Page 14 - Essex Mason Spring Special Edition

Provincial Charity Steward

Freemasons pledge support

for hospitals and care homes across Essex

ssex Freemasons have mobilised its 9,000 members from across the County to join the fight against COVID-19
Ewith a major new campaigns aimed at providing essential equipment for local hospitals and care home staff as
well as providing extensive free car parking for front end emergency workers.
Some £20,000 has been allocated immediately by the Essex Freemasons Community Fund to purchase thousands of
vitally needed PPE visors. These will be distributed to hospitals and care homes in every part of the County.

In a second initiative the Essex Cornerstone Club, which represent some 200 young Masons across Essex, has launched
a separate appeal to help support a desperate plea from NHS Doctors and Nurses for any old but working electronic
tablets / iPads.
And in Hutton and Upminster Freemasons have opened up their doors – or to be more precise – their car parks to NHS
and other key workers who need to travel to London, so that they can leave their vehicles free of charge, helping them
to avoid parking charges at nearby stations.
Nationally, UGLE has through the Masonic Charitable Foundation launched a nationwide Appeal to help fight the
Covid-19 outbreak - and to provide even further support for this incredible cause - will match fund up to £1 million on
any donations it receives.
More than £100,000 has been allocated to our region to be spent at the discretion of local Freemasons. The good news
is that any money donated to the Covid-19 Appeal will immediately be credited to the Essex Festival2022 target. This
means that any money that you as individuals, or as Lodges or Chapters were intending to donate to the Festival can
now be directed towards the UGLE Covid-19 campaign and it will still count.

When you make such a donation please ensure that you mention the names of Lodges and Chapters so that they can be
credited as if they had donated to the Festival Appeal – ensuring that you will be helping the Province reach its target
while at the same time ensuring that your money is going where it is most needed.

You can donate in a number of different ways:
• Online by clicking this link: http://everydayhero.co.uk/event/covid-19
• By making a transfer from your Relief Chest using the Green Form to the MCF Relief Chest “COVID-19” Send your
voucher to the MCF in the usual way
• Use your Mobile to text Covid-19 to 70500 to donate £5
• Use a regular single donation form which can be obtained via your Charity Steward or downloaded via the CUBE
using this link: https://essexfreemasons.org/folders/file/1416 Please ensure that you cross out Festival2022 and
replace with Covid-19. It will still be credited to the Festival.

Young Masons
leading the way

he Cornerstone Club Appeal for Ipads and Tablets get right to the coal face of
Tgreatest need.

Due to the COVID-19 crisis patients are not allowed to receive visitors in hospital. This
initiative will give patients, many who are elderly and frail and do not have access to
smart devices and who may be nearing the end of their life, the opportunity to speak to
family and loved ones via video calls. The devices, regardless of age, need to be wiped
clean of data, in working order and able to hold a charge and be able to run FaceTime/
Skype or video calls.
Anyone wishing to donate their old electronic tablets are asked to click on the following
link to know more:
https://forms.gle/yMu9x6uJZ8XWzovA9 (see full article on page 20)

Provincial Grand Charity Steward

W.Bro Colin Felton PADGC colin.felton@essexpgl.org
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