A cold and brisk morning down in Portballintrae, as we all made our way to the Bushfoot Golf club, hosts to the Cary & Dunluce Masonic Charity breakfast, once again this year.
Amongst those present were R.W. Brother John McLernon, Provincial Grand Master of Antrim, R.W. Brother George Graham, Provincial Assistant Grand Master of Antrim, Most Ex. Companion Jon McA Pollock, District Grand King of Antrim and R.W. Brother Raymond Robinson, Provincial Grand Master of Londonderry, and Donegal.
We enjoyed a steady turnover of brethren, family and friends, and our various arrivals were carefully entered, arranged, and accommodated by the officers and helpers present from the Cary and Dunluce Charity Committee.
Ballot tickets were available for those that wanted them, and a good range of prizes were on display, for the draw later in the morning.
This year, in response to the increase in the requirement for mental health services, our committee decided to provide our support to “The Zachary Geddis Break the Silence Trust”, a newly set up Mentoring and Counselling Service which has been set up in Unit 1 Loughanhill Industrial Estate, on the Gateside Road in Coleraine. This organisation provides local support to the individual, family, and community, helping to prepare personalised well being plans for the help of every client so that they can assist them to get the relevant professional services that best suits their needs.
Our second selected charity, this year is the “Northern Ireland, Chest Heary & Stroke Charity”, and as I looked around the room this morning, I could clearly see why this particular charity is an old favourite with the Masonic Brethren of Cary and Dunluce.
As the morning went on, our brethren, families and friends continued to arrive for an excellent filling breakfast as provided by Bushfoot, and by lunch time our committee had raised some £2,320.00 which comes out at a sum of £1,160.00 to each of the two charities named above.
However, if you were unable to get along this morning, you can still make your donations directly to our Provincial Grand Almoner W. Brother Alistair McKay, either at his homeplace or at the Royal Court Hotel Portrush at Provincial Grand Lodge on Monday the 25th November 2024.
Article and photographs provided by R.W. Brother Robert Bashford