Mentions to other users, hashtags, external links to websites, or simple regular text.

Hashtag - Prefacing a word with a ‘#’ will create a hashtag. You have likely seen #hashtags everywhere these days. Twitter, Google+, Instagram, Pinterest, and many other social sites use hashtags to create instant connections with other users. A hashtag makes a certain word easily searchable. Some Trending topics will include hashtags, thus making it easier for users to tap into a Twitter-wide conversation regarding a single matter of interest.

Followers/Following - Your Twitter can be as intimate or as big as you choose. People who you choose to follow are those individuals who you will be notified of if they tweet anything. These individuals are people you are Following. People can also choose to follow you, and in this scenario, these individuals will be notified of any new tweets you post. These individuals are your Followers. If your goal is to gather lots of Followers, be sure to keep your posts interesting and relevant. You shouldn’t underestimate the power of following others, either—often times if you follow someone they’ll follow you back.

That’s enough definitions for now; we’ll provide more next issue.

Finally, we’ll get you posting your first tweet.

Let’s get TweetingTo compose a new tweet, simply click on the ‘compose tweet’ button at the very top right corner of the webpage. It looks like this:A pop up text field will appear, and from here you can type your tweetYou will be able to type your tweet in the textbox (A). You can make @Mentions, referencing another user, create a hashtag and even put links to other websites.You can also add a picture to your tweet or share your location if it’s relevant. You can do this by clicking on the buttons located below your textbox (B). You will only be able to post up to 140 characters. There will be a character count down (C) which will help you keep track. If you type too many characters, this count down will go into negative numbers and you won’t be able to post your tweet until it goes back into positive numbers or hits 0.Once you’ve composed your tweet, simply click on the ‘Tweet’ button and your tweet will be posted on your feed.That’s it for now! There will be more information in the next issue. In the meantime, don’t be afraid to explore and add details to your profile (A profile photo normally helps). You can follow tweets from the official provincial twitter feed by searching for @Berkspgl. Here you’ll get the latest updates on any news stories or worthwhile masonic events within the province of Berkshire.


Latest Provincial statistics indicate a dramatic reduction in the average age of Berkshire Freemasons. Presenting the most recent figures W Bro David Keys, Provincial Grand Secretary commented: ‘This is most encouraging news and a significant step forward in the Five Year Plan. It is clear that younger

brethren who have joined the Craft are introducing friends in their own age group; this is clearly a win-win situation’.Comparing the figures over a four year period memberships in the 21 to 30 age group have more than trebled; and those in the 30 to 40 age group has increased by 25%. So it all points towards an encouraging drop in the average age of Berkshire Freemasons which is

good news for the future of Berkshire Freemasonry.W Bro Rowan Singh (28) of Ashley Hill Lodge No 7861 is one such member. He is currently one of the youngest Masters in the Province. W Bro Rowan was initiated in 2008 and has occupied all progressive offices in the lodge before becoming Worshipful Master at the June Installation meeting. He was proposed for membership by former work colleague, W Bro Eric Dean, a long standing member of the lodge who preceded him as Master in 2013.W Bro Singh is seen here receiving the Travelling Gavel from W Bro Richard Clements, Master of Priory Lodge No 9268 at their July meeting. A number of brethren from Ashley Hill Lodge attended the meeting to support W Bro Rowan. W Bro Clements commented that he had only been in possession of the gavel of 10 days having received it from Trevelyan Lodge the previous week! The gavel was handed on to The Acre Lodge No. 8422 at the next regular meeting of Ashley Hill Lodge on 2nd September.

