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Mrs Elizabeth Richards, RW Bro Timothy Richards, Festival President and RW Bro John Hale, Provincial Grand Master for Cumberland and Westmorland,
who will preside at the Trust’s Festival in 2007
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Royal Masonic Trust for Girls and Boys
20th Anniversary Festival
The 20th Anniversary Festival in support of the Royal Masonic Trust for Girls and Boys was held at Manchester United football ground, Old Trafford, on Friday, 13 May 2005. The Festival President was RW Bro Timothy Richards, Provincial Grand Master for Cheshire.
A truly magnificent total of £5,650,918 was raised by the ladies and brethren of Cheshire, for which the Trust is most grateful.
The Guest of Honour was RW Bro Peter Lowndes, Deputy Grand Master, supported by a large contingent of visiting Provincial Grand Masters and other distinguished guests including the Lord Lieutenant for Cheshire and Mrs Bromley Davenport and the Rt
Rev Dr Peter Forster, Bishop of Chester.
During dinner, attended by 720 ladies and brethren from the Province of Cheshire, the assembled host were entertained by Miss Lucy Haslar on the harp. It is interesting to note that Lucy was assisted by the Trust in
the form of a TalentAid grant towards the purchase of the harp. During 2004, 37 girls and boys from the Province of Cheshire were under the care and protection of the Trust.
The Grand Charity
Important announcement concerning membership of the Grand Charity
At a general meeting of the members of the Grand Charity held in June 2002, the Trust Deed of the Grand Charity was changed to extend its membership, which was originally restricted to members of the Grand Lodge, to include Master Masons.
In proposing this change, the Council considered that many more Freemasons would wish to be directly associated with the work of the Grand Charity, both in assisting Masons and their dependants in need and in the programme of grants to non-Masonic charities.
As a result of the change to the Trust Deed, all subscribing Master Masons of London and Provincial Lodges under the United Grand Lodge of England are automatically given the opportunity to
be members of the Grand Charity.
At the time of the above change, it was accepted that there are some Masons who,
as a result of their personal circumstances, might wish to decline membership and
they were asked to do so by giving notice
in writing to the Secretary of the Grand Charity. These arrangements were featured and fully explained in the October 2002 issue of the MQ magazine.
The Council of the Grand Charity is concerned that members who, as a result
of their personal circumstances, might wish to decline their membership, may do so.
The Standards Board for England, which provides guidance on the Code of Conduct for local authorities, currently indicates that the provisions approved by Parliament in November 2001, require those Freemasons who are members of the Grand Charity to declare such membership in their register
of members’ interests. Any member who needs to comply with this requirement should be aware of the position.
It is not a requirement for membership
of Freemasonry itself to be declared, but if the provisions of the Code of Conduct of local authorities, including parish councils, fire, police and national parks’ authorities, cause difficulty for an individual Mason, he is, of course, free to resign his membership of the Grand Charity, without detriment to his other Masonic connections.
If any Freemason is concerned about his membership of the Grand Charity, he should contact the Secretary of the Grand Charity for advice.
GRAND CHARITY GENERAL MEETING
Saturday, 29 October 2005, 11.00 am
Newbury Racecourse
Newbury, Berkshire RB14 7NZ
The autumn General Meeting of the
Grand Charity is open to all Masons,
their wives/partners and their guests. Following the meeting, a buffet lunch
will be served, which is available for ticket holders only, at a cost of £15.00 per person.
To purchase tickets, please send a self-addressed envelope with a cheque made payable to the Grand Charity to:
Newbury Racecourse Meeting
The Grand Charity
60 Great Queen Street
London WC2B 5AZ
Mark your diary now!
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Copyright 2002-2007
MQ Magazine
Web site created by Mark Griffin
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