Updating our Experience

North Harrow Lodge no.6557 is still experiencing an unprecedented surge of members.

The website continues to be a success in more ways than one. While 70% of new members have been secured directly through our site, the renewed enthusiasm shown by our existing and new members has in turn proved a draw for others.

Why Join Freemasonry

For those who are considering joining Freemasonry, I found this clip on YouTube most enlightening.

It's Not What but Who

It's not always what you know but who!! So today was one of those blessings! My great friend David, whom Ive known for over 30 years  had invited me and a couple of colleagues for lunch at the East India Club in St. James' Square. How decadent and awfully nice !!! One of London's hidden gems.

The Fruits of One's Labours

If you would have asked me a year ago "How's the Lodge Doing?" my reply would have probably been "OK thanks". That was before the telephone started ringing and the emails started arriving.Then before I knew it we had enquiries from another eighteen candidates wanting to join Freemasonry.
Now its Wow !! how are we going to manage this lot !!!

After a little thought. The answer was (almost) simple... if we can't take them in the near future...Let's .introduce them to other Lodges that are in need of candidates. Then, produce a spreadsheet  to monitor their development and to make sure they are mentored into what is expected of them.

They Shall Not Grow Old

Hundreds of people gathered this morning at the top of Pinner High Street to commemorate the fallen Service Men and Women who have given their lives in conflicts all over the world.
Yes!! Today is Remembrance Sunday!!

Our ProPGM, R.W.Bro Roger Croome QPM, had the honour of placing a wreath on behalf of Middlesex Freemasons at the Pinner War Memorial.

Then just before 11am the bell at Pinner church and a lone trumpeter sounded the last post which  signalled the start of the 2 minutes silence at 11 am on the 11th Day of the 11th Month.


They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old;
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.

Then more than 30 organisations placed their individual wreaths against the memorial. A fitting tribute!!

And as quickly as the crowds had gathered, they had dispersed in a buss of chatter 

Dark Blues Galore

It had been a while since I had attended the Middlesex Provincial Grand Officers (PGO) Club meeting, so on Thursday 1st November, I made the effort and went along with our Worshipful Master, Terry Clayfield.. I was amazed at the turnout, some 170 members packed the venue at the BA Concorde Club near Heathrow and what a most enjoyable evening it was!! Full of banter and chatter!!

No Growing Pains Here

Are statistics important ? Well, if anything they could throw up very interesting information. Recently my SW, Bro.Vaughan, did an extensive study of our membership levels over the last 5 years and the results were quite revealing.

Some of our New Brethren

The data was retrieved from our recent Grand Lodge Membership returns and shows that in the 5 years from 2007 to 2012 our active membership has increased by 70% from 17 to today's figure of 29 and the average age has dropped by 10% from 58 to 53 . Quite impressive you may well say!!

Masonic Burns' Night

North Harrow Lodge no.6557

Presents

BURNS NIGHT DINNER
On

FRIDAY 18^th JANUARY 2013

To be Held at Harrow District Masonic Centre, Kenton, Middlesex, after Our Lodge Meeting starting at 4.15pm, 
where we are Performing a Double Initiation Ceremony
and

Presenting 3 Grand Lodge Certificates

The Piper is Booked

The Address to the Haggis is arranged

With a wee dram o’ whisky

Dining Fee £25

For Further Details & to Book in with :

Nigel Harris-Cooksley (Secretary)

020 8866 8721 Or E-Mail :

Secretary@NorthHarrowLodge.org

A Secretary's Lot is a Happy One

When I took over as Secretary of  6557 a year ago, I  acknowledged from my predecessor of 18 years that it was not going to be easy. That was an understatement. No one tells you about the copious amounts paperwork and form filling involved sometimes on a day to day basis.
However, it is a job that gives satisfaction, especially when best laid plans come together as it has done in North Harrow Lodge over the last year !!

I have had amazing support from the Lodge members, from giving apologies when not being able to attend meeting ( as booking correct numbers at FBs are so important ), attending numerous meetings to interview the many prospective candidates, joining me in visits to other Lodges who had agreed to perform ceremonies on our behalf, to a fantastic turnout from our members at the Middlesex Provincial Family Fete where we donated £1000 being the proceeds of our BBQ stall and enabled the total raised on the event to exceed a staggering £21,500 this year.

Our Newest Initiate
and his good Lady

Another event high in the Middlesex Province's calendar is the Service of Thanksgiving, which was at Guildford Cathedral. This event is one of the only times that the public are able to see Freemasons paraded in their full dress regalia. This year 6 of us including our partners and our Newest Initiate and his good lady had the pleasure of attending the event, where hundreds of Masons packed the Cathedral to the gunnels.
More Photos are available at the Province's Website
The next venture of North Harrow Lodge is at our next meeting at which we are performing ANOTHER Double initiation, presenting 3 Grand Lodge Cerificates and a Burn's Night on the 18th January 2013. The candidates are ready,The Certificates should be, The Piper is booked!! The Address to the Haggis is organised, the Drams of whiskey are ordered and most importantly the projected numbers are increasing daily and are exceeding 50 to date.
To book in contact me through the website of North Harrow Lodge

Best Laid Plans of Mice & Masons

Isn't it great when a plan comes together !!! Well almost.

