Community Events: Lodge Thistle Stewarton No.127

Lodge Thistle No.127 Members Helping to Showcase Masonic Charity Work

Although many Freemason Lodges are in recess over the summer months, the work behind the scenes continues for the members of 127. Whether it's our weekly Wednesday bingo, some building maintenance or planning for the upcoming session, you will usually find our gate open as you pass Springwell Place.

The members of the Lodge are also weel kent faces in Stewarton due to their past and present business links, support for SWAT, The Bonnet Guild, the Bowling Club, local churches, and many other activities. With the Lodge now in its 254th year, the heritage and ties to the community are as strong as ever. However, Freemasonry is a broader organisation, and we also support causes outside the town.

The Ayrshire Freemasons' project, "Teddies for Loving Care", which commenced in August 2023, has donated over 3,300 teddy bears to the Accident and Emergency departments at Crosshouse and Ayr Hospitals to help alleviate the apprehension experienced by children attending these departments. The success of the initiative means we are now distributing to Ayrshire Paediatric Dental Services.

The Teddies for Loving Care initiative was only made possible due to the generosity of members of Lodges across Ayrshire, under the auspices of The Provincial Grand Lodge of Ayrshire (PGLA) who have collectively raised almost £1 million since 2008 and contributed generously to the £1.2 million raised as part of the Grand Lodge of Scotland's Prostate Scotland initiative. However, as the old saying goes, charity begins at home. For Lodge Thistle No. 127 Stewarton, supporting local charities, football clubs, and good causes is the key objective for its members.

The PGLA has set up an events committee to help promote the charitable works of Freemasonry, and recently had a stand at the Dundonald Highland Games, where members from across Ayrshire, including Lodge Thistle No. 127, chatted with the visitors who attended the games as conversations flowed from "What is Freemasonry" and "My Dad was a Mason" to "I never knew that you supported that charity" and "My son received one of these teddies at the hospital".

The purpose of attending events is to dispel the myth that we are a secret society and to encourage men who may be interested in becoming members to find out more. The first event was a great success, with the Lodges in Dundonald and Troon receiving interest from members who had not attended for many years and would like to return, as well as a few who would like to meet to discuss Freemasonry in more detail.