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The New Normal: British people enjoy the first organ concert of the year from home

Written by on . Posted in Freemasonry.

Freemasons’ Hall has announced its first Organ Concert of 2021, which will take place on 30 March, at 7pm.

The event, being held virtually, will showcase the magnificent Willis pipe 0rgan, which resides in the Grand Temple of Freemasons’ Hall in London, an art deco masterpiece completed in 1933.

The concert is to be given by Carl Jackson, MVO, director of music at the Chapel Royal, Hampton Court Palace. He studied at the Royal Academy of Music and he has held organ scholarships at Downing College, Cambridge as well as his current base of Chapel Royal.

Before his current role at Hampton Court Palace, Mr Jackson taught at Goldsmiths’ College and he has held positions at Croydon Minster and St Peter’s, Eaton Square. He has also appeared regularly on television with the Chapel Royal choir and features with them on CDs. He was appointed MVO in the 2012 New Year Honours list.

Dr David Staples, Chief Executive of the United Grand Lodge of England, commented: “It is an honour to welcome Carl Jackson to perform for our first Organ Concert of 2021. The various lockdowns the country has faced during the pandemic have left many people feeling isolated and lonely. The virtual concert will bring world-class music and joy into people’s homes whilst also giving the audience an opportunity to take in some of the stunning architecture of our headquarters here in London.”

The concert will be held at Freemasons’ Hall, which was designed as a pentagon to suit the irregular area in which it is located. Built in the central courtyard of the splendid art deco building, the Grand Temple is rich with multi-coloured details of blue, gold and white.

While enjoying the concert online, attendees will be able to experience the splendour of the Grand Temple, including the majestic 1.25-tonne organ with its ornate pipes as well as the stunning mosaics that surround the ceiling.

The original organ was installed in 1933 by Henry Willis, the third generation of an extended family line of organ builders. It originally had three manuals and 43 stops, giving a total complement of some 2,220 pipes, and was the last big organ built by the Willis firm. After 80 years it was in need of a complete renovation, which was carried out in Durham by Harrison & Harrison in 2014 and included the cleaning, repairing and re-voicing the existing mechanisms, as well as mounting a new case of some 400 pipes on the east wall.

Free tickets are available to book via: https://event.bookitbee.com/32027/freemasons-hall-organ-concert-30th-march-2021-carl

Norfolk Family Carers receive £10,000

Written by on . Posted in Charity News, Freemasonry.

With charities experiencing a shortfall in funding due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Norfolk Freemasons have made a grant to relieve the financial pressure of unpaid carers. Norfolk Family Carers have received £10,000 to help rescope respite groups and maintain opportunities to have fun while building peer support with other young carers in the same situation.

The charity has seen a rise in referrals and young people seeking support placing a further burden on funds, which the grant from Norfolk Freemasons will help to relieve. Head of Norfolk Freemasons Stephen Allen said, “The work of local charities providing practical help and offering emotional support to these selfless young people and their families is something we are proud to support”.

Staying ‘Social’ during COVID-19

Written by on . Posted in Freemasonry.

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]During the Covid-19 pandemic, freemasons from all across the country have worked hard to support our communities, including of course those in Norfolk where we have been particularly active.

Our hard work has been acknowledged by the positive positive press we have received and the increased use of our digital media channels as highlighted below.[/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/2″][vc_single_image image=”3106″ img_size=”full”][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/2″][vc_single_image image=”3105″ img_size=”full”][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][/vc_column][/vc_row]

Norfolk Freemasons help local, independent lifeboat station

Written by on . Posted in Charity News, Freemasonry.

Sea Palling is an independent lifeboat station and they are grateful for the help provided by Norfolk Freemasons.

For nearly 50 years, we have operated the Lifeboat Station without a toilet being present on the premises. As a lifeboat crew – we are maintaining ourselves in our own ‘bubble’ to ensure that we protect both ourselves from the virus so that we can stay operational 24/7, but also our families (some of whom have underlying health issues). This means that we are keeping ourselves confined to the station, not visiting the public toilets to avoid all unnecessary public interaction, and we have implemented strict operational guidelines for our conduct whilst on the premises. As you can imagine – this causes problems!

