Duncan is newest member of Wyre Mark Lodge |
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Wyre Lodge of Mark Master Masons No 754, which meets at Fleetwood, added a new member to its ranks at | |
an advancement ceremony held at the lodge’s first regular meeting since the recess. | |
Duncan Brereton, a member of Royal Oak Lodge | |
No 5919 in the Craft, joined the lodge at the | |
invitation of his good friend Joe O’Brian who is | |
currently JO of Wyre Mark Lodge and a fellow member | |
of his Craft lodge. | |
The good news for Wyre Mark is that Duncan is soon | |
to be joined by another Royal Oak member as Joe | |
has gone on what seems to be a one man | |
recruitment drive for Mark Masonry. | |
Pictured from left to right are: | |
Giles Berkley, Duncan Brereton, Steve Wilson, | |
Walter Porter, John Forster and Jimmy Rogers. | |
Joe was delighted to deliver the working tools to Duncan as part of what turned out to be a polished | |
all-round performance by the members of the lodge - and a few visitors who were pressed into service | |
from the substitute bench. | |
Grand Officers Captain Walter Porter and Special | |
Representative John Forster, watching from the | |
sidelines, afterwards were full of praise for what they | |
had witnessed from their colleague Jimmy Rogers, | |
who not only fulfilled his usual role as secretary but | |
also acted as SD for the evening showing he had lost | |
none of his skills for ritual. Plaudits also went to the | |
other officers of the lodge for the parts they played in | |
the ceremony. | |
Pictured left: Joe O’ Brian welcomes Duncan to | |
J Wyre Lodge of Mark Master Masons. |
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WM Steve Wilson, who is recovering from injury, handed over the reins for the advancement ceremony to | |
his friend, the IPM of Bispham with Norbreck Mark Lodge No 866, Giles Berkley. Giles, who only five days | |
before had performed an advancement in his own lodge, gave a very memorable and sincere performance | |
introducing Duncan to Wyre Mark Lodge and the Mark Degree in general. Lodge Chaplain George Clitherow | |
also very ably delivered the concluding address to Duncan. | |
Other visitors who took part were Terry Murtagh of Cleveleys Mark Lodge No 1176 who acted as JD and | |
Derek Abbott of Scorton Mark Lodge No 1103 who took post as SO. Derek, at festive board responding on | |
behalf of the visitors, told a tale of when, in his job as a quantity surveyor, on a bad day at work he had | |
consigned a hotly disputed item to the rubbish. That very evening at lodge as an overseer he told how he | |
could barely contain his mirth at the irony and similarity of the circumstances. | |
Speaking as the Special Representative of the Provincial Grand Master John Forster commended the Mark | |
website to lodge members remarking on the wealth of information and news which is to be had on its | |
pages. He advised that Mark Masons would be taking part in local Armistice Day parades and would be | |
presenting wreaths at cenotaphs throughout the Fylde. He also said that following on from the success of | |
the Fun Days that the Province looked forward to the Christmas Party planned for 29 December at Leyland | |
to which all Mark Masons, their families and especially their children were cordially invited. | |
Duncan Brereton, following his welcome to Wyre Mark Lodge by Steve Wilson and Joe O’Brian thanked his | |
proposer and said how much he had enjoyed his introduction to the Mark Degree and how much he was | |
looking forward to taking part on future evenings. | |
Article and Photographs courtesy of Bob Boal | |