Of all the many orders and degrees outside the Craft and the Royal Arch, there is no doubt that for many the pinnacle of their Freemasonry is membership of the Ancient and Accepted Rite. The 18th Degree is the one “beyond” the Craft that they would be most reluctant to lose. It is very rare to hear any member speak lightly about the Rose Croix and they are right to value it so highly.Supreme Council, the Authority under which the Order operates, believes a member of the Craft should be aware of the following, before his name is submitted to a Chapter for consideration as a candidate for Perfection into this Christian Order.A candidate should know that:1) He will be joining a Christian Order known as “The Ancient and Accepted Rite” which comprises of thirty-three degrees.2) Membership of the Order implies a desire for further advancement in Masonic knowledge. Its degrees will be found to amplify the teachings of Craft Masonry within a Christian context. For this reason a candidate must profess the Trinitarian Christian Faith and will be required, prior to any formal consideration of his candidature, to sign a declaration to this effect.3) The Order acknowledges the authority of The United Grand Lodge of England over the three degrees of Craft Masonry and accepts them as the equivalents of the corresponding degrees of the Rite. For this reason a candidate must:(a) Have been a Master Mason for at least one full year and be in good standing with the Craft before he can be elected to membership of this Order.(b) Have received his three Craft degrees in a Lodge or Lodges under The United Grand Lodge of England unless otherwise authorised in the Rules of Supreme Council.4) A candidate is expected to seek admission into a Chapter near his home or place of business. He will be asked for his reasons if this is not the case. The object of this requirement is to preserve the friendly and intimate atmosphere in which our Chapters meet.5) Once accepted and elected as a candidate for Perfection he will have the 18th Degree conferred on him in full, the Intermediate Degrees ( 4th to 17th) being first conferred by name.6) As a member of a Chapter he will be invited, over a period of years, to progress through a number of offices in succession (should he so wish) before attaining the Chair, as in other

Masonic Orders. The learning requirements of these offices are minimal. The ritual of the Chair requires more work but it is usually shared so that the demands of the office are reduced and the pleasure of the year enhanced.I have endeavoured to outline the basis of membership of this wonderful order. It would obviously be wrong at this stage to go into detail about the Perfection ceremony; apart from anything else, to do so would spoil the candidate’s enjoyment of the ceremony and lessen its effect for him. You can be assured, however, it contains nothing incompatible with your religious, Masonic or civil duties.In Berkshire we have the same boundaries as the Craft Province and the Order currently comprise of nine Chapters and approximately three hundred and sixty members.We have an Annual Thanksgiving Church Service, an Annual Family Luncheon and encourage our members to contribute towards the content of our six monthly newsletter.My responsibility is to hopefully ensure the smooth running of the Order in this District and ensure the membership continues to enjoy their meetings in a happy, relaxed and harmonious atmosphere. Whilst exercising my duties I am most ably assisted by my District Recorder, Ill Bro.John Stocker 31°. I hope your interest has been suitably aroused by this article. If you require any further information regarding this Order and your prospective membership, please contact either John or myself at the e-mail addresses below:[email protected][email protected] look forward to hearing from you and assure you of a very warm welcome.

Bro. Roy Stone 33°, Inspector General for the District of Berkshire (Pictured right)

Berks Freemasons getting younger

The ANCIENT and ACCEPTED RITE - ROSE CROIX


It’s hard to believe that our new PGM and his Deputy have now been in office for over a year and what a busy time they’ve had. As usual they have been out and about in the Province attending the majority of Installation meetings of both Mark and Royal Ark Mariner Lodges. In addition, the Provincial executive have been far and wide representing the Province at over 23 annual meetings of other Provinces stretching from Leicestershire in the North, Kent in the East and Devon in the South West.The Province have been blessed by an outstanding team of Active Provincial Officers who have attended Installation meetings in abundance as well as supporting the PGM in great numbers when he made a joint visit with the Oxfordshire PGM to Henley and to our own lodges at Conrad Costin and Linden Acre. The friendship developed between the Active Officers during their year in office is culpable and serves to emphasise the friendly nature of the Mark degree.In June at the Annual Investiture of Grand Lodge several members of the Province were awarded Grand Honours. Digby Woods and Peter Rushton were both promoted to PGJO and PGJD respectively whilst a number of our brethren received first appointments, namely, Martin Peters to PGSD, Roy Stone to PAGDC, David Everett to PAsstGSwdB and Les Langley to PGStdB; congratulations to them all.At the Annual Provincial meeting in September Pat Leonard was appointed to Provincial Grand Senior Warden and Paul Digby to Provincial Grand Junior Warden with Silverio Ostrowski, Bernard Greenwold and Lee Hughes being appointed as MO, SO and JO respectively. The Provincial meeting saw the retirement of VW Bro Keith Tilling as the Provincial Chaplain after more than 20 years in office. It was great to see the surprise on Keith’s face as he received a farewell gift presented by the PGM from the members of the Province in recognition for his outstanding service and contribution to the Province.The Mark Benevolent Festival in 2017 continues to dominate our thinking and a number of innovative fund raising events have been held. Most notable was the walk around the Province by our Past Provincial Grand Master, Peter Sands, who over several Sundays walked between each centre where a Mark Lodge meets. He walked over 90 miles well sponsored by Lodges within the Province. Several Lodges and individual members have received Patronage jewels which they are wearing with pride, these were presented by the PGM and his Deputy when visiting Lodges. Functions continue to be organised and it is hoped that they will be well supported. A second dining with the Classics has been arranged at Sindlesham in November whilst at Wallingford a Sunday lunch has been organised to commemorate the start of the First World War with a sing along of World War One songs. Once again the Annual Quiz Night will be held in Sindlesham in October and no doubt will produce another worthy winning team for the Sands trophy.With the season about to start in earnest as usual both the PGM and Deputy will be out and about in the Province attending a variety of meetings as well as attending the annual meetings of other Provinces throughout the Midlands, South, South West and South East England. Three Provincial team visits have been arranged and this a new concept for Berkshire, a Royal Ark Mariner Assembly will be held in

