Page 9 - Essex Mason (Issue 91)

By Jeff Palmer and Chris Webb
#UGLENHSDay Provincial - NHS Day Provincial Stewards Coordinators

Harlow Masonic Centre

Supported by St Francis Hospice and The Order of Women’s Freemasonry, we continued with our show of
appreciation for the NHS at Loughton Lodge.

We had also by now become a well-oiled machine, decorating the cab at each visit, having learned that we can’t
drive along with the cab decorated in balloons and banners pr we lose them all.
Next stop Harlow. Arriving at 12.30pm, we suddenly realised we had not eaten. Mark Innes and Rob Hollier
reminded us that we Stewards needed to do some work and also needed some fortifi cation, then much to our
delight, offered us a platter which was gratefully received.

Again, the Lodge
was well supported
and reminded us how
important it was to
show our appreciation
Orsett Masonic Centre for our fantastic NHS.

Arriving at Orsett Masonic Hall we were met by some very colourful Masonic NHS supporters and had no problem
welcoming their offer to camp it up. Again, this Lodge was extremely well supported and made us proud to be
part of this event.
We wanted to visit more lodges, but logistics, time and capacity limited us. So, it was time to head back to
Braintree to show more appreciation for the NHS and join in the festivities they had organised.

Arriving at just before 6pm, we were updated with the day’s activities and amazing efforts by Dan Broyd and
his family, which supported the day event welcoming Andrew McLeod and Jennifer Tolhurst, the Queens Royal
Lieutenant.
The evening was just as successful.
We Stewards were fi nally able to
relax and enjoy a rather unusual
festive board, which was topped
off by coming second in the
‘short’ quiz, which prevented us
from driving home until after dark. Howard Hall - Braintree

All in all, it was a wonderful day, full of pride and admiration for our NHS. It was a very tiring day but also a great
privilege for us Stewards to not only meet some exceptional individuals but also be part of a truly momentous
occasion and do something small to enhance the publicity for the men and women who dedicated and devote
their lives to helping others. It made me proud to be a Mason.

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