Starting with their regular December meeting held on the 14th December 2023, which traditionally is conducted by candlelight as a reminder of how lodges would have conducted meetings in the winter in the distant past.
The lodge meeting was a passing of Bro Arthur Jinks, which was completed in a very fine manner.
The other items of business for the evening were to present a 50-year certificate to WBro Ivan Garner. WBro Ivan became a member of St Peter’s on 13th December 1973, almost exactly 50 years to the day, he became Inner Guard in 1982 and rose through the offices, becoming WM in 1987, and held the office of treasurer from 1993-99. . He moved to Isle of Wight in the early noughties, thus resigning from St Peters in 2007. During his time on The Isle of Wight he became a founder member of Ernest Moss Lodge 9780 in March 2004 and a joining member of West Wight Lodge 8570 in 2009, finally joining the Installed Masters Lodge on the island in 2012.
WBro Ivan moved back to Stilton in 2018, and the December meeting was his first time to St Peters since returning. It was by a chance encounter that received a call from WBro Ian Knox, who was able to present WBro Ivan with his certificate on the night.
Also, WBro Tony Elsey presented a Grand Lodge certificate to Bro Tom Smith, who played his part in presenting the working tools earlier in the evening to Bro Arthur Jinks.
The third piece of business was to present a commemorative pocket square, a hand-made lapel pin, and a special edition bottle of wine, to a very surprised Bro Tony Taylor, for becoming the 500th member of the Northamptonshire and Huntingdonshire New & Young Masons Club.
Saturday 16th December, Saw members of St Peter’s, supporting a present wrapping event for the ‘Christmas Giving Tree Charity’, along with a donation of £250. The ‘Christmas Giving Tree’ was setup by nurses in the Peterborough A&E department after a meeting with a local project member for ‘The Grub Hub”, which offered support and a hot meal to the most vulnerable and impoverished children and their families. After meeting the children and families, the parents explained that they were struggling to put food on the table and a roof over their heads, so could not afford Christmas presents for their children. These stories were truly heartbreaking, so ‘The Christmas Giving Tree’ was born.
In the first year (2016), Hinchingbrooke Hospital supported the setting up of the project, putting tags on the Christmas Tree in the foyer of the hospital with the first names and ages of the children, so staff, patients, and visitors could select a tag and buy appropriate presents for the selected child.
After merging with the North West Anglia Foundation Trust, the communications team have supported the Christmas Giving Tree with promotions and generally, spreading the word, making it go from strength to strength.
In 2022, the ‘Christmas Giving Tree’ has become a fund within the North West Anglia Hospitals Charity, and are extremely grateful for the continued support from St Peter’s Lodge in Peterborough.
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On Sunday 17th December the Brethren held their traditional carol concert, which was in its 40th year. Carols and lessons were held in the lodge room under the direction of WBro Tony Rogers, the Lodge’s Chaplain. The raffle on the night raised over £600 towards the Worshipful Master WBro Andy McCarron’s charity of ‘No Gain No Pain’. ‘No Gain No Pain’, is a local charity which supports in palliative care patients with their pain relief, through a device called a syringe driver which is programmable to provide the required pain relief or anti sickness for the patient. With only 19 devices covering the 33 surgeries in the greater Peterborough area, there is a great need to them, so the £600 will be greatly received.
After a two-course meal, the Brethren and their guests were entertain by their very own “Homegroan” band with a number of Christmas hits.
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