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?”
Poppy boxes and collection tins needed to be delivered to several local schools and business establishments in North Hereford. An urgent appeal was made to the members of Herefordshire Freemasons which was answered by several willing volunteers including military veterans within the Freemason community.
The various boxes and collection tins were collected and distributed ready for the appeal and then picked up and delivered to the TA Centre for counting afterwards.
Eastnor Lodge were already helping in Ledbury by taking on responsibility for running the appeal locally.
Time was tight but the team worked together to co-ordinate ordering poppies/school kits, wreaths and many items based on historic sales information. Once they had been delivered it was then a case of sorting ready to be taken to local schools, homes and shops.
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!