The first meeting of the Masonic season for the North Fylde Group’s Saturnian Chapter No 7563 was a great opportunity for companions to hear about the Archway Strategy and how the resources available can be used to stimulate group discussion, with ideas for attracting Craft Masons into this important next step of their Masonic development.
Following an efficient and well managed range of chapter business, the three principals and officers closed the meeting and companions retired to a downstairs social area to hear all about the Archway programme from John Robbie Porter, Assistant to the Provincial Grand Principals. John Robbie was all set up with laptop and projector and proceeded to guide everyone through the detailed package of slides which included self-evaluation checklists and review tools.
John explained in detail the four components that construct Archway, namely; ‘Shaping the future’, ‘Growing the chapter’, ‘Involving all our members’ and ‘Helping our members enjoy the chapter’. A lively and constructive Q&A session followed, with many members making positive and useful comments and suggestions.
The lecture has the title ‘Getting to Grips with Archway’ and John encourages every companion to be involved with its use and have an input. It has practical advice on a whole range of challenges that chapters might face as it provides a variety of resources which they can cherry-pick and use as much or little as they like. John Robbie said: “Using Archway enables chapters to become enjoyable and vibrant, so that companions can look forward to the future with confidence; to increase their membership.”
John has also delivered lectures on the Royal Arch to a number of Craft lodges following a business agenda at their meetings. He is keen to continue the lecture in the future.
The Archway lecture coincided with a planned first visit to Saturnian Chapter of their North Fylde Group Visiting Officer, John Topping. John said: “I attended a very well-supported Saturnian Chapter committee Meeting just a week earlier and explained to the members the nature of the visiting officer (VO) scheme, what the process entailed, what a visiting officer Google report form contains and how this data may assist the membership strategy within our Province of West Lancashire.
The Archway strategy as I see it sits very well and alongside a developing VO process; whereby a dynamic partnership can evolve between the VO, mentor, membership officer and interested members of the chapter committee, so that we can meet and work together through the various elements of Archway, in bite-size pieces, to build confidence, address succession-planning and hopefully build a buoyant, recruitment pipeline of incoming master Masons.”
Report and pictures by John Topping and John Robbie Porter.