conjunction with the Old Rectory RAM Lodge at Caversham on the 9th October 2014 when ProvRAM Grand Rank awards will be presented. Team visits will be held at Porchester Mark on Wednesday 12th November 2014, Windsor Castle Mark Lodge on Wednesday 21st January 2015 and a joint meeting with the Oxfordshire Provincial Team on 10th April 2015. I hope these events will be well supported by the Active Provincial Officers of the year.In August the Provincial Officers Designate were invited to join the PGM and the Provincial Executive for dinner to discuss the way forward for the Province. A good turn out of officers made for a very pleasant evening. A third Secretary and Scribes luncheon is also to be arranged and also an outgoing Provincial Officers luncheon. The PGM’s Reception & Dinner will be held on the 9th January 2015.At his Installation in 2013 the PGM emphasised that one of his objectives would be to focus on recruitment. This year our membership has remained reasonably constant with 18 members being Advanced. The executive have delivered a presentation called “An Introduction to Mark Masonry” to a number of Craft Lodges which has been well received and generated much interest in our Order. Should any member whose Craft Lodge may be short of candidates and want to hear the presentation please contact me or the PGM whose details are in the yearbook.

Mark Matters


CommunicationsWhat Can We Do For You?The Communications Team exists to enable the Province of Berkshire to communicate creatively and effectively in a way that engages and informs all members, their families and the general public. We have a wide range of skills covering all of the primary forms of communication: broadcast, print, social media, web sites, and even word of mouth!

We want to tell your story via the most appropriate media, whether that be the printed Link magazine, Link Xtra e-news, web site, social media etc. And we don’t just want to talk about charity donations. Please remember that actions often speak louder than words (or cheques!) and we are interested to know what you are doing in the community that is putting Masonic principles into practice. Please send your interesting stories, articles and links to [email protected]

The communications team consists of: Robin Kent (Chairman), Julian Pacey, Peter Oakley, Mike Swift, Peter Sullivan, Neil Knowles, Philip Kunovski and Richard Prudence.

You can email: [email protected]

