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Good causes in Lincolnshire have been given more than a million pounds by the Freemasons’ charity the MCF since the launch of our #Lincs2025 Festival in January 2020 – and that takes no account of donations made through the LMCA, covering the £500 annual awards to charities chosen by Lodges.
The money has been our share of £60,000 awarded by the MCF every day, and underlines the importance of our #Lincs2025 Festival, says Provincial Charity Steward Pete Tong – though he sounds a note of caution.
“Without continued donations it becomes harder for us to respond to calls for help, which means Freemasons’ charity is on a knife edge,” he says. “It’s clear that the demands on every charity, ours included, are increasing at a time when donors’ ability to give is under increasing and sustained pressure from a number of areas.
“That means we have to be realistic in what we expect from our members in terms of donations, so my message is clear: Give what you can; whatever you give we’ll be grateful for. As the charity charge in the first degree tells us, ‘it will be thankfully received and gratefully applied.’ I shall be writing to charity stewards to make that position clear to them.”
He used as an example the impending circulation of raffle tickets, which he said should be seen as an opportunity to give rather than a demand for money. “Buy some if you want to, but be very clear that their purchase is not compulsory,” he said.
Pete has offered a breakdown of the MCF donations given to Lincolnshire between January 2020 and the start of the new season of meetings, which is shown in the ‘number crunching’ panel alongside this article.
The other side of the charity coin was that members should not hold back if they had a need for support. Anyone in difficulty should ask for support from their Lodge Almoner or directly from the MCF by calling the number in our panel.
PGM Dave Wheeler summed up that thought: “Our members should be under no pressure to donate to the Festival, but should also be aware that if they do, whatever they are able to give will enable us to deliver more help to those in real need.”
Number crunching
£1,031,154
given to Lincolnshire since January 2020
257 grants
given to 111 individuals
£746,888.96
Shared amongst them
£248,265
Shared amongst 57 charities
£8,500
Given to charities in the first nine months of 2022
0800 035 6090
The number to call to ask for help
