Conrad Evans an Aylesbury Freemason from Pegasus Lodge No 5637, walked the West Highland way in Scotland, a distance of 96 miles in 10 days, which is especially hard as Conrad is Disabled meaning that walking is far harder, making this an incredible feat.

Conrad did this in aid of a Charity called BUDS The Buckinghamshire Disability Service, who are focused on supporting disabled people by fixing the biggest issues facing them, click here to find our more about them: https://buds.org.uk/ 

At the finish line Conrad had raised a massive £3735 and we would like to assist him in reaching his target of £4000 for this brilliant cause.

Well done Conrad you have done us all very proud and made a big difference in supporting BUDS.

Please click the below link to support him:
https://shorturl.at/FmSBW

If you would like to be part of a global community that has its roots firmly in the ground in Buckinghamshire, please join us by following this link: https://buckspgl.org/join
After filling in the short form, our Membership Team will be in touch. 

 

Buckinghamshire has 117 lodges that meet at 16 Centres across the county throughout the year.

This is the diary for the coming month.

If there is a location & day that suits your home and work life and you are interested in finding out more, please reach out to our membership team who will be more than happy to answer any questions you may have.

If you would like to be part of freemasonry and a global community, that has its roots firmly in the ground in Buckinghamshire, please join us by following this link: https://buckspgl.org/join
After filling in the short form, our Membership Team will be in touch. 

Buckinghamshire Freemasons hold another highly successful membership event.

Freemasons from Buckinghamshire hosted yet another remarkable live event, inviting a large number of candidates who were interested in Freemasonry to attend an evening where they had the opportunity to learn about Freemasonry from masons who had a great deal of experience.

In addition, it was available to partners and visitors, as well as anybody who had a passing interest in the topic and was eager to learn more about it. In order to accommodate their visitors, the Slough Masonic Centre was filled with a large number of people, including already existing Freemasons to accompany their guests.

At the beginning of the evening, Neil Robertson provided a brief introduction to the concept of freemasonry and discussed the unique aspects that make it so remarkable. 
Lee Buckingham, John Palman, and Matt Eaton were among the other individuals that spoke in more detail about who we are and what we do. 

The conference came to a close with a presentation on the philanthropic contributions that Freemasonry has made, as well as a special presentation from Dawn Allen of the Henry Allen Trust, which is an organisation that we have recently supported.  

The evening was a fantastic success, bringing in a number of candidates we will be welcoming into Freemasonry at our BIG1-2-3 event at the end of June.

Thank you to everyone who assisted on the evening and those who supported with your attendance.

If you would like to be part of a global community that has its roots firmly planted in Buckinghamshire, please join us by following this link: https://buckspgl.org/join
After filling out the short form, our Membership Team will be in touch.

This is the diary for the coming month.

If there is a location & day that suits your home and work life and you are interested in finding out more, please reach out to our membership team who will be more than happy to answer any questions you may have.

If you would like to be part of freemasonry and a global community, that has its roots firmly in the ground in Buckinghamshire, please join us by following this link: https://buckspgl.org/join
After filling in the short form, our Membership Team will be in touch. 

Last week, Bro. Chris was installed as the head of Haddenham Lodge for the first time by his school & cadet friend of 35 years, Bro. Lee. Bro. It was a very special evening for these good friends, that saw Bro. Bill oversee the first part of the ceremony before turning it over to Lee for the main event.

Bro. Lee proposed, and Bro. Richard seconded Chris' entry into Haddenham Lodge in May 2016, which made the ceremony special for Chris.

APGM Matt Perkins delivered a flawless address to the master and a fantastic toast at the meal after the meeting. Lee then presented Chris with a miniature set of working tools with a brass plaque marking the date.

If you would like to be part of a Freemasons' lodge in Buckinghamshire, please use this link to express your interest: https://buckspgl.org/join

In the Hallstone Province of Buckinghamshire there are always great meetings, but this one was something else!
Not sure you can beat watching (now) W Bro Leo Kyte going into the chair, done so brilliantly by both the Installing Master Grae Laws and our PGM.