You can find us on the web: www.berkspgl.org.uk

You can follow us on Twitter @Berkspgl and we’re on Facebook


The Berkshire Community InitiativeAs I am sure you are aware, each of us in the Executive has been allocated specific elements of our Berkshire Strategic Plan and as is typical, thankfully, for lucky Gerry Hann, the Community Initiative is my project. Why lucky? Easy! Just by our very nature, Freemasons’ interface with the Community is, as a minimum, one of concern, responsibility, improvement and generosity.In reviewing our activities over the past year in this area, I identified over 300 occasions (many detailed within this copy of The Link as well as on our website www.berkspgl.org.uk) where Berkshire Lodges and Freemasons provided a wide and varied input and with, in many cases, continued involvement, which can be valued in inspiration and hours as well as monetary terms in what it delivers to our neighbours and Berkshire residents who make up this wonderful eclectic community we enjoy. Indeed, of course, this is extended to all geographical areas through the thoughtful application of our funds via the good offices of The Grand Charity and the Brethren of other Provinces. Truly something to be very proud of and, although our natural modesty may often preclude mention of this, communicating it to our families and friends may well provide us with additional strength in the form of new members which are the very lifeblood we need to perpetuate Freemasonry and the benefits it provides to the community and also the satisfaction it gives us in delivering it. So, I thank you all for supporting this initiative in our communities over the last three years and may I ask you to do your utmost to expand this activity with strong and imaginative projects that will improve and extend our achievements in the years to come, especially any projects that would encourage the community into closer contact with Freemasonry where they can experience the unique blend of the enjoyment and satisfaction our involvement brings us.

Gerry Hann APGM

It is at this time of year that we reflect on what has happened over the last few months and turn our attention towards the next few months at the beginning of the new Berkshire masonic year. Below you will see that there has been significant progress in the ‘Enjoyment’ area of our Province and much to look forward to in the coming months. To get the most out of your Freemasonry, why not attend some of these events, there are a wide range of interests which you are bound to find attractive. Dark BluesThe last 6 months have seen the Dark Blues Club hold its first regional meeting at Wallingford. A talk given by Mike Neville from the Province of Surrey proved to be very successful. His talk was Masonic related, ‘Sacred Secrets – Freemasonry, the Bible and the Christian Faith’. The talk was humorous and enlightening. Fifty Brethren from around the Province attended. The next event is to be held at Sindlesham on Monday 19th January 2015, when John Owen’s son Roger will give a talk on climbing Mount Everest which includes a charity donation on educational books to the Sherpa Children which he undertook last year. Roger presented this talk earlier this year to over 1,000 people, Roger, like his father is an enthusiastic and entertaining speaker. Light Blues ClubIn the last few months the LBC, have had some interesting talks ranging from other Masonic Orders, the role of the Provincial Grand Secretary and a visit to Grand Lodge. In September Iain Marnock takes over as the coordinator for the LBC, and at the meeting in September the members of the Light Blues Club will decide on what events they are planning for the coming year. Membership of the LBC is free and open to all Master Masons, WM’s and PM’s blow the rank of Provincial Officer. Education TeamTwo very successful events have taken place in recent months, ‘The Treasurers Course’ (plans for a follow up evening with more advanced information is underway) and ‘Top Ten Tips’ – which will be repeated in the next year. There were 2 courses for ‘Preparing for the Masters Chair’ in September and planned for October ‘Learning the Ritual’, ‘Effective Speaking’ in November. Keep your eyes open for these events. There are various courses planned through until mid 2015. Inter-Lodge VisitingThe level of Inter-Lodge Visiting continues to grow. There are now 58% of Berkshire Lodges actively involved in visiting and this has lead to a very impressive average attendance per meeting of 50% being visitors. Mike Brown is currently creating a Family Tree of all lodges in Berkshire, it has been identified that there are some lodges in Berkshire that have lost track of their sponsor lodges and hopefully this will help

