Mark Clifford (also known as Bomber), WM of Wyre Lodge No 7704, welcomed 80 members and their guests to the lodge’s annual ladies’ evening. The principal guest was his lovely wife Elizabeth. Also in attendance was the Mayor of Wyre, Councillor Steven Nicholls.
During an excellent three-course meal, diners were encouraged to donate to a raffle with an extensive array of prizes, the pick of which was a garden mower. A total of £640 was raised from this raffle and it was followed by an auction for an overnight stay at the Sheraton Hotel, which raised a further £90.
Pictured centre: Ashley Wright (standing) selling raffle tickets to Doreen Hopwood and Bob Hopwood. Pictured right from left to right, are: Suzanne, Peter Baldwin and Jo
These funds, along with the proceeds of several other events held during the year, will be distributed to various national and local charities at the end of the lodge year. In 2025 the lodge raised the amazing sum of £22,500. The target for the current year is £30,000, which Wyre Lodge aim to meet.
During the meal and afterwards, an excellent range of music was provided by Mr Jimmy ‘the DJ’ Tipton. The roses song and the song to the ladies was performed by Peter Baldwin with his customary style. And the proceedings throughout were very ably managed by master of ceremonies, Martin Clements.
The toast to the ladies was delivered with suitable gravitas and some well-timed humour by Ashley Wright. He emphasised the many reasons that lodge members should be eternally grateful for the patience and fortitude the ladies had shown them during the year. In her response, Elizabeth thanked all those members who had worked so hard to put together such an enjoyable event, particularly Ian Benson, who had worked so hard in the background. She went on to invite the ladies to join in with the Wyre ladies, who arrange many social gatherings and she invited them to their next event which is a day out in the Lake District.
Shortly after the speeches had concluded, the raffle was drawn amid the customary banter of “oh no, not him again” and “don’t drink it all at once”. After which the disco began in earnest and dancing began. Dancing continued until nigh on the witching hour, when a plethora of taxis and cars arrived to ferry the revellers home.
In all, it was a splendid evening enjoyed by everyone, as Wyre Lodge events tend to be. Mark and Elizabeth thanked everyone who supported the event and added an extra thank you to all those who donated prizes to the raffle.