Good morning Companions and I wish you all well, here in Barry Memo; on this 18th National Armed Forces Day. The Joint Executive and I are so very grateful to you all for taking time in your busy diaries, to attend this especial day in which we salute those Individuals who are to be Appointed and Promoted at this Annual Convocation.
It is indeed an honour to enjoy the company of the ME3GP here to help celebrate this auspicious occasion.
Companions several items this morning will be abridged, as I will use the opportunity of combining all the salient points in my Address to Provincial Grand Lodge, this afternoon.
Companions, as we continue to look forward and rebuild our numbers, we must be prepared to change our ways, adapt and live in the World on today’s terms and not necessarily continue with the established ways that we have all been used to. The Executive Team remain hugely impressed with all those Chapters whose members have carried out their work so enthusiastically. Well done to you all! Unlike some other Provinces, we have not lost One Chapter and that is down to each and every one of you in our special 69 Chapters.
Today marks a change in how we conduct this annual meeting and like many of our kindred Provinces, we have a host Chapter and a host Lodge. Our host Chapter today is Merdian and we are all grateful for your support and enthusiasm. If any Chapter wishes to volunteer to host the 2025 Annual Convocation, please make contact with the ProvGSE, and if you have one; your Banner will be on show next year; along with the Three Principals.
The Joint Executive remains both committed and dedicated to ensure that our wonderful Province remains productive, content and responsive. We thank you for the warmth of the welcome received in all our Chapters and we will continue to prioritise Membership, Charity and to improve Communication.
You will be aware from my address via Zoom at our recent PGL Committee meeting, that the Chief Information Officer continues in his task to review our IT strategy, Project Hermes and its parent, Adelphi. I take this opportunity to thank you for the professional manner in which you have embraced Hermes. I know the considerable work you have all had to put in to ensure success and we are grateful to our ProvGReg, ProvGSec and all our office and administrative officers and Volunteers for their dedication and sheer hard work, working with our magnificent Scribes E. You have shown that by mobilising human resources, we can achieve great things.
Today, you will no doubt once again generously contribute to charity via use of the pre-prepared Gift Aid envelopes and other enhanced methods. I would once again urge you to please go back to your Chapters and consider using Gift Aid envelopes at all of your Convocations. I emphasise the benefit of gift aid and the need to tick the gift aid box on the envelope, if you are a Tax payer. We continue to see an increase in charitable giving by using these envelopes throughout the Province. You will be aware that I have announced that EComp Robert Payne, APGM will lead on the 2032 Festival.
It is truly a great honour and privilege to invest all those appointed and promoted today and on behalf of the Province, I offer my personal thanks and gratitude to you all. You all richly deserve these accolades.
I am most grateful to those who have made today such an enjoyable success. In particular, the Past ProvGH Dr Akram Baig who with his Team has once again led on taking over this building and setting up and ensuring that food is good value with both food and drink being plentiful and tasty. Likewise the Provincial Grand Scribe Ezra, Provincial Assistant Grand Scribe Ezra, ProvGTreas, ProvGReg, ProvDGReg, ProvGAlmoner and ProvGChStwd, all of whom have worked hard to ensure operational effectiveness. and I congratulate the whole administrative and Communications Teams for their constant support and enthusiasm.
I also thank and congratulate our new Provincial Grand Director of Ceremonies, who continues his punishing Masonic schedule and my personal gratitude to all of our Provincial Officers, whilst representing me and the Executive on duty.
In closing Companions, I could not carry out this role without the constant support of the DGSupt, and the Provincial Grand Principals, both present and past. On behalf of South Wales, we thank our Companions of our kindred Provinces for the generosity and warmth of the welcome they continue to show to us, when representing you.
There is one Companion in particular that I wish to register my deep gratitude to for all of the work and support that he has afforded me over many years of loyal service, the AGSec, EComp Ben Gait. Earlier this year, he handed over his duties as ProvGSE to Martyn Wake. Companions, we are indeed blessed in this Province and now, so is UGLE.
Companions, we all wish you and your loved ones a very happy Summer. Enjoy Lunch and the remainder of today and we look forward to seeing you all, safe and sound, in the season ahead!
We have a very special visitor with us today from the Province of Lincolnshire, W.Bro. Chris Jones. For those who are not aware, W.Bro. Chris is planning to raise an incredible £100,000 to support the Masonic Charitable Foundation by walking 7,500 miles around the entire Coastline of Britain. Why is Chris doing it ? Well Chris believes that he is only alive today because of the Freemasons’ charity the MCF, which steered him through the darkest days of a mental health crisis. Chris is very open about his struggle with mental health and this is the main focus of this challenge. He has suffered with poor mental health for about 10 years and at the very lowest points has spent days and sometimes weeks of his life contemplating suicide and an escape from the misery. So, this fundraising challenge is to say “thank you” to the professionals at MCF who helped him in his time of need. The walk began at Skegness on New Year’s Day 2023, and Chris reached the Province of South Wales last month. W.Bro. Chris, thank you for taking time out of your challenge to join us today and we wish you extremely well in the remainder of your challenge. On behalf of the South Wales Freemasons, we will be making a donation of £1,000 to your fundraising page. Brethren, please let us show our support and appreciation to W.Bro. Chris.