To perform an initiation at our installation meeting last Friday was a little ambitious to say the least, even if we only were to Proclaim that the Master remained in the chair for a further year. The time flew and even though we started at 4.15 we didn't finish until 7.30pm !! what a marathon. (dinner was booked for 7.15pm) oopps!! Fail !!

50 years How we've Changed

North Harrow Lodge
Ladies' Night 1971

A pictorial view of almost Fifty Years of North Harrow Lodge's Ladies Festivals....Gone in a Blink of an eye... especially when you're enjoying yourselves.

Greetings From H.M Queen 1971

Pushing the boundaries

Proof that some things weren't checked!!

As our first regular meeting of the new 2012/13 season is rapidly approaching on Friday the 12th October, it falls  upon yours truly as Lodge Secretary to try and get things right before the meeting and then pass on the reigns to our Director of Ceremonies to make sure the meeting runs like clockwork.

Only after the summons were sent out did I realise that this year time permitted us, for the first time since the Lodge was formed back in the dark days of 1948, to do something extraordinary,

Sharing our Success

As an update on one of my previous blogs a couple of months ago entitled "Our New Initiative".
North Harrow Lodge 6557 is still experiencing an unprecedented surge of quality members.
70% have been secured through the interest in our website and the others from the increased enthusiasm of existing and new members who have brought in friends and colleagues over the last couple of months.
Last year we were fortunate to have initiated 4 members.
For most Lodges this would have been a great achievement.
However, it didn’t end there, this year we have initiated another 8 and have so far another 7 prospective candidates for next year, which will boost our numbers to about 36, which is almost double our previous membership.

Bro. Khan (L) Bro. Romero (R)
after their 2nd Degree

The question has been asked by many is :
 “ Now you’ve got them. How are you going to retain them?”
The Answer is not simple . Freemasonry is not for everyone and it is inevitable that there are some who will fall by the wayside. Mentoring and communication play an important part in retention and keeping their interest in Freemasonry is paramount.
Because we are now busy in the Lodge, we are able to give them work at the earliest opportunity without them feeling under any pressure to advance before they really want.
There is also a chance that the candidates interest may be lost in waiting to progress through their respective degrees, so standing still for us is not an option.
With almost 30 outstanding ceremonies projected at the start of the year, this could have been an issue.
We have been fortunate to have the support from a number of other Lodges in Middlesex who have had no scheduled work and have been able to “farm out” most of our Second & Third degrees.
This satisfies a number of issues.

1. Our candidates can progress as quickly as they want.
2. It boosts the numbers at the meetings of the other Lodges because we will support our Candidates
3. It gives enthusiasm to the other Lodges as they have work to perform.
4. Most importantly, visiting enables friendships to be made between the Lodges.

Because of our success, we initially interview interested candidates to make sure of their eligibility to join the Craft and if successful, give them the option to be initiated into another Lodge in Middlesex to suit their availability.
We have over the last couple of months introduced 4 candidates for initiation to 4 Lodges and will as part of our initiative, continue to monitor their progression and attend their meetings, just to make sure all parties are happy.
Why not visit us and see how we do things !! Our next meeting is on Friday 12th October at Harrow Masonic Centre, starting at 4.15pm when we will perform another Initiation, followed by the presentation of 2 Grand  Lodge Certificates and then the Proclamation of our W.M , just email me for a Summons.

Success is Great , Sharing our Success with failing Lodges is Greater!!

Flushed with Candidates

A few months ago I would never have thought that the North Harrow Lodge website could have been so successful in recruiting members.
Not a month has gone by without an enquiry into how one would join.
We have initiated  8 into North Harrow Lodge this year and have a scheduled list of double initiation ceremonies well into next year.
The fact is that our membership has grown from a nucleus of 16 Members 2 years ago and has now risen to 30 to date with another 4 in waiting.
That would be good for any Lodge, but in North Harrow we have gone much further.
We have now given 9 ceremonies to other Lodges and to date placed 4 quality candidates for initiation with 4 Lodges that meet at HDMC and that's just a start !!!
Today I have received another 4 enquiries from prospective candidates to join and as we may not be able to take them before 2014, I may offer them to other Lodges.
That's what the power of the Internet can do !!
Take a leaf out of North Harrow's book and reap the benefits also !!