Last year, local Freemasons heard of our plight, and the Provincial Grand Lodge of Norfolk has made this a reality for us. We now have a toilet for crew, a kitchen area and storage for shore crew kit. There are many thank yous to give out here: Lodge of Unanimity 102, Provincial Grand Lodge of Norfolk.

Isolated older people to receive help and support thanks to Norfolk Freemasons

Written by on . Posted in Charity News, Freemasonry.

Hundreds of lonely and isolated older people will be receiving regular visitors, thanks to a grant of £7,600 to the West Norfolk Befrienders charity from Norfolk Freemasons.

Loneliness among older people is an increasing problem. There are some older people who have not had a meaningful conversation with another human being for more than a month. Studies have shown that loneliness can have a profound impact on physical and mental health.

Any older person can be affected by loneliness. Often family and friends have died or moved away, with many having children that have emigrated. Widowers are often particularly affected as their wives were in charge of their joint social lives. The grant will be used to assess and match the clients and recruit, train and support volunteers.

West Norfolk Befrienders provides trained volunteers to visit people who are unable to leave their homes, as well as various community social events, such as lunches and coffee mornings. The charity also provides one to one visits in care homes.

Pippa May, Chief Executive of West Norfolk Befriending, said:

“We’re very grateful for the generous grant from Norfolk Freemasons, which will help us to stay in contact with hundreds of local older people who would otherwise not have meaningful contact with another human being from one week to the next.”

Head of Norfolk Freemasons, Stephen Allen said:

“I’m very pleased we’ve been able to help West Norfolk Befrienders with their hugely important work. It’s so important elderly lonely and often housebound people in our community are not left without regular social contact”.

£10,000 grant will shelter West Norfolk’s homeless over Christmas

Written by on . Posted in Charity News, Freemasonry.

The Province has made a significant donation to help the homeless in West Norfolk.

The Winter Night Shelter opened in November after planning permission was granted to convert an old Vicarage next to St John’s Church, on Blackfriars Road earlier this year.

The building now provides a haven for those sleeping rough – including those who became homeless when the emergency-funded hotel rooms closed a the end of June, or were evicted during the summer lockdown.

Stephen Allen, Norfolk’s Head of Freemasonry said: “The homeless crisis has been exacerbated by the Covid pandemic, with many people losing their jobs and finding themselves either living on the streets or in unsuitable conditions. Supporting local charities helping those needing safe shelter and meals is one of our key priorities at this time of year.”

Read the full article: https://www.lynnnews.co.uk/news/10-000-grant-will-shelter-west-norfolks-homeless-over-christmas-9146131/

Christmas Message from the Head of Norfolk’s Freemasons

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[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]View the address by or PGM as he reflects on 2020 and looks to the future.

The Video Premiere is on YouTube at 19:00 today (16 December 2020).[/vc_column_text][vc_video link=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6Jdbt7Nfyg”][/vc_column][/vc_row]

Online Christmas Carol Concert

Written by on . Posted in Freemasonry.

On Sunday, the 13th December, Norfolk Freemasons hosted an online Christmas Concert, streamed live to its public Facebook page.

The event featured Christmas readings given by our members and their families with each being followed by a festive song, some recorded by members, their families and friends, some recorded by choirs who in a normal year would be joining us at our Lodge Festive celebrations and we were also blessed to have a fabulous singer, Dani Beck, joining us live on the night.

The event is available from our public Facebook page at the address below. It is open to all, so please feel free to share the link to all your friends and family wherever they may be, and invite them to join us for this little bit of festive celebration.

Link is below https://fb.watch/2mdOepWNKU/

New Norfolk Provincial Logo Competition

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I would like to start by thanking all the brethren who entered the competition and congratulate them on the wide range of ideas and designs I received.  Our current logo uses the wording ‘Provincial Grand Lodge of Norfolk’ which, whilst widely understood by our members, is not immediately obvious to the outside world.

The brief given for the new logo was that, above all, it should readily and clearly identity us as Norfolk Freemasons and be suitable for use in a variety of settings.

I am delighted to announce the winner is… Craig Atwell.

His winning design has managed to blend and evolve all that was good in our current design with these new requirements. The shield has history and gravitas, the wording Norfolk Freemasons is clear and prominent, our values are clearly stated, the design is crisp, clean and easy to use in different settings.

Well done Craig, a bottle of your favourite refreshment is winging its way to you.

 

Stephen