How a Master Mason and former Grenadier Guardsman found a military Lodge and used social media and the internet to expand the reach of the Lodge and the Craft.
As a former Grenadier Guardsman I was naturally drawn to Freemasonry, the traditions, the history and the ceremony were enough to draw me in. Then there was the social aspect of Freemasonry and charitable efforts that keep you involved. This can be found in all Lodges across the English Constitution and no doubt beyond; however was there more for a former member of Her Majesty's most illustrious Grenadier Guards.
I was initiated into Freemasonry with Legheart Lodge 6895 in the Province of West Kent and spent over three happy years there before a chance visit to Wexham Park Lodge 8171 Province of Buckinghamshire. In the bar at Slough Masonic Centre I saw a plaque on the wall that I was instantly drawn to, it displayed not only Masonic symbols but also signs recognisable of the Household Division. I had just discovered that there was a Lodge affiliated to members of the Household Division and it was closer to my home. The Lodge was Household Division Lodge 9545 and I was intrigued. I wanted to know more but found very little about the Lodge.
Using the internet I was able to find that the Officers Mess of the Guards had a Lodge as did the Warrant Officers but couldn't find anything about the Household Division Lodge. I later made contact via Slough Masonic Centre, attended with a guest and found that the Lodge held both Masonic values and the standards of the Household Division. I decided that I would join if they would have me and sometime later I became a joining member. I knew about the Lodge and I began to talk about it to my friends still serving and those who had moved on from the military, but I was always met with the same questions, don't you have to be an Officer or a Warrant Officer? As well as the phrase I don't know anything about them when I spoke about the Lodge to my Masonic friends. In reality you didn't need to be a Commission Officer of the Guards or a Warrant Officer; as a Lodge we were open to all ranks who had served within the Division.
It was then I took it upon myself with the permission of the Lodge to expand our reach and go online. I took ideas in research from other Lodges such as North Harrow Lodge 6557 who have done fantastically well with online media as well as many more. I then produced a website and social media platforms in Twitter and Facebook.
Within a week I began to notice friends and friends of friends talking to me about Masonry and the Household Division Lodge in particular. They now had the platform that I had been looking for to research and identify with the Lodge. In its first month alone our online platforms have produced brilliant results. We have just initiated two former Grenadier Guards. Two more are to be interviewed shortly and we have a further eleven expressions of interest from all ranks and regiments of the division both past and present; all of this within a month of going online!
As a Lodge we are not short of numbers with thirty two members and guests a plenty; but we are seeing a sharp rise in interest in Freemasonry and the Household Division Lodge in particular. We are not alone in this drive, many others are doing so to but I wanted to share with you the experience of a Mason and former Guardsman who learnt about a Lodge and moved to show others what was available.
Thank you
Bro. Ryan Elliott
Household Division Lodge 9545