The Lodge of Triumph No 1061 was duly opened with the usual gusto and panache of WM Mike Boxall and after the customary proceedings of the evening were dispensed with. The WM invited past master Brian Horrocks to occupy the chair of King Solomon to begin the proceedings, whereby a nervous-looking Jack Todd had his questions put to him, which he answered with a confidence seldom seen in such a young Mason.
As Jack was escorted out of the room, the lodge was duly opened in the second degree and it wasn’t long before inner guard, Peter Grihault, informed the junior warden, Jordan Brown, that there was an alarm. Upon inquiry into the alarm, brother Todd was found to be in possession of a new password and was duly invited to enter the lodge.
Jack’s nerves were soon quashed as he was expertly led by senior deacon, the ever-excellent Alan Barlow, supported at the necessary times by junior deacon William Buchanan Snr. It was a pleasure to witness a near-perfect ceremony, which included Jordan Brown delivering the second degree working tools with his usual personable style. The look of pride was physically visible on Jack’s face as he was helped into his new made-to-measure apron by Alan Barlow and the stand-in senior warden, Graham Whattam.
Upon completion of the ceremony, Jack saluted the WM as a newly passed fellowcraft and exited the room to reacquaint himself with his suit. Upon his re-entry, grand officers, David Barr, Benjamin Gorry and Edward Rhodes took pleasure in standing to celebrate the newly passed candidate, with David commenting on how well the ceremony was discharged and how well Jack offered his answers with precision. He also gave a mention to Alan Barlow for the expertise he always shows in discharging his duties.
As the ceremony came to a close, the celebrations moved to the festive board where a total of £184 was raised for Masonic charities. Dave Jenkinson took first prize in the raffle, the newly passed Jack Todd took second prize and Graham Whattam took the third and final prize. IPM William Buchanan took the opportunity to thank Mike Boxall for steering the ship into calm waters during his year in office with his wealth of experience. Mike, in his ever-entertaining style, responded firstly by thanking everyone for coming to celebrate with Jack, but giving a heartfelt message to the brethren present that the recruitment drive is always something that should never be far from people’s minds, with a firm emphasis that it is not the recruitment of men, but the recruitment of good, fit and worthy men that will ensure a long-lasting legacy for the Lodge of Triumph for generations to come.
The evening ended with a thank you to the guest organist, Phil Bolton and the Tyler’s toast was delivered with an expertise reserved only for those with the great depth of knowledge and passion that comes from John Nicholls. A truly enjoyable evening. Everyone is looking forward to Jack’s future raising ceremony.