Off we Go Visiting

Every Lodge is different, that's what makes visiting a very enjoyable and important part of Freemasonry.
Tuesday was no exception. First stop on a hot afternoon was the Hercules Pillars to cool down with a pint after fighting through the hoards at Kings X and then Holborn Underground. 

On your marks ! Get set.........

Wow ! Where did the summer break go? . It doesn't seem that long ago that we initiated two more members into North Harrow at our first ever Emergency meeting in June and attended another lodge who had agreed to do a 3rd Degree for us in July.

Lodge business has had to taken a back seat over the last few weeks with a trip to Bern in Switzerland, the Olympics, Paralympics  and a visit to the Tate Modern for the Damien Hirst exhibition. That was certainly different!!

North Harrow Goes Country

Nigel Harris-Cooksley receiving 3rd Prize for our
Pork Sausages from Lady Salisbury

Although we have had a couple more enquiries for membership this week, this blog is not about membership.
It is, however, about another visit to Hatfield House, this time for their annual Country Show which is held  this weekend on the Hertfordshire Estate.

Breathing life into Middlesex Freemasonry

I do like it when a plan comes together!!
Historically any lodge would be pleased to have one initiate a year and would only have dreamt of having three or four. We have been very fortunate ( it could be that we are also very nice guys) to have secured four times that amount and are now in a very enviable position of having enough work for a number of years to come.

A New Season Dawns for North Harrow

It's almost the start of a new masonic season in Middlesex. Most Lodges don't have any meetings from early July to early September. Likewise, our next meeting on Friday the 12th October marks the start of our year.

Middlesex Provincial Matters

If you're interested in what's happening in the near future within Freemasonry in Middlesex,, take a look at the recently updated Provincial Diary.
http://www.northharrowlodge.org/Provincial-Events-updated-01.08.12.pdf

Also, if you are a Master Mason and wish to attend Grand Lodge Quarterly Communications, you would not be able to unless you occupy one of the Wardens' positions in your Lodge.
THIS IS ABOUT TO CHANGE .........

Macbeth at Hatfield House

If you’re into Shakespeare, or you just like to see a bit of drama, then you may like to join members of North Harrow Lodge and their partners for a lively afternoon in the sunshine (one can hope !!) with a glass of wine for a performance of Macbeth at Hatfield House on Sunday 12th August.

Donations of over £66,000 to Local Charities

Our Provincial Grand Master had the pleasure of handing out cheques for over £66,000 on behalf of Middlesex Freemasons

Royal College of Surgeons                                                                                   £11,000

The Royal College of Surgeons is a registered charity (not part of the NHS) and plays a vital role in supporting surgical research within the UK. The Royal Arch Masons 2013 Bicentenary Appeal has been established to help fund the College’s successful surgical research fellowship scheme, which supports surgeons to undertake a surgical research project.

A Night for the Ladies

North Harrow President W.Bro Terry Clayfield and his family

Over 100 people attended North Harrow Lodge's Annual Ladies' Night which was held at the Bellhouse hotel in Beaconsfield.
We hold one of these events every year, it is an opportunity to say thank you to our "loved one" for allowing us out on the numerous evenings throughout the year doing our Freemasonry stuff.

WBro Breen (front right) with his guests

It was an evening of excellent food, company, music and dancing until the early hours and a chance for us all to get together for a great time.

WBro Harris-Cooksley
& Rena

https://picasaweb.google.com/104638823856542780355/NorthHarrowLadiesNight2012

What North Harrow Lodge do for Charities

W.Bro Derek Biddle (left) W.M 2011

Another thing North Harrow Lodge and Freemasons in general do well is supporting Local Charities, Each year the Lodge has what's called a "Master's List" where the Master nominates a charity that the Lodge will support during his year in office. Over the last couple of years the nominated Charities that Noth Harrow Lodge have been supporting are the Teenage Cancer Trust and the National Society for Epilepsy. Last month we had the pleasure of presenting cheques for £900 to each of the Charities.



W.Bro. Andy Watterston (left) W.M 2010

Summer break for Masonry



Now that the summer is upon us, most Lodges close for the two months of July and August, however, work still goes on behind the scenes for Lodge secretaries. I've just applied to UGLE for a Grand Lodge Certificate for one of our brethren who was raised to the degree of a Master Mason earlier this month so that I can present it to him at our Installation meeting on Friday the 12th October (visitors are most welcome). Also at this meeting we will be appointing and investing lay brethren to ALL our junior offices, and have six appointed as stewards, this is the first time we have been able to do this in many years. This is testament to the quality of our new candidates, two of whom are pictured below ! May it continue !!!

