WK News - Issue 11 (5) - Flipbook - Page 18
ISSUE NO.11 WINTER 2023 | WEST KENT NEWS 18
ASSISTANT PROVINCIAL
GRAND MASTER:
PETER BROOKER
Group Three is made up of the
Lodges
meeting
at
Sidcup,
Sevenoaks, Tunbridge Wells and the
one Lodge meeting in Edenbridge.
The group consists of 45 Lodges with
1,138 members.
In this edition of the West Kent News,
I have chosen to feature one
particular Lodge that has successfully
overcome many of the membership
and retention challenges currently
faced by other Lodges in our
Province.
Burnt Ash Lodge No.6285 currently
has 22 members and I am most
grateful to W.Bro Charles Clark,
Provincial
Grand
Stewart,
for
providing the following information
The Lodge has met at the Shirley
Woolmer Masonic Hall, Sidcup ever
since it9s consecration in 1946. The
lodge was formed by a group of AirRaid Precautions (ARP) Wardens,
who at the end of WWII, created a
Lodge of Instruction to be held on
Monday evenings to continue the
comradery they had built up together
during the war effort.
Today9s successors of those lodge
founders
attribute
the
Lodge9s
longevity to the regular meeting of
the Lodge of Instruction, which is still
held weekly on Monday evenings. It
is at the L of I that life-long
friendships have been formed and
the lodge9s strong tradition of
Taylor9s workings are taught by the
senior brethren. The L of I also
Burnt Ash Lodge No.6285
Motto: Facta Non Verba - Deeds, Not Words.
regularly meets for social evenings, often
followed by a meal in a nearby
restaurant.
The Lodge has harnessed the benefits of
social media by running Facebook and
Twitter accounts to promote its activities,
as well as having a WhatsApp group,
where all of its members can keep in
touch to maintain and strengthen those
friendships.
The key to their success has been the
hard work and dedication of the
members,
working
together
and
embracing modern working practices, at
the same time maintaining long held
traditions.
Membership of the Royal Arch through
the Burnt Ash Chapter has also played a
significant part in the Lodge9s success,
particularly relating to the retention of
members.
In common with many other Lodges,
Burnt Ash has gone through tough times
and has faced the usual challenges of
finding new members and retaining
existing members. Today, Burnt Ash is a
modern, thriving and diverse Lodge of
West Kent Freemasons.
Brethren, I wish you and your families a
very Merry Christmas and a Happy New
Year.
Peter Brooker