Imperial Mark Lodge "boarded" by Royal Ark Mariners. 5-10-2012 |
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| At their regular meeting, the Worshipful Master of |  |
| Imperial Lodge of M.M.M.1276 Bro. Shaun Haynes, | |
| invited 7 Ark Mariners to enter and deliver a lecture | |
| on the Royal Ark Mariners Degree. | |
| "Captain" W. Bro. David Bell Prov.RAMGR. | |
| led his crew into the Lodge room where they formed | |
| themselves into a triangle around the Overseers | |
| pedestals, with "cabin boy" W. Bro. Ernie Gavan | |
| bringing up the rear. | |
| The lecture was split into 15 parts, with the crew | |
| perambulating clockwise around the the Lodge | |
| stopping in front of the Worshipful Master to deliver | |
| their own portion's of the ritual. | |
| In the Lecture, the history of the Royal Mariner | |
| Degree was explained, How the the Mark Grand Lodge | |
| had purchased the sole rights to the Degree for £25. | |
| above: The Commander and his 'Crew' wait to board | |
| The reasons for the start of the Grand Master Royal Ark Council and who is on that Council were given. | |
| The officers which make up each Royal Ark Mariner Lodge were touched upon with reference given to | |
| Noah, his sons, the Ark and the Deluge. | |
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| The very colourful regalia of the degree was pointed | |
| out and explained, this also included the rainbow | |
| pocket hankies and waistcoats,which showed that | |
| the degree was not only interesting and colourful | |
| but fun to be a part of. | |
| W. Bro. Philip Watson related the teaching's of the | |
| degree emphasises the importance of family | |
| strengths and the need for each member of society | |
| to play his part for the benefit of all. | |
| We are taught that out of chaos and catastrophe | |
| mankind can survive and that we should face | |
| adversity together, helping to look after those | |
| less fortunate than ourselves. | |
| left The Mariners in formation | |
| (left to right) Front W.Bro. David Bell. Prov.RAMGR. | |
| second row W. Bro Ernie Gavan. W.Bro. John Forster. Prov.RAMGR. Sp. Rep. | |
| 3rd row Bro. Joe O' Brien.W. Bro. Phil. Watson. Bro. Glyn O' Brien. W.Bro Colin Moxey.RAMGR. | |
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| On the completion of the Lecture, the Worshipful | |
| Master thanked the crew for their very interesting, | |
| light hearted, and colourful delivery of an excellent | |
| Lecture. | |
| Present to support the first outing of this new Lecture | |
| were the "Vice Admiral" V.W. Bro. Keith Beardmore | |
| Deputy Provincial Grand Master who was accompanied | |
| by 9 of his colleague Grand Officers. | |
| As credit must be given to all who took part there | |
| was no need for any "Keel hauling" or "Walking the | |
| Plank" and so the crew were paraded out to attend | |
| the Festive Board, where to their surprise no ships | |
| biscuits or tots of rum were to be seen but replaced | |
| by Steak Pie and apple crumble. | |
| Right Vice Admiral Beardmore with the Master | |
Bro. Shaun Haynes, and the Boarding Party |
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| The Members of Imperial Mark must be thanked for hosting the evening and W. Bro. Peter Weller, | |
| Secretary, for his administrative skills. | |
| After a splendid evening in the company of a good number of Mark Mason's, the crew "up anchored" and | |
| made their way to the car park looking for the Ark that the weather so amply merited. | |
| Pictures by W.Bro.Jimmy Rogers P.A.G.Swd.B. | |
| Report by W.Bro. John Forster. P.G.Stwd. Sp. Rep. | |
