No fewer than 37 charities received grants totalling more than £25,000 from Shropshire’s Freemasons at a special awards day on Monday, 20th June. Representatives from most of the charities were on hand to receive grants at a special reception and buffet lunch.
The Freemasons of Shropshire make these awards annually at their Crewe Street headquarters in Shrewsbury, where cheques were handed out by Provincial Grand Master Peter Taylor. This year there were substantial grants to local hospices, the Air Ambulance and the Shrewsbury Ark. Military charities received a boost as Combat Stress and SSAFA were among the beneficiaries, and medical causes also received strong support – Marie Cancer Cancer Care, Lingen Davies Cancer Support. Shropshire MIND and the British Red Cross’s local Wheelchair Appeal.
Young people’s charities are always prominent on the list, including Shrewsbury’s Bookfest, the Chetwynd Air Cadets and Riding for the Disabled, as well as the Masonic Fishing Charity and many others.
At the lunch following the reception, RWBro Peter Taylor and VWBro Roger Pemberton were there to present Festival Jewels to two very important ladies who have each done a great deal to support the work of the 2019 Festival!
Shropshire Freemasonry’s Twitter account @shropshiremason will be detailing the grants day by day through the coming month. Press Officer Jeremy Lund knows that the money will be put to very good use.
“Many of these charities struggle to compete for funds with the larger national charities – we are able to place grants where they really count. This is an event which brings a smile to the faces of so many people who are working hard for the benefit of local causes. All of this money has been raised by our members at a time when they are also committed to a £1 million target for the Grand Charity Festival in 2019 – as ever, Freemasons really are making a difference in the local community.”