Northumberland Masonic Knights Templars Meals on Wheels Bringing Festive Cheer
By Bro Kt Keith Newman Brinkburn Preceptory No.284
A popular Ashington based community initiative to provide Sunday lunches for vulnerable and isolated people during lockdown has extended its services into North Tyneside and a number of Knights Templars are involved.
The Masonic Meals on Wheels Service began at the start of lockdown and has grown in both popularity and need. Under strict social distancing rules, members of masonic lodges attend Ashington Masonic Hall every Sunday to collect freshly cooked meals which are then promptly delivered to those in need.
The service is growing week by week with meals being delivered to elderly freemasons and their widows from Morpeth to Blyth and across to Wylam, Ovingham and Throckley. Now additional meals are being gratefully received in Killingworth, North Shields and Forest Hall. Each delivery includes soup and a Sunday roast.
Eminent Knight, Roy Vaughan from North Shields, a member of three Knights templar Preceptories in Northumberland, was delighted to receive his Sunday Lunch:
The food is great and it’s even better to see a smiling face at the door. I look forward to my Sundays and seeing faces old and new
Roy had his meal delivered by Knight Martin Jackson from Brinkburn Preceptory.
Giving up an hour or so on a Sunday is so worthwhile when you see the benefits the service brings. It’s helping people who are isolated, and many are also very vulnerable. I’m proud to be able to help
said Martin
Organised by Freemasons Paul Dunning and Jim Grant, the free “Meals on Wheels” service has received funding totalling £20,000 from the Northumberland Mark Benevolence Fund and Northumberland Freemasons.