re-build closer links.Social EventsIn June this year a ‘Have a Go Clay Pigeon Shoot’ took place in Wantage. Henry Bishop supplied the Equipment and Alan Cottrell produced the food, Finlay Gordon coordinated the event. The Shoot was a complete sell out, all within a week. Friends, Family and Brethren enjoyed a very hot day, with the refreshment tent being particularly busy (thanks to Doreen Bishop, Clare Cottrell, Sue Dance and Janet Starling). Over 80 attended the day. There is talk of holding another shoot and a possible Archery event in Windsor next year. Berkshire Support Group The Berkshire Support Group (BSG) are currently looking after 7 Lodges. Members of the Support Group attend LOI meetings as well as Lodge meetings and filling Offices when required and on occasion’s members of the Team have become joining members, although this is not a requirement of the Team. The BSG are always looking out for lodges that request their help. Currently retiring IPM’s are being invited to join the BSG as well as new Provincial Grand Officers. If you are looking for a very rewarding experience that will help your Province, please contact Peter Oakley Home: 0118 983 3305 or email : [email protected]. Travelling Gavel The Travelling Gavel continues its journey around the Province and the current Timetable takes us up to the end of this year, all lodges receiving the gavel were advised at the start of this year of the dates. The success of the Travelling Gavel is reflected in the number of Brethren attending meetings to claim the ‘Gavel’, mostly in double figures. Visiting Worshipful MastersThere has been revival in WM’s visiting lodges during their year, particularly at Installation meetings, Provincial Team Visits and more unusual meetings. On occasions the number has been up to 17 and 18, hopefully a return to the numbers seen in previous times. All WM’s receive at their installation a list of Installation Meetings during their year, many are taking advantage of supporting other WM’s, Representing their lodges and building long lasting friendships. A note to lodge Secretaries, please seat current WM’s together at festive boards, it helps bond friendships and creates a special feel to your festive board. Finally, there is a special Dinner being held at Sindlesham on the 21st October for current WM’s, the Provincial Grand Master will be in attendance. Wives & partners are invited. Please contact Hamish Forbes- Forsyth : Tel: 07515 116998Email: [email protected]

Len Starling APGM

GRowtHBrethren, with my team we have now completed the ‘Introduction to Freemasonery’ events at centres around the Province.These have generated many enquiries for membership and each one has been followed up. We held two additional information presentations to individual Lodges, namely Tamesis and Aldworth at their White Table and Gentlemen’s meetings. Both of these were most successful and resulted in new members and joining members to the Province. If you feel your Lodge would benefit from a visit by our Team, please let me know.On October 28 we will be carrying out a presentation to students at Reading University. We have been assured that this will be well attended.We intend to change our focus for attracting new members this coming year and will also include presentations to specialist groups, local army barracks in Windsor and Arborfield, territorial barracks, St John’s Ambulance members, etc. If you are a member of a club or society and consider a visit from our team could result in increasing our membership, please contact me.I am delighted to report that the new proposed ‘Combined Services Lodge’, subject to the approval of Grand Lodge, will be consecrated on 11 November 2014, which is of course Remembrance Day. It was felt that this would be a most suitable date. If you have not seen a Lodge consecrated, which is a wonderful Ceremony, I suggest you get booked in.Don’t forget to tell your work friends, neighbours and relations about Freemasonry, they are waiting for you to ask them to join.

Colin Hayes DPGM

ENJOYMENT

COMMUNITY


Hearing Dogs for Deaf People Receive £3,000Tylehurst lodge recently donated £3,000, collected at their ladies evening, to Hearing Dogs for Deaf People. The charity offers a life changing level of independence, confidence and companionship to deaf people by providing dogs trained to alert recipients to important every day sounds and danger signals.

The cheque was presented on behalf of the lodge by Paul & Sue Thomsett at the Hearing Dogs for Deaf People centre in Princess Risborough. They were treated to a guided tour of the facilities and saw first-hand the lengthy and costly process of training these working dogs. Paul & Sue are joined in the picture by Elin Dobson (left) the regional dog socialising trainer, and Fudge and Dora (two 15 week old dogs in training).

Stewards’ Lectures Demonstration TeamBerkshire Provincial Grand Stewards Lodge, Lecture’s Demonstration TeamThe Emulation Lodge of Improvement Lecture’s are not Lecture’s in the normal sense but are a series of Question and Answer Sections, used in the past to Demonstrate the Emulation Working Ritual

There are Three Lecture’s corresponding with the Three Degrees

These Lecture’s are then Split into Sections , 7 for the First Lecture, 5 for the Second Lecture and 3 for the Third Lecture.

