The Masonic
Province of South Wales, Eastern Division's
2010 Festival in aid of the The Freemasons' Grand Charity
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A word from the The Province of South Wales, Eastern Division has been accorded the honour of hosting the 2010 Festival in aid of the Grand Charity. The Grand Charity was established by the United Grand Lodge of England and started operation on 1st January 1981. It took over from the Board of Benevolence the functions of relieving individual petitioners and making donations to Masonic and non-Masonic charities. In April 2003 the Grand Charity assumed responsibility for payments previously made by the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution (R M B I) for the purposes of providing relief to Masons and their dependants. |
He has diverse business interests across South Wales and lives in the north of the Capital City. Before his appointment as Assistant Provincial Grand Master, he was the Provincial Grand Director of Ceremonies. |
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The Grand Charity is governed by its members (i.e. Master Masons who are subscribing members of all Lodges in England, Wales and the Channel Islands, and all members of the Grand Lodge); its affairs are directed by a Council of (Not less than) twenty-seven members.
The primary activities of the Grand Charity is to make grants to: Individual Masons or their dependants who are in need (Masonic Relief Grants,) Other Masonic charities, Non-Masonic charities which operate nationally and Emergency relief for disasters worldwide. In addition to providing financial support, the Grand Charity manages the Relief Chest scheme on behalf of Lodges - these are effectively bank accounts pooling the money to earn a higher interest rate and allowing tax relief to be reclaimed centrally. The Grand Charity makes no charge to the Lodges for this service. One or the primary reasons that the Grand Charity was established in 1980 was to enable the Craft, as a whole, to give to non-Masonic charities. In 2002, £2.4m was donated to nearly 350 operating charities in England and Wales. Grand Charity support is given in five areas: Vulnerable people , Medical research, Youth opportunities, Hospices and Emergency relief work. With the non-Masonic grants, the Grand Charity seeks to make a real difference to the lives of those who are in the greatest need. These grants also offer opportunities to raise the public awareness about the charitable activities of Freemasons. Support for local hospices is one of the Grand Charity's most popular initiatives and running costs of hospices throughout England and Wales. The Grand Charity relies on the generous support of the Craft. It seeks to provide assistance to all Masons and their dependants who are in need and to act, on behalf of the entire Craft, in making donations to national charities on a scale beyond the reach of most individual lodges or Provinces. Our Right Worshipful Provincial Grand R W Bro Hywel Davies has been accorded the honour of presiding over the Grand Charity Festival in 2010 and he has made the following appointments:-
The four Vice Chairmen have appointed a number of Liaison officers, each having responsibility for up to six Lodges in their areas. These Liaison Officer are the first point of contact for the Lodge Charity Stewards. The Liaison officers will be able to offer assistance and advice and will monitor each Lodge’s progress throughout the period of the Festival. The 2010 Festival is approaching rapidly, the intervening years will pass all too quickly. We are confident that the machinery is in place to be able to offer the Grand Charity a further example of this Province’s generosity in 2010. |
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The
Festival Chairman, Andrew Gretton, is one of the four Assistant
Provincial Grand Masters in this Province. He was appointed to that
position in 1999 having played a pivotal role in the 1999 Festival in
aid of the New Masonic Samaritan Fund.