W.Bro Terry Clayfield (centre) with our 2 recent initiates Bro Aamir Khan (left) and Bro Howard Cheng (right)



Introducing New Candidates

Last week I was able to put the first part of our Initiative into action by organising ceremonies for five of our members with other Lodges over the next few months.Today, I have been able to put the second part into action.
Having received 2 completed Registration Forms from prospective candidates, who initially wanted to join North Harrow Lodge and because we would not be able to initiate them until 2014 , we have agreed to introduce them to 2 other Lodges that are short of members and have no work.
As part of this initiative we would then support them by attending the donor Lodge when they progress through their respective ceremonies.
I'm just waiting for the Lodges to reply to my offer .... I bet it's a resounding YES PLEASE !!
That's something else Freemasonry is good at !!! Sharing

The Battle Proms at Hatfield House

Another first for North Harrow was to attend the Battle Proms at Hatfield House on the 21st July! Lodge members and prospective members with their partners were blessed with glorious weather and enjoyed great food, wine and fellowship and a spectacular display by  the "Blades" aerial acrobatic team and stunts by a SuperMarine Spitfire, finishing with Cannons and fireworks and of course "Land of Hope & Glory". A fantastic afternoon and evening. Many thanks go to W.Bro.David Russell for organising the tickets for us (pictured  in his working capacity as Operations Manager) its a hard life at Hatfield House.
https://picasaweb.google.com/114122000538313893771/BattlePromsAtHatfieldHouse2012

Our growing membership

Mainly due to our website http://www.NorthHarrowLodge.org we have recruited 19 new members in as many months. This is unheard of in Freemasonry in general . So it shows that social media does work! It has also breathed new life into our Lodge. Pictured below a few of our recent initiates


From L-R . Bro Bhatia, Bro Kotecha, Bro Flood, W.Bro Harris-Cooksley (Sec), Bro Thomas, Bro Shah, Bro Flood.

Flying the flag for Freemasonry

It was quite surprising how many people noticed the square and compass flag we were flying when we were moored in Yarmouth on the I.o.W and at Portsmouth and came over for a chat. We were proud to fly the flag for freemasonry.


The Crew of (muggles) Masons aboard "Dumbledore" in the Sloent

Freemasons went Sailing the Solent

It's not all work and no play being a member of North Harrow Lodge, a few weeks ago, 6 of us chartered "Dumbledore" a 37' yacht and sailed along the Solent for 4 days and lived to tell the tales of  high winds and 6ft waves ! (well almost). Great fun was had by all! Just waiting for the next one, possibly in September, watch this space
Click on the link below for more pictures of the trip
https://picasaweb.google.com/114122000538313893771/Solent2012


From L-R  WBro Andy Watterston, WBro David Russell, Bro Rimal Shah,WBro Derek Biddle, WBro Vaughan Coleridge Matthews (Skipper), W.Bro Nigel Harris-Cooksley

Charity Donation to the London Air Ambulance

W.Bro. Roger Croome, the Pro Provincial Grand Master of Middlesex, had the pleasure of presenting a cheque for £2000 to the London Air Ambulance at the Middlesex Family Fete on the 15th July!! That's what we do well!!

Our New Initiative

Because of the success of our website in recruiting and introducing new members to Freemasonry, we have decided to share our work around other Lodges in Middlesex area.
Over the last few weeks I have been able to allocate ceremonies to 5 Lodges, who have no work, for their meetings before Christmas and would hope to continue this well into the New Year.
We have also started an initiative to introduce any new candidate obtained through the website  to another Lodge in Middlesex who is not doing as well as us.
This is because the earliest we could take another initiate into North Harrow is 2014 and it would not be reasonable to ask a candidate to wait 18 months to join.
As the first point of contact for any prospective candidate, we have decided that we will support and mentor him through his progress in Freemasonry from the introduction to another Lodge to being present at his ceremonies.
This initiative will not only give a welcome boost to membership in Middlesex, but will swell the guest numbers at the meetings of the Lodges concerned.
For further details visit our Website  http://www.NorthHarrowLodge.org

Middlesex Family Fete

On Sunday the 15th July we ran the BBQ stall at the Middlesex Provincial Grand Family Fete which was held at the Royal Masonic School for Girls in Rickmansworth. After all the rain over the previous few weeks and months the day stayed rain free.
Hundreds of people turned up to wonder around the 70 stalls and get involved in the events that were taking place throughout the day.
For the members of North Harrow Lodge  it was a very busy day, selling hundreds of Bacon Butties, burgers, hot dogs and kebabs over the course of the day. It was a culmination of hard work and great teamwork that enabled us to donate the proceeds to the Charity, which amounted to a record breaking £1000.

North Harrow Lodge has arrived

This is my first and newest venture into the blogging world, so please bare with me as I try and give an insight of what is going on in the life of a Harrow Freemason  and North Harropw Lodge no.6557 in particular and Middlesex Freemasonry in general.
You can also visit our website on  http://www.NorthHarrowLodge.org