Leo is one of the most beloved characters in Buckinghamshire Freemasonry (and beyond), and his humour and charm really showed throughout the entire meeting. At the spritely age of 89, and exactly 55 years to the day that he was initiated, Leo finally made it!
He is now head of Eric Deung Lodge of History and Research. Created as a lodge on enlightenment, and named after a Past Provincial Grand Master, the lodge symbolically meets on the Spring Equinox, Summer Solstice and Autumn Equinox.

It was an action packed agenda at this Spring Equinox Installation; there was a 50 year certificate presented to David Tremain, a surprise promotion for Leo given by the Past Senior Grand Warden, AND a birthday celebration for Norman Hyde, reaching 98 years of young age on the day!

To finish all that off by raising £1,000 for Leo's charity of choice, a prostate cancer support group in Aylesbury, that supported him through his previous health issues.

They say Masonry is universal, I say that today showed it really is. Combining over 110 different masons into one room, all with different reasons of why they love Leo, but all singing the same chant throughout the day.

Leo!
Leo!!
Leo!!!

Well done to the likes of James Blackhurst and Ewan Forrest Gordon for the work they put into today (so many others too I'm sure) as well as the long line of APOs, members, and visitors that took the time out of their day for a special person.

Have you ever though about becoming a Freemason? If you would like to be part of a global community that has its roots firmly in the ground in Buckinghamshire, you can join us by following this link: https://buckspgl.org/joinAfter filling in the short form, our Membership Team will be in touch.
 

Buckinghamshire has 117 lodges that meet at 16 Centres across the county throughout the year.

This is the diary for the coming month.

If there is a location & day that suits your home and work life and you are interested in finding out more, please reach out to our membership team who will be more than happy to answer any questions you may have.

If you would like to be part of freemasonry and a global community, that has its roots firmly in the ground in Buckinghamshire, please join us by following this link: https://buckspgl.org/join
After filling in the short form, our Membership Team will be in touch. 

Last week, RWBro Willie Shackle CBE received his 60 year Long Service Award from the Deputy Provincial Grand Master, Neil Robertson.

Willie is the past Grand Secretary as well as being past president of two of the former charities. He is also an active Sussex and London mason and brethren from both those places were in attendance as a surprise to him, including three of the APGMs of Sussex. 

Not one to rest on his laurels, Willie then acted as a deacon for an excellent double raising for Rob and Toby, with the masters work being done by the WM, RWBro Anthony Howlett-Bolton ProvGM of (Berkshire Freemasons).

A fabulous and fun festive board followed and a great meeting was had by all. 

Old Wycombiensian Lodge No. 6754, one of the Provinces "Special Interest Lodges", is the lodge for former pupils, staff, governors and fathers of the Royal Grammar School in High Wycombe.

If you would like to be part of a global community, that has its roots firmly in the ground in Buckinghamshire, please join us by following this link: https://buckspgl.org/join
After filling in the short form, our Membership Team will be in touch. 

Tuesday night this week saw an initiation involving several family members.

Bro Jesse Wells jnr and Bro Zafar Shah were both initiated into Concordia Lodge (2492). Both Bros were treated to a thoroughly enjoyable ceremony, which brought out all that is good about Freemasonry.

The ceremony started with Concordia welcoming W. Bro Jesse Wells snr of Wendover Lodge (9616) into the Chair of King Solomon so that he could deliver his son’s obligation. After which, Concordia’s Secretary W. Bro Ken Workman took the chair and Bro Zafar was obligated. The ceremony then resumed for both Bros, with W. Bro Ken assisted by an excellent delivery of the North East Corner by Bro Dumitru Marocico, Concordia’s current Inner Guard.

One of the initiates, Jesse Wells jnr, then had other family members conduct work for both candidates, his brothers;  Bro Albert Wells delivering the working tools and Bro. John Wells presenting the charge, both of which had only joined Freemasonry late in 2023.

