The Masonic Province of Monmouthshire

Brethren, having welcomed our distinguished guests earlier this afternoon, I now welcome you all to this our Annual Provincial Grand Lodge Meeting, here at Hartridge High School.

I am very pleased to see so many of you present, with all the Province?s Lodges and Royal Arch Chapters well represented here today.

It is, of course, your meeting; I just have the great privilege of presiding over it as your Provincial Grand Master. I am now commencing my sixth year in that role and I am also enjoying my seventh year as the Grand Superintendent of the Supreme Degree in the Province.

I am sure that the Brethren who have received appointments or promotions in Provincial Grand Lodge today are delighted to have the good support from the brethren of their respective Lodges. In congratulating those Brethren, let me remind you, once again, that your new ranks are not only a recognition of your past services, but carry with them the expectation that you will continue to use your knowledge and experience in your own Lodges and more widely in the Province.

As Provincial Officers, the junior members of your Lodges will, without doubt, look to you for advice and guidance and I trust that you will be good examples to them by your enthusiasm for our beloved Craft, your regular attendance at meetings and regular contributions to the well-being of your lodges. I also expect that you will be good role models for them by your commitment to and participation in that which makes the Mason complete in Pure and Ancient Masonry - the Supreme Degree itself - the Holy Royal Arch.

It is heartening to report that that over fifty per cent of Masons in the province are now also members of this Supreme Degree. Consequently, I thank all Royal Arch representatives for their sterling work in promoting the Order.

One or two early promotions conferred today have been thoroughly earned for the excellent work carried out in the Province by the recipients and, as Provincial Grand Master, it gives me great pleasure to reward brethren in this way.

I thank all those brethren who have relinquished office today for their support during the past year, particularly my Wardens: W Bro Peter Philips and W Bro Richard Beavan. I trust that you all have enjoyed your year and that you will have many happy memories of, what I consider to be, a very special year indeed, which culminated at the Homfray Installation celebration last Thursday. At that installation dinner, the outgoing officers made an unusual presentation to my Provincial Grand Director of Ceremonies.

My special thanks go to my Deputy V W Bro Anthony Williams, especially for his presiding at last year?s Provincial Grand Lodge meeting, during my indisposition. Thanks also to my Assistant Provincial Grand Master for his management of the 2013 Festival - plans for which are on track for June of that year. The ready help and support that my Deputy and Assistant have both given me throughout the year have been exceptional, especially during my recovery from quite major surgery.

My grateful thanks must go to all my Executive Officers, who work so hard on our behalf, not only in preparing for this meeting, but all year round to ensure the smooth running of the Province. I refer especially to my Provincial Grand Secretary, W Bro Bob Jones for all his administrative duties - undertaken with his inimitable attention to detail, resulting in the efficiency and effectiveness of not only this Provincial meeting, but the Province as a whole.

To my Provincial Grand Director of Ceremonies - many thanks for the careful management of my Provincial Team with your sharp eye for detail, especially in all matters ceremonial. I thank particularly, today, his team for all the support and assistance which they have afforded him throughout the past year.

Next, I should like to make mention of my Provincial Grand Treasurer, W Bro Robert Fowler and to thank him for his prudent and professional management of the Provincial finances which have been restored to a firm financial footing.

At Provincial Grand Lodge this time last year, my Deputy, on my behalf, made special mention of W Bro Roy Wigmore, who retired as my Provincial Grand Almoner and congratulated him for all his hard work and dedication over eight years in that office. It was fortunate that I was able to replace him with such an equally enthusiastic and

dedicated Mason, in the person of W Bro Jim Wheeler, whom I must say has taken to the task with equal commitment and sensitivity. The transfer has been totally seamless and I thank you W Bro Jim and your colleague Lodge Almoners for the manner in which you have all carried out your duties during the past twelve months. The welfare of fellow Masons and their families is of paramount importance and I take particular interest in this pastoral element of our fraternity.

My Education and Training Team have been kept on their toes by my Provincial Education Officer, W Bro Dr Robert Fountain, who retires today after three years of dedicated service and who is succeeded by W Bro Norman Edwards - who will bring his own distinctive style of management of the team.

I mention W Bro David Powell, chairman of that committee and his specific role as Provincial Grand Mentor and I thank him for his contribution to all the other Provincial initiatives. It gives me such pleasure to address all Lodge Mentors at Installation meetings and this year I have presented each Lodge Mentor with an identifying lapel pin in recognition of the important work which each of them undertake.

I am pleased to report on all the good work carried out by my Provincial Orator, W Bro Brian Medhurst who carries out duties in his own inimitable way so effectively and efficiently. These orations have been well received in all the Lodges and I thank him for this and for his contribution to explain Masonry to the wider community.

You will remember that last year W Bro Eddie Barrell retired as my Provincial Information Officer after many years of dedicated service. He was succeeded by W Bro Anthony Halse who, I have to say, has risen to the challenge magnificently and exceeded all my expectations. W Bro Anthony has deputised for my Provincial Grand Charity Steward on a number of occasions, because W Bro Vernon, who looks after the administration of all the Provincial Charity business in an impeccable manner, is currently unwell. We send him our very best wishes for a speedy recovery. I would also like to thank Bro Roger Thompson for all his assistance to W Bro Vernon in matters of administration.

