The rebuilding of Sir Donald McLean Lodge

You could say that the “Rebuilding” of Sir Donald McLean commenced at the Installation meeting held on 11 June.

In fact, that was the culmination of efforts over a year.

In the period leading into 2021, Sir Donald McLean had fallen on lean times, and frequently did not have sufficient members to open a meeting without the assistance of visitors. By mid2020, the members had agreed that the Lodge could no longer continue, and planned to hand in its charter.

That was reversed in dramatic fashion toward the end of 2021, by introducing a number of joining members from Mount Egmont and other Lodges. Further joining members were approved in the business meeting prior to the Installation – and more are planned!

But while the Installation meeting was the most important masonic activity, it was not the most important meeting for the future of the lodge. That was the meeting held on Saturday morning before the Installation. This meeting was not just of members - it also included wives of members. And it planned the future of SDM. That future is to be a “social” lodge. It does not plan to hold ceremonies – it encourages masons of any Constitution to join. And apart from the essential requirements of our constitution, it will always involve the wives/partners.

As part of being a “social” lodge, it is going to wander – to be a “peripatetic” lodge.

“Peripatetic” from the Greek “walk up and down” and defined by the OED as “walking about in connection with one’s calling”

Three meetings are planned for each year, on the second Saturdays of June (installation), September and March. The installation meetings will be held in New Plymouth. The other meetings will be somewhere else, normally in the southern part of the North Island.

The next meeting is to be in the Wairarapa on the weekend of 9 to 11 September – and you will all get details and an invitation to attend.

Each of those meeting will commence with a “meet and greet” on the Friday evening, shared breakfasts on Saturday and Sunday, a very brief lodge meeting following the Saturday breakfast, and then the most important part. The rest of the day will involve social activities with brethren and wives/partners in visits to local places of interest (probably by bus, to allow everyone to relax) and complete the day with a shared evening dinner.

If the discussions at the special meeting before our recent installation is anything to go by, weekends will be busy, happy, fun and quite probably spill over to the Sunday.

An essential part of the philosophy of the Lodge is that masons of all Constitutions are welcome as members, and lodges meeting in regions near where SDM meetings are planned will be invited to join in the social activities. Our whole objective is to make masonry fun for wives and partners as well as for members. This is an exciting experiment, and we look forward to working with other lodges, other freemasons, AND THEIR WIVES/PARTNERS!

Periodical of the District Grand Lodge of North Island, New Zealand Page 9