Scotch College

Open Night to Lodge your interest

At its first meeting in 2004, on Thursday 5 February, Neil Hart-Smith ('60) was welcomed into Freemasonry as a member of the Old Scotch Masonic Lodge. He joins Don Badenach ('48) and Richard Tait ('76) as recently-initiated members of the Lodge. This means the Lodge will be conducting several Fellowcraft Ceremonies in the coming months as these members progress.

Old Boys who would like to know about the objectives, values, and operation of Freemasonry, without any obligation, are invited to an Open Night, being planned for June, at the Camberwell Masonic Centre.
Old Boys, friends, and family (including ladies) will be welcome. Find out that Freemasonry is not the secret society or mysterious organisation it is sometimes erroneously portrayed to be. It is, in fact, a very public organisation listed in the phone book or on the web, its head office is the prestigious Dallas Brookes Centre in East Melbourne, it runs the outstanding Freemasons Public Hospital as well as a large number of top-rated, public aged care homes. Its core values are: practice universal charity, provide opportunities for self development, build friendships, foster moral standards, and seek excellence in all pursuits. Please contact the OSCA Office to register your interest in the Open Night, and we will forward you the details.

Thursday 6 May is the annual Lodge Old Boys Night. Old Boys who are members of other Lodges are specifically invited on this night when the Lodge celebrates its nearly 80 years association with our old School. This is a fun-filled night with lots of friendships renewed, School songs sung, and the haggis piped in. Again, please register your interest with the OSCA office and we will send you details.

The March meeting was a 'forward planning discussion night' led by the Master, Stuart McArthur ('89), and included consideration to possibly broaden the membership base to help ensure the ongoing strength of the Old Scotch Lodge. This was followed by an interesting talk by Sam Black, Master-in-Charge of Social Services at Scotch, about the role and activities of the social services group and the Year 12 social services prize, which is sponsored by the Lodge.

The first social function this year was a Picnic Day at the Yarra Glen Races on Sunday 28 March.

The Lodge meets at the Camberwell Masonic Centre on the first Thursday each month. All Freemasons are welcome.

Bill Tingate