Visit to St Luke’s Lodge Ipswich

On Wednesday 13 September 2017, W. Bro Willie Fergus, WM of St Luke’s Lodge No. 6540, accompanied by three of his Brethren and also by W. Bro Malcolm Toogood, WM Elizabethan Lodge No. 7296 (daughter Lodge of St Luke’s Bath), travelled more than 200 miles to pay a fraternal visit to St Luke’s Lodge No. 225 in Ipswich, Province of Suffolk.

This was in return for fraternal visits that the Ipswich Brethren had previously made to Bath in 2013 and 2016 – the latter occasion being when a large contingent of 15 Brethren had taken part in the visit!

From the moment that the Bath visitors arrived at Ipswich Masonic Hall, an impressive 19th Century Grade 2 listed building, at 5:00pm to when we left at just after 11:00pm, the warmth of the Masonic welcome, friendship and hospitality shown to us by the WM and Brethren of St Luke’s Lodge Ipswich was superb.

The Meeting itself included a high quality 2nd Degree ceremony and also ballot for a total of four candidates to join St Luke’s Lodge (Ipswich), which was consecrated in 1785 as an Antients or Atholl Lodge.  This was followed by an excellent four-course Festive Board with plenty of lively conversation and laughter, where we discovered that St Luke’s Lodge (Ipswich) Brethren take pride in singing their responses whenever taking wine and also to some of the formal Toasts – needless to say the Bath visitors rose to the challenge of singing responses to the Toasts proposed to us, but fell somewhat flat on some of the musical chords involved!

The evening ended in fine spirit and with the fraternal bonds between Bath and Ipswich well and truly strengthened. It is now hoped that St Luke’s Lodge (Ipswich) will visit Bath again in the not too distant future.

In the Photo are:

Front Row: St Luke’s Lodge No. 225 centre W.Bro Ron Calthorpe (WM) with his Senior Warden (L) and Junior Warden (R).

Back Row: St Luke’s Lodge No.6540 left to right W.Bro Mike Haswell (Treasurer), W.Bro Willie Fergus (WM), W.Bro Julian May (Lodge Mentor), W.Bro Malcolm Toogood (WM Elizabethan Lodge No. 7296), W.Bro David Gill (Secretary).