Having clearly enjoyed his year in the chair of De Bon Cuer Lodge No 6984, Bob Norris didn’t take much persuading when the members nominated him to continue his stewardship of the lodge for another year, and so it was that he was proclaimed master for a further term at the installation meeting held at Halls 4 All in Leyland.
The lodge brethren were joined by Stephen Gregory, the representative of the Provincial Grand Master Mark Matthews, along with Chorley and Leyland Group Treasurer Colin Preston, together with a good number of visitors.
After opening the lodge and welcoming the visitors, Bob proceeded to deal with the business in hand which included a ballot followed by the welcome of a new joining member to further swell the ranks of what is one of only two daytime lodges in the Chorley and Leyland Group. The lodge took the decision to meet during daylight hours following the enforced break of 2020 and has welcomed several joining members who prefer to enjoy their Masonic activities during the day.
Following the initial business of the lodge, the director of ceremonies retired before returning to announce that Stephen Gregory, along with Colin Preston and also John Anderson, one of the new visiting officers for the group, requested admission to the lodge. They were joined by lodge member and grand officer Stewart Cranage, who is also the Provincial Grand Mentor.
With the formal salutations complete, the next business was to proclaim Bob as master of the lodge for the ensuing year. Bob then invested of the officers of the lodge, which when completed, was followed by Stephen Gregory giving the address to the brethren of the lodge.
Bob’s first duty as master for the second year was to present to Stephen with details of the charitable donations that the lodge members have or will be making which totalled £1,550. Stephen thanked the brethren of the lodge for their generous donations.
One of the charity donations was in the sum of £600 to the Rosemere Cancer Centre, a charity particularly close to the lodge members hearts as the immediate past master, Ken Mayren was unable to be present at the meeting due to receiving treatment that very day. However, not to be left out, Ken arranged to meet Bob at the Rosemere Centre the following day to make the presentation of the donation Sue Swire, the fundraising manager.
The lodge secretary has since received the following very grateful acknowledgement from Rosemere: “Thank you so much for your thoughtful and generous donation of £600.00 by cheque to Rosemere Cancer Foundation.
By choosing to support Rosemere Cancer Foundation, you are helping to fund research, to give local patients early access to the latest treatments, patient welfare projects to ensure patient are as relaxed and comfortable as possible during their treatment journey, cutting edge equipment to ensure we are at the forefront of fighting cancer and to help clinical staff be the best they can be by funding new opportunities to learn and share best practice.
Each year over 11,000 people are diagnosed with cancer in our region and, thanks to your support, they benefit from world class cancer services wherever they are treated. Thank you for helping to make this possible.”
The remaining business of the meeting was swiftly concluded after which the lodge was closed and everyone retired to the festive board to enjoy an excellent meal and good company with the chance to catch up with friends old and new.
Whether Bob goes for the hat-trick next year remains to be seen, but his view at the moment is that another brother should be given the opportunity to lead this fine lodge as it continues to provide an opportunity for Masons, who would rather not venture out on cold dark nights but who still want to benefit from the fellowship and enjoyment that Freemasonry has to offer.