• Festival 2022 - What's it about?

      Each Province is asked once in every 11 years to collect funds for the Masonic Charitable foundation. The Festival System in English Freemasonry has been developed to rotate specific fund raising evenly around the Provinces. There are 44 Provinces in the system. Formerly each Province supported all of the previous four Masonic charities.

      A Festival Appeal is designed to last for 5 years or so, and we have the advantage of knowing in advance when our Festival will end and which charity we will be supporting, which enables us to plan in advance. It is then up to the Provincial Grand Master to decide when we start and that has been decided as 2017, giving us a 5 year festival.

      We have the privilege of being one of the first Provinces to raise funds in the name of the newly formed MCF. Our Lodges’ charitable actions will need to be directed towards the Festival to ensure a successful outcome. We are not asking you to stop your other charitable work which, as Masons, we do so well in supporting, but are asking you to focus your main efforts in supporting the charity which supports us so well.

    • Festival 2022

      A message from our Provincial Grand Master

      "Saturday 21st of January 2017 was an important day for the province of Worcestershire as we embarked on a journey as one of the first provinces entering festival for the new Masonic Charitable Foundation. Every year, many Freemasons in Worcestershire and beyond receive fantastic support from the MCF by meeting their financial healthcare and family needs whilst the lives of many others are improved by grants awarded to non-Masonic charities.

       

      "It is hard to believe that 11 years have passed since launching in 2011 appeal and raising an impressive £1.68 million but I must now announce announce a new festival appearance target: £2,022,000

       

      "A challenging target no doubt it is, but impossible it is not. To achieve this your help and enthusiasm become the most important factors in our festival success so I strongly urge every lodge and brother to join us and become part of something very special.

       

      "It is a wonderful opportunity for us to give something back and assist the MCF in providing support to those less fortunate than ourselves.

       

      "Brethren, we can only do this if we act NOW by committing to regular giving and for lodges to plan carefully for what lies ahead. With an early and widespread commitment our success should be all but assured so to assist you there is plenty of information in our launch booklet and here on our newly-launched website.

       

      "Your ongoing fantastic and unstinting support together with that other orders is of course humbling, welcome and a true demonstration of freemasonry at its best.

       

      "Please shout loud about how proud we are of our special fraternity and what we'll be doing as Freemasons in the coming years.

       

      "As we set off on this journey I offer you my best wishes and many thanks for the party will play in making this one of our best festivals ever.

       

      "Enjoy the festival put the 'fun' back into fundraising and wear the new Festival Jewel and tie with pride."

       

      Yours sincerely and fraternally

      R W Bro Robert C Vaughan, P.G.M.

    • Objectives

      We have set both ourselves and the Province of Worcestershire the challenge of raising a significant target over the next 5yrs 8 months.

      Whilst a target of £2,022,000 will certainly be a challenging one, you can rest assured it will be achievable with your help and commitment in fulfilling our primary objective.

      Our primary objective is a simple one and that is, to support the Provincial Grand Master and the Province of Worcestershire in delivering:

      “ONE OF THE BEST FESTIVALS EVER”.

      At launch

      To ensure that at launch all lodges are fully aware, briefed and can 'hit the ground running'.

      Within 12 months

      In the next 12 months and beyond, to sign up as many members as possible to Regular Giving. This will allow the PGM to announce a significant sum already pledged and at the same time to maximise the chances of individuals and lodges achieving their targets. In indication of the level of regular giving will be identified in order to achieve a Festival Jewel.

      Support

      To give advice, support and encouragement to individuals, lodges and Charity Stewards to prepare for - and deliver - a successful festival.

      Targets

      To set realistic Provincial, Lodge and Individual targets that are not beyond reasonable reach, explaining the significance of Regular Giving and how important this is to achieving these targets.

    • Create a fund-raising page

      Set up a page where family and friends can donate to your good cause

    • Meet the Festival 2022 Team

      Who's Who on the Festival 2022 Committee?

    • Festival Events

      The following events are in support of Festival 2022

    • Downloads

      Find out all you need to know to make a donation

    • Newsletters

      Latest news about the Festival

    • Understanding Gift Aid

      Gift Aid envelopes are an excellent way of enhancing the value of cash or cheque collections by allowing tax to be reclaimed.

       

      The Relief Chest scheme produces its own envelopes and supplies are available from the Festival Secretary. Most Masonic Halls hold a small stock.

       

      Gift Aid Envelopes can be used in various ways, e.g.

      • Used as the lodge collection. Typically, the envelopes are placed on the table before the meeting, including those of visitors if desired. Unused envelopes can be collected afterwards.
         
      • At ‘White Table’ meetings, ladies, other Masonic and non-Masonic guests can make Gift Aid donations, as long as they are U.K. tax payers.
         
      • When used for lodge Collections, putting envelopes on the chairs in the Lodge Room prior to the meeting gives Brethren an opportunity to complete them in advance of their collection. However, to ensure that the envelopes are completed correctly, the Charity Steward should explain how this should be done beforehand.