Mostly this Work is pure ritual but several of the Sections go just that bit further and are very interesting for the Brethren to hear. This is generally very well received

Normally the Team will work 3 or 4 Sections taking about 40 minutes

Should you have a meeting where unfortunately there is no actual ceremony for your lodge to work, or would just find it interesting to have a different meeting for the Brethren, then please do contact me as Secretary, to arrange for the Team to do a visit for you

Normally we do ask for a couple of months’ notice to allow arrangements to be booked into diaries

Terry Speight - email: [email protected]

Secretary, BPGSL Lecture Demonstration Team

The Masonic Classic Vehicle Club The Masonic Classic Vehicle Club held their Berkshire Summer Drive-in at Zest Restaurant, Lime Square, Reading on Sunday 22nd June which was attended by 43 members who arrived in a glorious array of interesting vehicles. These ranged from a beautiful, and very rare if small, Subaru through the very finest of sports cars: TRs, MGA, MGB, MG.TF, Alfa Romeo, Lancia, Triumph Stag and Jaguar E type to exciting and rare saloon cars including the very sought-after Ford family of performance cars. Completing this eclectic mix were two Bentleys. We were all enjoying the fantastic facilities offered by the Zest restaurant (well worth visiting at any time as I understand lunches are exceptional) when our attention was captured by the glorious sound of Phil Cottrell’s C-type Jaguar arriving and providing some “make my day” moments to some of those attending by allowing a lucky few to enjoy the experience of being a passenger in the car and a few to actually drive it. During the event, some members of the Thames Valley Motorcycle Lodge arrived and the spectacle attracted a number of passers-by creating a lively atmosphere which was enjoyed by all. Hope to see you all at the Autumn meet.

John Cole


NEW TEAM At this year’s District Meeting I had the pleasure of installing a new Deputy District Grand Master as well as a new District Grand Principal Conductor of the Work, who is the ‘Number three’ in the District. My Deputy for the past two years has been Illustrious Companion Graham Seeman. However, just under a year ago he was installed as Deputy Provincial Grand Master of the Mark Province of Berkshire and as a result asked to be ‘relieved of his position’ in our Order. I reluctantly agreed. My District PCW over the same period has been Illustrious Companion David Hopkin. David has completed what was a two-year appointment.In consequence of these two retirements, I have had the pleasure of installing Illustrious Companions Tim Hancock and John Holtom as my Deputy District Grand Master and District Grand PCW, respectively. Tim Hancock is a Buckinghamshire Mason and is a founder of one of our northern Councils, meeting in Winslow, north of Aylesbury. John Holtom is an stalwart of masonry in Oxfordshire, and will be well known to many as the Provincial DC of the Mark in that Province.

I thank Graham and David for their significant contributions to the District in various offices over a number of years. At the same time I look forward to working with Tim and John.

NEW RECRUITSLike all Orders of Masonry we are always on the lookout for recruits. We are fortunate over the next twelve months to be bringing into the Order a senior member of the Royal Arch in Berkshire as well a further member of the Provincial Executive in Berkshire Mark, from which we already have the Provincial Grand Master and his predecessor as members.

From Buckinghamshire we already have as members the Royal Arch Grand Superintendent and the Mark Provincial Grand Master. Of course, my predecessor, Len Starling, is now one of the Assistant Provincial Grand Masters in Berkshire Craft.

If it’s good enough for them brethren…

For further details please contact the District Recorder: Paul Ackland-Snow01628 638183. Email: [email protected]

This summer saw the revival of the Royal Arch Representatives scheme with a successful seminar held at Sindlesham on Wed 9th July. The seminar was attended by 38 Brethren representing 42 Berkshire Lodges who, stimulated by a presentation entitled ‘The Way Forward,’ made a valuable contribution to the discussions which followed.The objectives of this seminar centred on re-energising the RA Reps to help stimulate growth in our Royal Arch numbers by sharing new ideas for promoting RA Masonry and the generation of some working tools to help each RA Rep.Berkshire has approximately 3000 Craft Masons in the Province with around 1000 of those already Royal Arch Companions it means we have more than 1600 eligible Master Masons who have not yet completed their journey in “Pure Ancient Freemasonry”.The role of the RA Rep has been evolving since its inception in 2009 and this seminar helped re-focus the activities belonging to the role. That is essentially, the relationship between the Craft and RA Masonry as completion and climax – the final chapter in the story – of “Pure Ancient Masonry”. And all from the perspective of fun and enjoyment of this very special and colourful Masonic Order and in line with that part of the Provincial Grand Master’s strategic plan of enjoying our Freemasonry.Ian Hopgood, Deputy Grand Superintendent for the Royal Arch in Berkshire and promoter of the RA Reps scheme commented “we have a tremendous team of RA Reps in our Province and we look forward to a raised profile in the coming months. Aided by the new set of tools developed during the seminar, we can enlighten the minds of Craft Masons towards the completion of their preceding 3 Degrees.”If you have any questions or require further information, please contact :Ian Hopgood Tel : 07768 601780 Email : [email protected]