A ‘lively’ festive board followed which underlined the great camaraderie amongst the members of Concordia and their guests and highlighted how this Lodge should be a certain stop on any ‘visitors’ must attend list! 

If you would like to be part of a global community, that has its roots firmly in the ground in Buckinghamshire, please join us by following this link: https://buckspgl.org/join
After filling in the short form, our Membership Team will be in touch. 

St Martins Lodge had a spectacle of a meeting on the 4th of March 2024. 
On one side, an initiation for newly made brother, Bro Lee Jones, who is their fourth person to join in 2024 alone! He was taken around with grace, and in front of over 60 masons. 

But the night was not just his, with W Bro Michael Ramsbotham celebrating not only 60 years in Freemasonry, but also his 89th Birthday the same day! 

The DPGM VW Bro Neil Robertson was on hand to carry out the presentation of the long service certificate and they were able to give him letters from the Lodges he is an honorary member of, this from being an active provincial officer and part of the consecration team, as well as the two other Lodges he had been Master of, as well as a number of gifts and a new Masters Collar, plated and engraved with the names of all 124 previous Masters, in honour of Michael.

The Festive board had more surprises for him and the newly made brother and we had an amazing evening, raising a nice sum for the Young Carers Charity, of Michael's choosing, through the raffle.

With two more initiates in the pipeline, hopefully for Big123, the lodge is excited for what the rest of this year will bring.

If you would like to be part of a global community, that has its roots firmly in the ground in Buckinghamshire, please join us by following this link: https://buckspgl.org/join
After filling in the short form, our Membership Team will be in touch. 

Last week Wineslai Lodge no. 2435 held a meeting for the rededication of their lodge banner.  Founded in 1892, with consecration taking place at the neighbouring Bell Hotel, the lodge still has ties to the establishment for lodge meals, ladies events and social activities. 

Their original banner, which can be seen behind a glass screen, was presented  in 1918 and late dedicated in 1919 by a member of the Burmese Royal household - Crowned Prince Sau On Kya, who had recently been initiated into the lodge.  He was the ruler of the Hsipaw State in Shan Burma (modern day Myanmar) from 1928 to 1938.

Those in attendance were given a fascinating talk about the history of the lodge, its association with the Hall Stone Jewel and formation from sponsor lodge, Grenville Lodge 1797.

The evening saw 100 people dining at the Bell afterwards. 

If you would like to be part of a Freemasons' lodge like this and a global community that has its roots firmly in the ground in Buckinghamshire, please join us by following this link: https://buckspgl.org/join?

We have made a transformation to the way we do Freemasonry in Bucks.

Through the implementation of lighting and music systems, which have been installed at a number of our main centres. 
We utilised the music and lighting to enhance all of our ceremonies, with the assistance of W. Bro. Tim Anders leading the project, the Provincial Grand Master, who was in charge of carrying out the ceremonies, the light blues brothers, who were giving assistance, and of course, the many lodges who contributed throughout the province. Our goal was to create the best possible experience for everyone involved, especially our new joining members.

We have installed these incredible systems at Slough, Bletchley, Winslow, Marlow, Beaconsfield, Kimble and most recently we have held launch ceremonies at Denham, Stony Stratford and Aylesbury.

We now look next to Wolverton, Thame, North Crawley finishing with the Swan Hotel.

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If you would like to be part of a global community that has has hand and still has so many famous members, that has its roots firmly in the ground in Buckinghamshire, please join us by following this link: https://buckspgl.org/join?

After filling in the short form, our Membership Team will be in touch. 

Wednesday night Haddenham Lodge held the raising of Brother Redden. a candidate that was initiated at Great Queen Street as part of the provincial BIG day in September 2021.

James is also a cold weather explorer and recently featured on Aprons Off, being often away on expeditions, the lodge was finally able to carry out his Raising, or 3rd degree.

This ceremony was also particularly special, being that it was the lodge's past masters evening. Also, all offices were occupied by past masters of the lodge, with the Chair of King Solomon occupied by 5 different Masters throughout the ceremony.

