At the Installation Meeting of local Freemason’s Lodge, White River, It was brought to their attention that the Provincial Grand Master, RW Bro Rodney Bignell, was going to donate five hundred euros, from the Provincial Charity Fund, to the Amigos de Calle, an organization in Valencia devoted to assisting those people that are homeless and those with no money.

The Brethren were asked to collect as much food as possible in canned or dried form, along with toiletries and hygiene products and bring it all to their November meeting. The response was overwhelming.

On Sunday 20th November the Worshipful Master of White River Lodge, W Bro Ian Skipper, along with Bro Bob Harris, went to present the food and an extra anonymous donation of two hundred euros and of course add it to the five hundred euros previously given by the Provincial Grand Lodge of Valencia. The food, products and money were gratefully received and will be put to very good use. Many thanks to all those generous people involved.

Worshipful Brother Peter Johnson, the Worshipful Master of Arenal Deportiva Lodge No 65, accompanied by several of his Senior Lodge Officers were delighted to attend the Raquel Paya special needs school in Denia on Thursday the 13^th October to make a donation of one thousand euros.

The Lodge members were treated to a tour of the school by Principal Miguel Ivars and Secretary Oscar Caselles. They were shown some of the projects being undertaken by the students, which included a stop motion animation photography project and an interactive painting project by 2 specialised teachers visiting from Cuba!

The visit was completed by a delightful serving of coffee and cakes, made and presented by students at the school.  Worshipful Brother Peter stated that the Raquel Paya special needs school was his chosen charity as Master of the Lodge and, as the Raquel Paya school was very dear to his heart, it was a great pleasure to be able to donate funds to such a worthwhile and deserving cause.

The money was raised partly from the proceeds of a very successful barbecue held by the brethren, partners and friends of Arenal Deportiva Lodge, and part of the proceeds from the Provincial golf tournament held earlier in the summer.  Peter went on to say that the Arenal Deportiva Lodge has many other fund-raising projects being planned, and he very much looks forward to hopefully being able to continue the Lodge’s support for these special children.

On Sunday, 2^nd October, local Freemason’s Lodge, Arenal Deportiva 65, held their annual late summer garden party. This took the form of a very enjoyable barbecue and was organised by the Worshipful Master, WBro Peter Johnson along with his lovely wife Florence. It was held at the home of WBro Ian Brown and his lovely wife Eileen, both of whom aided and abetted the organisation.

Over fifty Freemasons and their wives and partners attended, and the weather was most kind, gentle sun and blue skies all day. The barbecue consisted of a wide variety of foods varying from beefburgers, chicken burgers, sausages and chicken drumsticks, steak and salmon for the non-meat eaters. Afterwards a delicious selection of dreamy desserts.

A grand charity raffle was organised and over four hundred and twenty euros raised. Later there were more games which raised another fifty euros, making a total of four hundred and seventy-one euros. This will be donated to the Worshipful Masters chosen charity for the year which is the Raquel Paya Special Needs School in Denia. This will be presented at a later date.

Very entertaining music was supplied throughout the afternoon and early evening by local musician and singer Jim Shearer. Jim sang, and played, for virtually the whole time and was very well received by all. This was a great afternoon, enjoyed by all, with the added bonus of raising much needed funds for a very worthy cause. Thanks again to WBros Peter and Ian plus their hard-working wives, Florence and Eileen.

Recently, a meeting was held, between representatives of Local Freemason’s Lodge Hiram Abif number 80 and the director of Nazaret College. Sr Leoncio Calvo.

The visit to the Nazareth School was the result of the Provincial Grand Master’s decision to donate five hundred euros to this school and to highlight the sincere gratitude of the school director for the donation and the interest of our order in the work that the Nazareth School carries out for the benefit of the children and adolescents of Alicante who need support and help.

Nazareth College was one of the four charities identified by the Provincial Grand Master, RWBro Rodney Bignell, to receive donations of money raised at the Provincial Golf Tournament at Bonalba Golf Club in June. We subsequently sent them five hundred euros and this visit was to follow up and find out more about them, with future support from the lodge in mind.

In attendance were the Worshipful Master of the RLS Hiram Abif 80, WBro Vicente López Revuelta, the Worshipful Master-elect Bro Jorge Prieto Cueto and Bro Sergio Pereira, Charity Steward of the same lodge.
In a very pleasant talk, we were given a complete tour of the school’s facilities, together with a summary of its history. He described the main activities they carry out for the benefit of children and adolescents at risk of social exclusion in the province.

We had the opportunity to witness the work they do at different levels and in the training courses for the children.
We also had the opportunity to briefly explain the support work that our Order carries out through the Provincial Grand Lodge of Valencia and its lodges for the benefit of the community and that we hope to continue in the future, in order to help the children of the school in their different initiatives.
We agreed to keep in touch to be attentive to any specific needs that they may have and that in some way we can help to alleviate.

A Special Evening was recently held to celebrate the end of a successful Masonic year and to thank everyone for their help and support with the special events and the Charity Fund Raising, especially over the summer months.

Many events including Crazy Golf Days and Bowls tournaments have been organised by the Worshipful Master, WBro Ian Makin and his wife Jackie. They have all been well attended, raising much needed funds for various local charities.

Restaurant Leonardo’s in Albir was completely taken over and a fabulous evening of VIP dining ensued. A generous and unexpected donation was made by the owners and staff of Leonardo’s amounting to one hundred and fifty euros for which, we are very grateful!

A Raffle where all prizes were for the Ladies and included a meal for two, chocolates, wine and even a new spatula! An exceptional amount was raised along with a lot of fun and laughter. Making a total for the evening of four hundred and fifty euros

Two Loyal toasts were made to mark the death of Queen Elizabeth II and the succession of King Charles III. These were observed by all, regardless of their country of origin.

A most enjoyable night was had, and the money raised will be put to good use to help those less fortunate than ourselves.

On the 09th September, over ninety Freemasons and their guests gathered for the Masonic Late Summer Party at Cooper’s bar in Quesada.

The evening commenced with a eulogy delivered by the Provincial Grand Master RW Bro Rodney Charles Bignall commemorating the life of our late Queen Elizabeth II, followed by a one-minute silence.

The subsequent party proved a great success, with good food, great company, and fabulous entertainment.

Cooper’s prepared a simple but excellent supper before musical entertainment was provided by Gary “Woody” Woodward (also of the famous pop group “Union Gap”) who soon had everyone up dancing to some great songs spanning the sixties onwards.

During the intermission, a grand raffle draw raised six hundred and fifty euros which will be donated to the Provincial Grand Master’s charities which are, this year, focused on the less fortunate in our Province and will assist in providing food and basic necessities to families in need.

Over the past four months, Freemasons Lodges within the Province of Valencia have raised almost ten thousand euros for food banks and children’s charities and this fund raising will continue over the months ahead.

The evening provided us with a great opportunity to meet and get together before our Autumn meetings re-commence shortly.

On Saturday, 3rd September, local Freemason’s Lodge, Caledonia Lodge number 68, held a grand hog roast at the Masonic Centre, Sociedad Compas, Quesada, which was well attended by numerous Masons including the Provincial Grand Master, RW Bro Rodney Bignell, and over ninety Brethren and their guests. Entertainment for the afternoon was provided by Carla Stone.

This event, which was thoroughly enjoyed by all, with Hog Roast rolls, numerous summer salads and delicious desserts was held to raise funds to support the Provincial Grand Master’s food bank charities.

The raffle was well supported, and a large Teddy Bear was auctioned at the end of the afternoon. A total of one thousand euros was raised for the Provincial Grand Master’s food bank charities.