Over 100 Essex Freemasons met at a special meeting in January to celebrate the 75th Anniversary of the forming of St Philip Chapter.
Elliott Chevin, who serves as the Provincial Deputy Grand Superintendent, was among the notable attendees at the event alongside David Wilson, the Provincial Second Grand Principal, and a dozen others from the Provincial Executive. During the gathering, Chevin emphasized that the Craft and Royal Arch are two parts of the same organization. He highlighted that both new and existing members are informed about the importance of the Royal Arch as an integral component of Freemasonry, which enhances their overall experience within the Craft.
Founded in 1947 by members of the St Philip Lodge which also meets at Southend, the Chapter first held its meetings at a variety of different venues throughout Southend, before settling permanently into the Southend Masonic Centre.
St Philip Chapter, with its 20 plus members and the encouragement of its Charity Steward, Paul Carpenter, has a reputation for raising money to help charities. To mark this special occasion St Philip gave Elliot Chevin a cheque for £2,400 towards the Essex Freemasons 2022 Festival Appeal which has raised over £5.4 million for the Masonic Charitable Foundation which has pledged to donate £7 million to charities and good causes in Essex over the next several years. This week the Foundation also responded quickly in giving £60,000 to the British Red Cross to help earthquake survivors in Syria and Turkey.
Elliot Chevin, David Wilson and others were out and about in December delivering £500 cheques to primary schools as part of the £10,000 donated by Essex Royal Arch Masons, through the Foundation, to help with activities which would have been cut back in the run-up to Christmas at 20 schools close to Masonic Centres, including Kingsdown School in Snakes Lane, Southend-on Sea.
To add to the celebrations, the Royal Arch Companions were given a very entertaining and informative talk by Ian Simpson entitled ‘How did we get here?’
Long serving Chapter member, Dennis Wiles, gave a short history of the first 75 years and everyone received an anniversary booklet and a pen set as a memento of the evening. Richard Goodwin, the Scribe (secretary) of St Philip Chapter described the event as a day to remember. Much planning went into the anniversary, and the success of the event and enjoyment of those in attendance made all the hard work worthwhile.
