The lodge room at Cleveleys was buzzing one cold Monday night as Pro Patria Lodge No 9952 was taking on a new mission, not impossible, just difficult. For this was the first time the lodge had worked two, first degree ceremonies at the same time.
Nothing new there in Freemasonry, you might say; it happens all the time, but the difficulty wasn’t in this but in the fact that due to it being an emergency meeting, a few of the key officers were unable to attend, so how does a lodge with the director of ceremonies, assistant director of ceremonies, senior warden, junior deacon, chaplain, almoner, and the inner guard all missing, carry on?
The secretary, Bob Wareham, announced a ‘call to arms’ and the brethren of the lodge, in very short notice, stepped up to the plate in a true military manner. The junior warden, Martin Clements, stepped up to the role of director of ceremonies. The senior deacon, Terry Stevens-Lewing, stepped down to the junior deacon role and Martin Clements then also stood in as senior deacon, knowing that he would have to help escort the candidates around the lodge.
The challenge of the senior warden’s position was expertly taken up by assistant secretary Kevin McCumiskey, Alan Holderness occupied the chair of junior warden, whilst Shaun Keene occupied the position of inner guard at the door of the lodge. Occupying the office of chaplain in his normal fine custom was Roger O’Loughlin.
With the key positions finally filled, this should be an easy task, just like any military movement; it wasn’t to be, as it was announced that due to a work commitment, one of the candidates could be late attending. Many contingency plans were discussed and made; the plan of action was ready to be put into operation. However, luck was on the lodge’s side, and with minutes to go, both candidates turned up on time.
The fanfare started and the lodge was ready to go. The brethren paraded in and occupied their positions. The lodge was opened in due form by the WM Peter Baldwin, but as this was an emergency meeting, there was no business to deal with, so it was straight into the ceremony.
Richard Wright and John Slater were prepared and made ready by the tyler, and the knocks were given. The stand-in junior deacon, Terry Stevens-Lewing, with his normal burst of enthusiasm, escorted the candidates round the lodge in his usual professional military style.
The WM, Peter Baldwin, superbly delivered the obligations, and the candidates rose to the occasion. The next part of the operation was taken over by Martin Clements, assisted by the WM, with signs, tokens, and words of the first degree. Restored to light, the candidates were marched round the square where the senior warden delivered the badge of honour to them with style.
The north east address was again delivered in an exemplary manner by Martin Clements, followed by the stand-in junior warden expertly delivering the working tools of the degree. The newly made brothers were then asked to retire to restore themselves to their personal comforts.
After re-entering the lodge, the Charge after Initiation was delivered with zest and zeal by Terry Stevens-Lewing. The WM then congratulated the new brothers and after the collection for Masonic charities was appropriately made, and as no other business could be transacted, the lodge was duly closed, and the brethren retired to the festive board.
The festive board, as is normal for Pro Patria Lodge, was a mixture of military humour and banter with the guests being put at ease. The candle for absent brethren was ignited and the food, as always, was superbly produced and delivered by Lee and his team. The loyal toast was given together with the lodge’s normal salute of port, and then the repartee resumed.
Sam Woods stepped up to give the toast to brother Richard Wright, while Bob Wareham proposed a toast to brother John Slater, and they both took turns in thanking the brethren for all their hard work and effort and they both looked forward to many years to come in the lodge.
The raffle had a fine selection of prizes and with the money in the charity plate, resulted in £325 being raised for Masonic charities. The stand-in junior warden gave thanks to all the visitors that attended and hoped they had enjoyed themselves in the lodge’s company. The response was given by Ashley Wright of Wyre Lodge No 7704, who rendered it with great banter.
The final act of the evening, which had been stated as mission completed, saw the final toast given in a true navy style by Jonathan Cody. The banter then began again in full flow in the Park Club bar until late.