I refer now to the Provincial website, which continues to grow and is overseen by the webmaster W Bro Philip Godsell. I thank him for his expertise and his dedication and drive, along with others who assist in this work.

On behalf of the brethren who use the Provincial Year Book, I thank W Bro Bernard Sefton, the editor, for its compilation and production. He is ably assisted by W Bro?s John Hicks, John Court and Dr Robert Fountain and I thank them for their continued efforts in supporting the editor.

W Bro John Hicks, who has acted as Provincial Registrar for some six years, I thank particularly. He has managed the office of Registrar to an exceptional standard, maintaining the Provincial database and integrating the Provincial data into the United Grand Lodge Adelfi system. He is to be congratulated along with W Bro John Court for the tremendous amount of work which has been undertaken and achieved over the last few years.

I would like to congratulate W Bro Dr Robert Fountain not only in his appointment as Provincial Registrar, in succession to W Bro John Hicks, but also on his preferment in Grand Lodge as PADGC. And speaking about Grand Lodge appointments, I am sure that you all wish to join with me in congratulating my hard working and ever efficient Provincial Grand Director of Ceremonies, W Bro Chris Evans, on his promotion in Grand Lodge and his appointment to the active rank of Assistant Grand Director of Ceremonies.

These are all well-deserved and well-earned appointments.

Throughout the past year, I have been accompanied by my Deputy, Very Worshipful Bro Anthony, the Assistant Provincial Grand Master W Bro Bro Robert, my Wardens and the Provincial Team, together with Grand Officers, to all the Installations in the Province and I thank you all on their behalf for the warmth of your welcome and your most generous hospitality at your Lodges on these occasions.

I now refer to my mandated Grand Officers, who represent me at Lodge meetings. They carry out valuable work and I thank especially those who take the trouble to complete their annual reports, indicating the standard of working in Lodges - which I know is, generally, very high. So I congratulate you all on the standard of ritual in your Lodges. I have also been delighted with the general standard at the Installation meetings.

During last year I received the final results of the Historical Records Survey. As you will be aware, the survey asked English and Welsh Lodges and Chapters to complete a questionnaire on the records they hold and on their storage arrangements and physical condition. In each Province the project was supported by a co-ordinator; in our case W Bro David Powell, my Provincial Mentor, was the brother who completed the task with great efficiency, with the assistance of W Bro David Phelps. I was congratulated personally by Grand Lodge on being one of the first Provinces to complete the exercise, and for the meticulous way in which the reports were submitted.

My final remarks this afternoon are concerned with charity. We have now completed almost four years of fundraising for the Royal Masonic Trust for Girls and Boys - an appeal that will terminate in June 2013. We have made a wonderful contribution so far, despite the severe financial constraints which are now placed upon Brethren and their families. However, over the last six months there has been a somewhat noticeable, but hopefully temporary, hiatus in giving. It is critical that we now exert every effort to meet the target of £750,000. Lodges generally are to be congratulated on their magnificent efforts so far. I thank all of you who have already signed up to make regular payments, supplemented by Gift Aid donations from her Majesty?s Revenue and Customs, and urge those of you who have not yet done so to seek out your Lodge Charity Steward as soon as possible and make such a commitment.

I now turn my attention to the Annual Provincial Charity evening, masterminded by W Bro Richard Davies as Chairman of the Monmouthshire 1997 Charitable Trust Fund and W Bro Richard Beavan as Secretary, not forgetting the hard work undertaken by the members of the fund committee, which ensures that we as Masons, through our Lodges, are putting something back into our communities by supporting local charitable enterprises.

Last November, I handed out cheques to the total value of over £30,000 and this year we will do similarly, for we are all members of a society which aims to take good men and make them even better, and as Masons we are expected to be upstanding members of society and to not only help our fellow man, but to set a good example for others to follow. These are excellent principles that are exemplified when we see Freemasonry in action in our community.

Brethren I conclude with these thoughts which are well worth repeating:

“Let us continue to enjoy our Freemasonry, rejoicing in the bonds of fellowship, happy in our associating together in our Lodges and at our Festive Boards, joining together in the grand design of being happy and communicating happiness and always remembering our commitment to assist those less fortunate than ourselves”.

I thank all who have assisted with today?s arrangements: W Bro Philip Moles, W Bro John Sommerin and those who have served, and will continue to serve as stewards, during the day. Also all those „meeters? and greeters.

I would also like to thank the staff here at Hartridge High School for all their help and assistance.

Finally, I thank you all for the honour and privilege of serving you as your Provincial Grand Master and Grand Superintendent, and I look forward to continuing so to do for the foreseeable future.

I wish you a safe journey home after dinner and may we meet up again determined to live by and carry out the fundamental principles of our Order: Brotherly Love, Relief and Truth.

Once again I thank you for listening to my „sermon?. God bless you all.

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Provincial Grand Masters Address for 2011

RW.Bro. The Reverend Malcolm C G Lane JP