Passed to the Grand Lodge above on the 11th of November 2018
Passed to the Grand Lodge above, October 2018
Passed to the Grand Lodge above on the 26th of June 2018
Bro. Gordon William Beeforth was Initiated into Old Tower Lodge No.49, but unknown to everyone, including Brother Gordon, he was already in the very early stages of dementia which was later discovered to be a very aggressive form known as Lewy body dementia, also known as dementia with Lewy bodies which proved to be very aggressive.
Sadly, our newly made Brother only ever attended his Initiation, was soon unable to drive and was forced to resign only a matter of weeks after his Initiation. Deteriorating fast, he quickly found himself in residential care in Guadarmar as his wife could not cope with the situation, where he died on the 17th of January 2018. His Masonic career may have been short, but the passing of Brother Gordon was recognised within Lodge with a minute’s silence.
It is with great sadness that the Brethren of Caledonia Lodge No.68 advise of the recent passing of Brother John Brooks, a longstanding and loyal servant to The Craft.
Brother Brooks was first initiated into Freemasonry in 1968, meaning that this coming May would have marked his 50 years of his association with Freemasonry.
He will be sorely missed by all and our thoughts remain with his loved ones.
Born 7th February 1930
Initiated into Freemasonry 13th May 1968
Passed to Fellow craft 10th November 1969
Raised 11th May 1970
Passed to the Grand Lodge above on the 18th of November 2017
W.Bro. Barry was a much loved and respected member of the Lodge and known to be a kind and generous Brother who will be greatly missed by all following his passing to the Grand Lodge above on Friday the 15th of December.
He was initially a member of Old Tower Lodge No.49 where he became the D.C. and more recently was the D.C. of Las Salinas Lodge No.79 when they hosted the Provincial Lodge of Instruction where his work and support to the Province and the more junior Brethren was outstanding.
He and his beloved wife Joan ran the Salt Pot lunch events, a key charity fund raising lunch club hosted by Las Salinas and his last role in the Lodge was Almoner, a role he did exceptionally well keeping in regular contact with the widows of the Lodge and making regular visits to the sick Brethren, he worked relentlessly ensuring all members were looked after.
He was a very active Mark Mason and was a very active D.C. for his local Mark Lodge and was recently appointed as a Grand Officer, a well deserved honor. Many Brethren will remember his bagpipe playing at so many functions over the years, he was a driving force behind the Burns Supper events hosted by Las Salinas in Quesada and will be remembered fondly.
Barry slipped into serious illness and passed away quite quickly, Masonry has lost a true example of a just, upright and true Brother.
July 6th 1952 – August 3rd 2017
Mick was born in the Nottingham area to an English mother and Polish father, he had three siblings, two brothers and a sister but lost one brother at an early age. Mick went through a normal childhood and when he left school he eventually became employed in the oil business on rigs and in the Middle East.
Unfortunately, at the age of 40 he had a heart problem and ended up needing a valve fitted. As a result of this he was not allowed to work in the industry and had to leave. Mick met his wife Tracey 11 years ago and they were married 7 years ago. He had 1 son who runs a restaurant in Benijofar. He was a very keen golfer with a single figure handicap and he also played guitar in local bands at jam sessions in the local area. As far as the golf goes he was always willing to help higher handicap players to improve their game. He also did a lot of work around the area like gardening, painting, building etc. He joined Masonry in UK (not sure of his Mother Lodge name) and joined Old Tower Lodge in (again not sure). He was always very keen to progress in his Masonic career and became a member of Chapter, Mark and Ram. For the past few years he had been the dining secretary for the Old Tower Festive boards and did a good job of organising them.
He will be sadly missed.
Born 1937 in Bradford West Yorkshire. Norman’s father worked for the railway and was killed at work when Norman was still a teenager. He was brought up in very poor circumstances by his mother until he was called up for National Service.
He studied hard while in the army and when he was demobilised he carried on with his studies and finally became an Area Manager for a sand and gravel company. His professional qualifications were in concrete tensile strength and building materials, he later developed a second career as a Financial Adviser.
Being married twice, Norman had two children (a boy and a girl) with his first wife, and we knew him when he came to Spain with his second wife, Suki.
Norman joined Freemasonry with Atherstone Lodge under UGLE in the late 1980’s and although electing not to pass through the Chair, Norman was promoted to Past Prov. Pursuivant for the service and work he gave to the Lodge. He also joined Royal Arch no 432 and became Treasurer until he resigned and moved to Spain with Suki. Once settled in Spain Norman joined Las Salinas No.79 and very much enjoyed being an active member doing everything asked of him to the best of his ability and serving as Assistant Treasurer.
For the past 18 months Norman has battled with Leukaemia, he never complained although some days he could hardly walk. He returned to the UK for treatment where he sadly succumbed to the illness on the 29th of June. He was a true gentleman and Brother in every way, was well thought of and respected by Brethren and his friends alike and will be sadly missed.
Mike came to Old Tower Lodge No.49 on 21st January 2008 as a joining member. He was originally initiated into Brooklands Lodge No. 3671, Altringham, U.G.L.E in November 1981, was Passed and Raised in that lodge in 1982 and subsequently installed into the Chair of King Solomon in 1992. He was promoted to Past Provincial Junior Grand Warden in 2001. He became a member of Brooklands Lodge No. 2231, South Manchester in February 1983. He was also a member of a French Lodge. Because of his long experience in Masonry he was an excellent ritualist and could always be relied on to take an office for Installation Ceremonies and for Old Tower’s Past Masters’ Degree Demonstration which traditionally takes place at our April meeting each year. He was a member of Rose-Croix in England. He was on a visit to London, on 25th April 2017, to receive his 33rd Degree in The Scottish Rite and as he left this meeting he collapsed with a suspected heart attack, was rushed to St Thomas’s Hospital in London, where he died early the following morning.
Walter was Initiated, Passed and Raised in the NYASA lodge number 956 in Malawi in 1964, when he was working in East Africa.
He then joined the lodge of Concord number 1135 on the 13th April 1966, were he continued his membership until September 1966, when presumably he moved to Spain.
He became a Royal Arch Mason on the 6th December 1967 in the Davie Chapter Number 1135, in Ilfracombe.
To continue with his masonic travels he became a Mark Master Mason on the 24th April 1974, when he joined the North Devon Lodge number 540, Ilfracombe, Devonshire.
The last lodge he joined was the lodge of St. Nicholas number 540 when he was regularly admitted to the degree of Royal Ark Mariner.
When he arrived in Spain he carried on with his masonry becoming a member of Old Tower lodge number 49 and then Las Salinas lodge number 79.
Then to keep up with his Mark masonry he became a member of the Torrevieja Mark lodge number 1745, and then the Orb and Sceptre lodge of Royal Arc mariner number 1745.
Jim was something of an enigma, in that he became a member of the above lodges to my knowledge did not take office in any. However, he was always there when a meeting was on and always enjoyed himself. As he got older he found it more difficult as his hearing deteriorated and he did not get the same enjoyment, also he had some very serious illnesses.
He will be missed because of his ever present smile and good humour.