A number of distinguished brethren took the chair, the current WM, W. Bro Nick Ray, followed by W. Bros Tony Robinson, Lloyd Davies, Brian Murray, Steve Smirthwaite and Barry Sparks all took the chair as master to deliver a different part of the ceremony, giving each element of the ceremony a real extra level of quality.

As always, the full packed festive board was joyous and fun with many laughs and lovely food.

James has now taken his 3rd step in Freemasonry and is looking forward to the adventure ahead. Well done James, we look forward to keeping an eye on your progress.

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If you want to be a part of a worldwide community that has had and continues to have so many prominent members and has its roots firmly in Buckinghamshire, then join us by clicking on this link: https://buckspgl.org/info=explorerraising

Steve Perry of the Manor of Swanbourne lodge took 2 weeks off work and set himself a challenge, a challenge to conquer the mighty Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa to raise funds for @willenhospice with a group of like minded individuals. The trek took place from 27th Jan to 2nd Feb.

After months of training, this challenging trek would push him to his limits, testing his endurance, resilience, and strength in the face of high altitude and physical obstacles.

Mount Kilimanjaro is a dormant volcano located in the Kilimanjaro Region of Tanzania. It is the highest mountain in Africa and the highest single free-standing mountain above sea level in the world: 5,895 m !

Willen Hospice in Milton Keynes provides compassionate care to those with life-limiting illnesses. They provide comfort, alleviate pain, and lessen anxiety in patients and their loved ones. Every pound donated counts because it allows them to aid more people in Milton Keynes when and when they need it. They receive less than a quarter of their financial support from the NHS, thus the remainder is contributed or raised by great people.

Steve's climb might have ended, but the journey for Willen Hospice goes on. Every donation helps ensure that they can continue offering care, comfort, and support to those in need.  We can provide the link to the fundraising platform should you wish to donate to his challenge & this charity.

If you would like to be part of a global community that has had, and still has so many famous members, that has its roots firmly in the ground in Buckinghamshire, please join us by following this link: https://buckspgl.org/info=kilimanjaro

This is the diary for the coming month.

If there is a location & day that suits your home and work life and you are interested in finding out more, please reach out to our membership team who will be more than happy to answer any questions you may have.

If you would like to be part of freemasonry and a global community, that has its roots firmly in the ground in Buckinghamshire, please join us by following this link: https://buckspgl.org/join
After filling in the short form, our Membership Team will be in touch. 

This lodge is different from many, in that the brethren wear Fez's at the festive board and was founded overseas.

Bulwer Lodge of Cairo No 1068 was granted its Warrant on 7th June 1865. According to Grand Lodge records, their first meeting was Monday, 8th February 1865 - some four months earlier, for which no reason is recorded.

On 16th October 1895, a major fire broke out in the Lodge premises, destroying all the records and the Warrant of the Lodge. Most of the nearly-new furniture was also destroyed. It appears to be at this time, with the issue of the Warrant of Confirmation, that the "of Cairo" was inadvertently dropped from the name by the United Grand Lodge of England.

Further records were lost in 1956 when the Brethren were forced to leave Egypt during the Suez crisis. Many members had to flee for their lives. All of the Lodge furniture and most of its records, which were kept at the Temple, were sequestered by the Egyptian government and have, to this day, not been recovered.

Sir Henry Bulwer, later William Henry Lytton Earle Bulwer, Baron Dalling & Bulwer, was born in London on 13th February 1801. Following his education at Harrow and Downing College, Oxford, he joined the British Diplomatic Service. In 1824, he was sent to Morea, the southern most part of the Greek mainland, by the Greek community in London to finance their War of Independence.

In 1849, Bulwer was chosen as Ambassador to Washington, where he concluded the Clayton-Bulwer Treaty. This Treaty, also signed by John Clayton, Secretary of State of the U.S.A., provided a basis for what is now known as the Panama Canal to be built. It set out that neither power should have exclusive control over the canal, nor colonise any part of Central America but both would guarantee the protection and neutrality of the canal.

