|
|
Below you will find a transcript of the Address given by RWyBro Howard Nuttall at the Annual
Meeting of the Provincial Grand Conclave of East Lancashire, held at Rochdale on Staurday 29th November 2011.
To view some images of this very happy occasion click here. Very Dear Brethren. Once again I would like to repeat what
I said at the beginning of the morning, how good it is to see you all here today.
To our distinguished guests
who I have already introduced individually, another warm welcome. To me that is the foundation of this Order but above all please remember that Freemasonry is our hobby & should be something we do for enjoyment. The Brotherhood of David & Jonathan is a friendship that brings pleasure & happiness to us all & when we are happy we should smile. Secret Monitor must have something very special when you consider the miles some of our visitors have travelled to be with us today. Something very special that is not found in any other Order or Degree in Freemasonry & I thank you all for taking time to visit us here in Rochdale, for your companionship & your hospitality when we have the good fortune to be able to attend your Provincial Meetings. I would like now to congratulate those Brethren who have been appointed to a Provincial Office today & thank you all for taking these appointments. I look forward to working with you in the next twelve months & as I like to inform all “my team” remember that each & every one of you is an important, integral part of the family of the Order of the Secret Monitor in East Lancashire. To those who have stepped down this year, particularly Stephen (Jackson) who I have already referred to & Graham (Rudd) another enthusiastic team member, I acknowledge the part you each have played in making your time in office a successful one, for which I thank you & hope that you will continue to assist & support me & our Province. Congratulations to the Brethren who will receive Grand Conclave Honours in November this year if it be First Appointments of which we have six (6) or Promotions which we have two (2). Congratulations go to:-Promotions To PAGDC from PGSteward Wy.Bro. Bernard Fenton, Bury Conclave No 50 To PAGDC from PGStd Bearer Wy.Bro. Ian Woods. Roche Valley Conclave No 252 First appointment in past Rank:- To PGStB Wy.Br. Stephen Clayton Barker, John Walter Chitty Conclave No 219 Wy.Br. John Alex Forbes, Dr James Edward Glover Conclave No 409 Wy.Br. Thomas M Jardine, Freeman Conclave No 57 & to PGBB Wy Bro. Philip VC Evans, Cockcroft Conclave No 25 Wy.Bro. Robert Pate Forest of Pendle Conclave No 219 & only in the last 15 minutes to PGSwdB Wy.Bro. Nigel Love Dr James Edward Glover Conclave No 409 All these Ranks are thoroughly deserved & well earned. Congratulations to you all & I look forward to seeing these Promotions & First Appointment investitures at Edgbaston on 10th November. This year has been a very eventful one indeed. The highlight must be the visit of our Grand Supreme Ruler, M.Wy.Bro. Michael William Guest to Dr James Edward Glover Conclave in August. The Conclave put on a memorable Installation Ceremony culminating in the Grand Supreme Ruler commissioning Wy.Bro. Martin Murrey as a Supreme Ruler in our Order. Certainly a first for East Lancashire & something Martin will not forget. I am most grateful to the Provincial Grand Guide, Wy.Bro. David Rigby, for his comprehensive report which included many of the points I was to raise so I will not be detaining much longer. We have a strong base Membership with over 300 subscribing Members in our fourteen Conclaves. The Vale of Irwell, Consistory, in the Ancient & Masonic Order of the Scarlet Cord has now three more Past Presidents & therefore we were able to install Comp. Stephen Jackson as the new President for the ensuing year. It would be good if we could encourage more of our Secret Monitor Brethren to consider joining this new venture. You know the old saying “ it only meets twice a year!!” Therefore, Brethren of East Lancashire, would you please consider this request & for more information about the Vale of Irwell, Consistory, ask me or Chris, Nigel, Stephen or Frank. Or see the Provincial website. Again David mentioned our five Team visits to Conclaves within the Province.& I thank all the members of the team for supporting me on these very pleasant occasions. I speak every year of our joint meetings with our friends “next door” in West Yorkshire & on 10th May the team visited Roses in Concord Conclave at Clayton-le-Moors which was our joint meeting with the Brethren of West Yorkshire. Another super evening. To reciprocate, the Brethren of East Lancashire have been invited to Phoenix Conclave No 391 in Pontefract on Monday 12th December for another exceptional evening. Put it in your diary. Weather permitting of course! Rt.Wy.Bro. Stewart once again may I say on behalf of all in East Lancashire how much we enjoy your visits to us & your reciprocal hospitality on our return to West Yorkshire. They are always a most pleasurable Masonic experience. Thank you most sincerely for allowing this bond of friendship to continue not only between you & I but between our two Provinces also. Wy.Bro. William L. Fishwick, again organised the Gala Dinner & I add my thanks for all the work you & Jean put into making this successful. I have already paid tribute to the work of our Past Provincial Recorder Wy. Bro. Frank Smith & we wish our new Provincial Recorder Wy.Bro. Nigel Love well in his new roll now that he has full control. But I must thank Nigel for the work he has already done as our Webmaster & who using his computer skills has created the Provincial Database & all the other fiddly things. In fact he is responsible for a large proportion of this meeting's arrangement. He is also an established Member of the Provincial Grand Recorders Table. This table meet at every Provincial meeting & is for the chosen few. To see how they all enjoy themselves, check the wine bottles! One Provincial Officer I would like to thank personally is our Provincial Grand Director of Ceremonies. Thank you Chris for all your hard work over the past year not only in Secret Monitor but also in the Vale of Irwell Consistory.To all who have made this meeting a success thank you. Finally Brethren, as most of you know my Patent of Appointment expired yesterday, 28th. On Wednesday last, 26th, following the OSM Executive Meeting I was informed that due to a clerical error I had not been notified that the Patent was to be extended. So unfortunately you will have to put up with me for a little longer. But Brethren may I say how proud I am to be asked to continue because when my time to retire does come I will miss all of you tremendously. I now would like to wish every one of you a good health for you to enjoy the next Masonic year in all the Orders & Degrees of Freemasonry, in which you may be involved. Enjoy our Order spread the word to all about this wonderful Degree. But most of all Don’t forget to smile. Brethren may the Friend of all Friends the Founder of Faithful Friendships be with you all. God bless you. |