Royal Arch Reps – ‘The Way Forward’ PROVINCIAL GRAND CHAPTERThe Annual Convocation of Provincial Grand Chapter of Berkshire was held at Sindlesham on Thursday, 5th June 2014. The convocation was attended by three hundred Companions, including seventeen Grand Superintendents and many other distinguished visitors from twenty four Provinces.

The Grand Superintendent, Kenneth Benford re-appointed the Provincial Grand Principals and the Deputy Grand Superintendent was invited to continue in office.

In his address…the full text of which can be seen on the Royal Arch website www.provincialgrandchapterofberkshire.org.uk the Grand Superintendent congratulated Companions of the Province in having raised £82,000 for the 2013 Royal Arch Bicentenary Appeal in support of the Royal College of Surgeons. He then went on to ask Companions to support the Berkshire Masonic Charity which does such good work in supporting organisations and good causes in Berkshire, both Masonic and Non-Masonic. In a fine example of the close affinity between the Royal Arch and the Craft, he then presented the RW Provincial Grand Master with a cheque for £1,000 and announced that the Alms collection would also be in support of the BMC.

After the convocation, a reception was held for distinguished guests followed by dinner in the Flavell Suite where Excellent Companion Ian Hopgood gave a wonderfully effusive toast to the Grand Superintendent who could hardly believe his ears after being harangued unmercifully, over a number of years, by the previous Deputy Grand Superintendent!

Lionel Higgins, Ian Hopgood, Ken Benford, Jem Whitmore

ROYAL ARCH NEWS

ROYAL AND SELECT MASTERS

Nick Murzell


Association of Friends of Lord Harris Court

STRAWBERRY FAYRE 28th June 2014

We Wouldn’t be Beaten!!!After a week of glorious sunshine the weather forecasters predicted very heavy rainfall for the afternoon of the Strawberry Fayre, and so it was, fi ve minutes before the Fayre was due to open the heavens opened with some force! Thank goodness we made the decision in the morning to move indoors losing very little in the way of stalls.

At 2pm the Fayre was opened by the Most Excellent Grand Superintendent Kenneth Benford and guests fl ooded in, undeterred by the rains, so within a few minutes the two lounges in Lord Harris Court were fi lled with busy shoppers and gamers.

Our trusty band of regulars were there with goods and games, entertained by a new arrival of a street organ kindly brought along by Jim Stephenson, a good friend of Cecil Underwood one of the residents, and playing outside, although under the awning. A new innovation, very different and certainly adding a carnival fl avour to the afternoon.

The busy stalls, despite the rain, raised almost as much as last year, with takings of £1,550, from a wonderful collection of cakes, games, wine and water, tombola, Pimms (although not on the lawn as expected) and wonderful cream teas with strawberries.

Gifford, a resident, played piano accompaniment to those

enjoying the cream teas for which we thank him.

The staff of Lord Harris Court had their own stall selling an array of goods as well as ice creams.

Outside in the rain and under the awnings the Sollitts and the Thomas’s still did a good trade with their great range of plants.

Cliff Hutchins, the manager, helped by selling £300 of Summer Draw tickets to take the total raised to £2,300, with 4 lucky prize winners sharing a total of £850. The fi rst prize of £500 was generously funded by the Berkshire Masonic Regalia Fund.

The sun should have shone for us but it didn’t unfortunately, but the rain certainly didn’t rain on our parade as the song goes, and it certainly didn’t dampen our spirits.

Thank you and well done to all our stall holders, to those who came along to lend their support, to the Friends and families, the Lodges and Chapters who gave their time and energy, their bottles of wine, and bought tickets for the Summer Draw. To the Masonic Widows who made the cream teas. All’s well that ends well and in the end it all went well.

David Biggs

the link issue 55 autumn 14

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