Keeping in Touch

Membership Newsletter ‘Keeping in Touch’

February 2021

‘Exciting Times Ahead’ We are now in February and the battle against the Coronavirus continues. The vaccines are being distributed at a rapid rate and we are told that everyone in the UK should have been vaccinated by late summer 2021.

We all hope that lockdown is eased over the next few months, so that we may be able to meet our family and friends again.

Freemasons Lodges normally operate during the months of September to June but due to the pandemic all Freemason meetings and social activities have been suspended.

All that said, we Freemasons are a determined and resourceful bunch! We have been able to hold meetings in virtual video conferencing arenas, we have continued to support our charities and much planning has taken place to ensure that when we are permitted to resume our meetings we can open our doors to those of you that are waiting patiently to join our fraternity.

Having spoken with many Lodge secretaries I can say with confidence that just about every Lodge in East Kent is planning their regular meetings and social calendars in preparation for the return to some form of normality later in the year. Meanwhile, the Provincial Events team are organising a number of social distanced and virtual events to keep us occupied and entertained through the spring a summer months.

You may be waiting to join us, but that doesn’t mean to say that we are not thinking about you. We would be absolutely delighted if you, your partner and your family could join us for some or all of the activities that we have in the pipeline, which will be great fun!

On the next page you can learn amore about the events and we will keep you informed as they become available for booking.

We all look forward to meeting with you in the future and hopefully we will see you at some of our events?

Mark Costelloe Head of Recruitment and Retention Province of East Kent

Provincial Events Calendar 2021 Win a Car Lottery This is your chance to win a brand new Mercedes ‘C’ class saloon. Tickets are £10 per entry and will be on sale from our box office in March. The draw will take place soon via video link. More information to follow shortly

Sunday 4th April The Great East Kent Boat Race Launch date Sunday 4th April 2021. Buy a ticket and we will send you your boat. All you have to do is assemble it, paint it and launch it from your preferred shoreline in East Kent. The winner will be the boat that has travelled the furthest distance over three days.

Saturday June 20th - An Audience with Sir Ian McKellen Join us at our virtual theatre for an entertaining look at Sir Ian’s life and hear him describe some of the most enjoyable memories of his life in the film and theatre industry. You can ask him questions and he will answer as many as he can during the evening. This is a not to be missed event. Tickets will be available shortly at a cost

Other Virtual Events include Saturday 15th May —virtual wine tasting with cheese Saturday 17th July—an audience with Rick Wakeman Saturday 8th August—virtual casino night Saturday 7th September—The East Kent Chase with Bradley Walsh Sunday 12th December—celebrity Christmas lunch in London

Interested ? We will let you know when booking goes live! www.eastkentfreemasons.org facebook.com/eastkentfreemasons