Freemasons from across Herefordshire have played key roles in co-ordinating elements of the 2024 Poppy Appeal

An urgent call for help was received from the Royal British Legion part way through October.

“Could you help with the distribution of Poppy boxes and collection tins in Hereford?”

An urgent appeal was made to the members of Herefordshire Freemasons which was answered

On 18th October over 60 boxes and tins were delivered around the town and outlying villages. Notices were sent to the other 30 groups who wanted wreaths and other items. The following week was spent co-ordinating collection points in superstores and the High Street, with volunteers who included several Lodge members, plus some training on using the card machines!

The poppies were out, and collectors were collecting! The Appeal was officially launched on 24th October.

After the two-week appeal across Ledbury, the Lodge members and their partners, together with local volunteers, began collecting the tins from shops, schools and other venues across the town. This took a couple of days, but then counting could begin.

With two teams of five and the use of the conference room at the Feathers Hotel, together with two coin-counting machines, the monies from over sixty tins and buckets were counted. The total, including donations via card machines and QR codes, was up by forty percent on last year.

Thank you to the public of Ledbury for their generosity, and the Lodge members and their partners who gave up their time to make this first year of help a great success.

Now to start planning for next year!

Delphis Lodge make a difference to dementia suffers across Herefordshire

W Bro David Knowles, Delphis Lodge Charity Steward, and the Worshipful Master W Bro Ian Warren met the Chief Executive of Dementia Matters (Herefordshire) at St John’s Church Hereford to see how the Lodge’s donation was helping the charity. There are around 3,700 people in Herefordshire with Dementia but only 1806 have been diagnosed.
Delphis Lodge donated £1,000, which had been match funded by the Masonic Charitable Foundation, providing £2,000 in total to this excellent local charity. David and Ian met up with Clare Powney, the Chief Executive to see first hand how the donation had helped the charity provide their valuable service to the Herefordshire community.

Dementia Matters (Herefordshire) is a Herefordshire wide independent charity that was set up in January 2020, to fill the gaps in service provision and opportunities for people who are affected by dementia or memory loss, their carers and families. They support people who may already have memory difficulties or are worried about their or a loved one’s memory and offer support and advise through the diagnosis process if necessary.
Dementia Matters (Herefordshire) offers a number of different services and projects, including developing social opportunities, across the county. They are a small friendly local team, experienced in offering support, information, advice and can signpost to other organisations to access their support. All of their services are free of charge.
Further details are on their website here https://dementiamattershere.co.uk

Herefordshire Freemasons and the Masonic Charitable Foundation have made a £33,644 grant to The Orchestra of the Swan.

Founded in 1995 and based on Warwick Schools Foundation, the Orchestra provides a wide range of musical activities across the region and are passionate about audience inclusivity.

Integral to the life of the Swan, is the music they bring to those living with dementia, PTSD, visual impairment and other conditions. It is moving to see the positive, transformational effect their players have on those who attend the regular dementia-friendly Café Muse in Hereford, while the players speak positively of the reward and specialist training they in turn receive. 

The session certainly encourage audience participation with dancing, singing and playing a variety of instruments.  The head of Freemasonry in Herefordshire Michael Holland, supported by Tim Bridgland Taylor and Andrew Moore were warmly received and able to see first hand the delight the session brought to the participants.

The MUSE sessions not only allow participants to explore musical instruments and rediscover any musical skills but also to make new friendships and reduce loneliness.

It was great to see the grant being put to good use and the looks of joy on the faces of those participating.  I think secretly we all enjoyed ourselves too!

Debbie Jagla, managing director of Orchestra of the Swan, said: 

“We’re very grateful to Herefordshire Freemasons for their generous grant which has secured the future of this important service for armed forces veterans or people with a link to the armed forces, whether through a partner who may have served in the forces or other family member, either living with dementia and/or other mental health challenges.  Over the last two years we’ve hosted well over one hundred Café Muse sessions at the Courtyard, helping to improve the emotional wellbeing of more than 1,200 attendees. All this was made possible through co-created musical workshops delivered by Orchestra of the Swan’s professional musicians.”