Want to know why everyone is wearing a fez?
Want to know more about this Historical Provincial Lodge?

This is the lodge's history page, containing more details:

https://www.bulwer1068.org.uk/history 

This lodge is different from many, in that the brethren wear Fez's at the festive board and was founded overseas.

Bulwer Lodge of Cairo No 1068 was granted its Warrant on 7th June 1865. According to Grand Lodge records, their first meeting was Monday, 8th February 1865 - some four months earlier, for which no reason is recorded.

On 16th October 1895, a major fire broke out in the Lodge premises, destroying all the records and the Warrant of the Lodge. Most of the nearly-new furniture was also destroyed. It appears to be at this time, with the issue of the Warrant of Confirmation, that the "of Cairo" was inadvertently dropped from the name by the United Grand Lodge of England.

Further records were lost in 1956 when the Brethren were forced to leave Egypt during the Suez crisis. Many members had to flee for their lives. All of the Lodge furniture and most of its records, which were kept at the Temple, were sequestered by the Egyptian government and have, to this day, not been recovered.

Sir Henry Bulwer, later William Henry Lytton Earle Bulwer, Baron Dalling & Bulwer, was born in London on 13th February 1801. Following his education at Harrow and Downing College, Oxford, he joined the British Diplomatic Service. In 1824, he was sent to Morea, the southern most part of the Greek mainland, by the Greek community in London to finance their War of Independence.

In 1849, Bulwer was chosen as Ambassador to Washington, where he concluded the Clayton-Bulwer Treaty. This Treaty, also signed by John Clayton, Secretary of State of the U.S.A., provided a basis for what is now known as the Panama Canal to be built. It set out that neither power should have exclusive control over the canal, nor colonise any part of Central America but both would guarantee the protection and neutrality of the canal.

Want to know why everyone is wearing a fez?
Want to know more about this Historical Provincial Lodge?

This is the lodge's history page, containing more details:

https://www.bulwer1068.org.uk/history 

If you would like to be part of a Freemasons' lodge like this and a global community that has its roots firmly in the ground in Buckinghamshire, please join us by following this link: https://buckspgl.org/join

Magiovinivm Lodges Charity Steward, W.Bro Mark Dennaford, and their IPM W.Bro Brian Sweet, had great pleasure in presenting a cheque for £2,000 to the Milton Keynes branch of the Motoneuron disease support group.

This is a small charity with an annual budget of around £12,000, so they know this will make a positive impact on the fretwork they do.

Heatherden Lodge sure knows how to have fun at their meetings!
With probably the first raising of an Aussie brother by an Aussie Lodge master this year!
Members and visitors enjoyed an excellent evening. Amongst the high jinx at the festive Board dinner, rather appropriately, an Aussie won the much-contested inaugural running of the “Roo Stakes."
As a Freemason, if you want to join the fun, save the date of March 16th for their much revered St. Patrick’s Day, Irish Night.

If you would like to be part of a Freemasons' lodge like this and a global community that has its roots firmly in the ground in Buckinghamshire, please join us by following this link: https://buckspgl.org/join

New Urban Lodge 6371 and Emergency Services Lodge 3077 partnered together in order to raise vital funds for the @PTSDResolutionUK. This mental health charity supports our veterans and emergency services personnel.
Lannelli's genuine Italian restaurant in Aylesbury was the venue, and the staff could not have been more helpful. 
What could go wrong when a bunch of friends are entertained by Signor Paulo Frenchini? Suddenly, a gate crasher emerges dressed as a mafia mobster; thankfully, this individual was well known to us all, and after being plied with Chianti, order was once again restored.😂😂
After supper, Bro Ewan spoke about the charity's activities, followed by Bro. Dan who provided a short overview of the therapy offered to those suffering from the psychological symptoms of this form of trauma, many of whom suffer silently. Donations were graciously accepted. If you would like to help this charity, please follow this link: https://ptsdresolution.org/donate.php

If you would like to be part of a Freemasons' lodge that helps local charities in Buckinghamshire, please join us by following this link: https://buckspgl.org/join