Members of the South Eastern Group held their 2024 final group dinner at ‘The Venue’ function suite at Urmston Masonic Hall. This was to be the final meeting under the banner of South Eastern Group, before the group is to be amalgamated with the Eccles Group to form the new Trafford Group. To mark the event, the principal guest for the evening was none other than the Provincial Grand Master, Mark Matthews.
Mark was accompanied by the host and group chairman Gareth Jones and group vice chairman Nigel Paton, along with Peter Taylor, (Provincial Grand Secretary), four former South Eastern Group Chairmen and other grand and acting Provincial grand officers, all very ably guided by the presence of both Gary Smith, Provincial Deputy Grand Director of Ceremonies and Ian Halsall, Provincial Deputy Grand Directors of Ceremony.
There were over 90 group members present including group representatives of Eccles and District and all the current masters of lodger’s and first principals were given the opportunity to have a brief chat with Mark prior to the commencement of the dinner, on this incredibly special group occasion. This was rather less formal than the questions and answers session held at previous dinners, where brethren and companions put specific questions about their Freemasonry and received responses from the various Provincial team members present. This was much more relaxed and was greatly appreciated by all.
Following the informal chat, Gareth, for the final time, opened the proceedings, giving fitting tribute to two of the group’s long serving members, former chairman Phil Gibbs and Bill Eaton who had both recently ascended to the Grand Lodge above. Following a brief silence, the dinner commenced and all present enjoyed the pleasure of each other’s company at table. There was a comfortable buzz of conversation and laughter as the evening progressed and for those who were not driving, the bar was most inviting with beer and wine in plentiful supply.
The point in the evening arrived where the toast to the Provincial Grand Master was proposed in respectful manner by Adam Walker of Flixton Lodge No 4869. Mark, in response, thanked Gareth and the group for the warm and generous welcome he had been given. Mark also thanked the other officers of the group for all their continued efforts and the team for the arduous work they put in to running Urmston Masonic Hall and The Venue.
Mark then referred to the membership challenge, quoting 340 members having been recruited since the challenge had been accepted and congratulated all concerned for ensuring the longevity of the movement. He then went on to emphasize the Royal Arch and how it was the natural completion of the Masonic journey, hoping that all would realise this and that the overall membership could be much increased from its current level.
In his next topic, Mark then recommended the ‘back to basics’ approach, suggesting that now that the epidemic had died down to manageable levels, brethren should once more start visiting other lodges and chapters as the diversity of ceremonies added interest and promoted learning. He rounded things off by mentioning the MCF and Community Involvement, the book collection and The Forget Me Not Trust amongst many other initiatives which were being conducted in the South Eastern Group and which, he trusted, would be carried forward into the new Trafford Group.
After Mark had received an excellent response from the brethren and companions, Provincial Junior Grand Warden, David Rigby then rose to propose a toast to the South Eastern Group, making reference to the longevity of the group’s 70 years existence and the fact that so many of the former group chairmen were present for the evening.
David said that during the evening he had heard and learnt of many encouraging group initiatives, had seen that the group was clearly in great shape, said how much he had enjoyed the evening and gave a moving toast to current chairman Gareth and the various group officers, wishing the group well for the future in its new guise together with Eccles Group as Trafford Group.
Gareth rose and in an emotional response in his last official duty as chairman, thanked David for his toast on behalf of the group, congratulated the group team and all those involved in running the Masonic Hall and made special mention of the Light Blues club. He thanked everyone for attending and most especially welcomed Mark, the Provincial Grand Wardens, the Provincial Grand Secretary and the Provincial Grand Directors of Ceremonies for their most welcome presence and support during the evening.
Gareth thanked the staff of the hall for their work in providing the dinner and all those involved in planning and of course attending the dinner. Then finally, on behalf of the group, Gareth presented a bouquet of flowers and some bottles of wine to Mark to take home to his wife. Mark thanked Gareth and the brethren for the presentation which he thought would at least go some way towards consoling her for his absence.
Finally, a presentation was made to Gareth on his retirement as the last Group Chairman of the South Eastern Group which brought a most convivial and memorable dinner to its conclusion and also brought the curtain down on the final South Eastern Group event!