      It is good practice to have at least two members present, when the envelopes are opened. Although it is not always a requirement of the charity, it is sensible to write the value of the donation on the face of each envelope as it is emptied and check that the required details have been entered by the donor.
       

      Once cash and cheque donations have been reconciled with the values written on the envelopes, the total amount can be banked and a cheque from the Lodge or Chapter raised in the name of the charity.
       

      For most charities, it is unnecessary to compile a list of individual donors, although the Lodge or Chapter may wish to do this for its own records.
       

      All that is required to comply with HMRC guidelines is for the Lodge or Chapter to complete a Donor Verification Schedule, which verifies the source of donations covered by a cheque, not drawn on the donors’ own accounts. Then the schedule, cheque and all of the Gift Aid Envelopes or tear-off slips, as appropriate, can be posted to the relief chest, 60 Queen Street, London.

      PLEASE DO NOT SEND THESE TO PROVINCIAL OFFICE

      Step-by-step instructions and the 2021 Festival Donor Verification Schedule are included in Appendix 10 of the festival manual. They illustrate the simplicity of the Gift Aid envelope system, which is common to most charities.
       

      All the money from a collection using Gift Aid envelopes is credited to the individual and the Lodge hosting the collection.

    • Festival Ted

      Follow his adventures

      Click to see pictures of Festival Ted

      mcf.org.uk/festival/worcestershire2022/​

      6 foot tall “Festival Ted Mason” is a Worcestershire Freemason and a friend to us all. He is an entered apprentice and a family man but sadly he’s lost all 135 of his little teddies. He now needs cheering up. His mischievous little ones have run away to the four corners of the globe to have some fun in far off lands. Those little tykes scarcely gave Ted a thought over how he might feel and as you can imagine, Ted is now a big forlorn bear with a need to bring his family together again.

       
      There have already been sightings of little teddies both near and far and he will keep you updated as and when reports come in. Ted has agreed that he will upload pictures of where his little scamps were spotted and by whom so that you, your friends and family can follow the action. Please help Festival Ted Mason. mcf.org.uk/festival/worcestershire2022/

    • Festival Ted - Frequently Asked Questions

      What is the Festival Ted Challenge?

      With the aim of introducing some light hearted family fun and interest, every Worcestershire Lodge will be presented with a LITTLE TED.
      It is hoped that the WM will look after him and encourage his lodge members, their friends, families, children and grandchildren to take him away with them travelling.

      Note: As a chaperone for Little Ted you do not have to raise sponsorship to take him away.

      How Does the Fundraising Work?

      How does FESTIVAL TED MASON collect his little teddies?

      By a single circumnavigation of the globe on a pre determined route to collect them wherever they may be. The 25,000 mile trip is financed by £5 sponsorship for every mile travelled. For each 185 miles of this trip one of the little teddies is recovered.

      If we can raise £125,000 through sponsorship in the next 5 years all the little teddies will be with Festival Ted Mason at PGL in June 2022. Please help him.

      Where are the Little Teddies?

      View the pictures to find out!

      This is the fun bit!

       

      LITTLE TEDDIES can be photographed wherever they go in perhaps a humorous, exotic, precarious, unusual or scary location.

       

      Email your photo with caption if you wish (humorous or otherwise) to ted@festival2022.org.uk, or post them on Facebook or Twitter or other social media ensuring to add some info about which teddie and where you are (which you can repeat on each passport that the teddies will have with them) and don't forget to add the hashtag #festivalted and your Lodge Number!

       

      You can view the gallery of photos to see the pictures and who submitted them. LITTLE TEDS could be spotted on Sydney Harbour Bridge, sailing in the Caribbean, on a camel in the Sahara, in London, Butlins, Disneyland with Mickey or even a little worse for wear partying on Bondi Beach. Best pictures will of course go in a gallery.

       

      Note: As a chaperone for Little Ted you do not have to raise sponsorship to take him away.

      How can I get involved?

      Some examples may help...

      Example 1 – Lodge sponsored event - One Sunday morning, your Lodge has 5 freemasons who undertake a sponsored walk on the Malvern Hills ending at a pub for lunch. Some friends and family join in and this swells the numbers to 10. If each raised sponsorship of £150 then the £1,500 raised would take Ted 300 miles at £5 per mile. He would travel two thirds of the way from Bromsgrove to Paris.

       

      Example 2 – Provincial sponsored event – 24 members of the Province join the Provincial Grand Master on a sponsored walk or cycle between Masonic Halls. If each person has an average of one other friend or family member taking part (total of 50), and each could raise £100, then the £5,000 raised will transport Big Ted a further 1,000 miles from Paris to the Romanian border.

       

      Example 3 – Individual sponsored event – A sporty Mason decides to cycle from London to Paris and manages to raise £3,000. This will transport Ted a further 600 miles from the Romanian border to Istanbul and beyond.

    • Festival 2022 Social Media Channels

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