CHARITY
2022 Festival
As I have said on many occasions, in the history of Masonic Festivals there has surely never been a Provincial Festival appeal so relevant to the needs of our members. The fact that the Covid19 pandemic continues to challenge us all in our everyday lives and the impact on Freemasonry in general and our Festival in particular, cannot be denied. The past nine months of our Festival has been impacted by the unprecedented, but essential, suspension of all Masonic activities, followed by the additional lock down of our Freemasons’ Hall, Leicerster premises and the implementation of social gathering restrictions. Inspired by the knowledge that the MCF has the resources and processes necessary to maintain their support for those who desperately need help as a result of the pandemic, whilst ensuring grants to individuals and charities continue to be paid as normal, we are determined to remain positive. Your Festival Committee continues to work on your behalf to ensure we achieve our goal and meet our target of £1.8 million by June 2022. I can confirm we have already transferred £1.3 million into the MCF’s relief chest with a substantial amount of direct debit pledges still to mature. We do however, now more than ever, require your support. Every abandoned Lodge meeting is a lost fund-raising opportunity. The absence of gift aid envelopes, not to mention raffle receipts and Smartie tube collections, cannot be underestimated. It is critical to the success of our appeal that we compensate for these lost opportunities. Please, if you are able, consider donating by any of the following means:
• Complete a monthly Direct Debit Form & proudly wear your festival jewel to all Craft & Royal Arch meetings.
virtual gatherings in place of our regular Lodge meetings.
Provincial website and complete the registration form.
In addition, I suspect many Lodges have accrued donations they were, or are planning, to present at installation meetings or Provincial visits in the future. I would like to make a personal plea to all Lodges. Please forward any funds you may have kindly allocated without delay. We have Brethren who need our support now! Your invaluable donations will of course be formally acknowledged once we are able to meet in the usual manner.
How do I support the Marching Masons? If you are unable to join us on the walk, you can still support the walkers, the 2022 Festival, and your Lodge, by sponsoring someone from your Lodge or maybe the PGM? Please visit the website.
I mentioned remaining positive. The Festival Committee are busy organising several major fundraising events as we look to return to some sort of normality in 2021. Those who attended our Sportsman’s Dinner in 2019 will not be surprised to hear tickets for next year’s event have been selling fast! We genuinely only have a handful of tables still available. In sporting parlance our capacity attendance is 800. If you are yet to book your table, I would respectfully request you do so without delay to avoid missing out. Clearly in these uncertain times we cannot guarantee the Dinner will take place on the 18th March as planned. However, we have spoken to both Kevin & Roger who have both committed to the event. should we be unable to gather in March, the Dinner will be rescheduled with table reservations automatically transferred. For further information email dale@clementsretail.com or barnettrichard1@gmail.com
• TEXT donation: Text LR2022 to 70500 to donate £5, Text LR2022 to 70300 to donate £10
Our major fundraising event of 2021 is a sponsored walk with a difference, catering for all abilities, and open to Freemasons, friends, and families. The Marching Masons will walk various distances over the Easter Bank Holiday, covering all parts of the Leicestershire Round footpaths and walkways. This is an excellent opportunity for Lodges to reach their Festival Appeal targets, as all funds raised will be registered to your Lodge. The monies raised through sponsorship will be split between our 2022 Festival Appeal, Rainbows and LOROS.
May I ask all Worshipful Masters and Festival Stewards to encourage all Brethren to donate by any of the methods listed as we take part in
How do I register? To register a walk for 1, 5, 10 or 25 miles over any or all of the four days, please visit the Marching Masons page on our
• To make a one-off donation please visit our Just Giving page https://fundraising.mcf.org. uk/Festival-E0154MCF or use the QR code on page 25 • Send a cheque payable to “Freemasons’ Grand Charity” E0154 to The Charity Office, Freemasons’ Hall, 80 London Road, Leicester LE2 0RA
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Leicester Square WINTER 2020
The Provincial Grand Master hopes to see every Lodge in the Province represented at what will be another fantastic event to raise monies for charities and good causes. For further information please visit the website https://www. pglleics.org.uk/marching-masons At the time of writing we intend to hold our Golf Day at Kirby Muxloe Golf Club on 21st May 2021, before rounding off the summer with our Ball at Winstanley House on Saturday 18th September 2021. The finale of our appeal will be a Gala Banquet on Sat 25th June 2022 at Leicester Tigers Rugby Football Club. Please mark the date in your diary. As we enter the final phase of our appeal, a little footnote to those Brethren currently occupying the chair of Senior Warden who, if we assume no installations this year, will with all probability be the Master of your Lodge at the culmination of the appeal. Please think how you will celebrate your time as Master and what you would like your legacy to be? May I suggest ensuring your Lodge reaches Patron Status and meets its Festival target would be a suitable and fitting achievement for you to be rightly proud of. Finally, as always, I would like to sincerely thank each and every one of you who have and continue to support our Festival in such a magnificent manner. To those yet to contribute, may I respectfully ask you to consider doing so? The rules have changed. It is clear as the World continues to battle this dreadful disease there is going to be a greater call on our charitable nature than any of us have ever witnessed. Covid19 remains a relevant danger to us all. It is however some comfort to remember Masonic Charity is available to those in need throughout and beyond this time of crisis.
Dale Page
2022 Festival Chairman
