On May 26th, a contribution of US $750 was made to the Nurses Association, of the Princess Alexanda Hospital, by the Free Mason Lodge.
The donation was presented by Charity Steward of the local Unity Lodge 9166, Mr. Preston Bryan, under the auspices of District Grand Master, Mr. Clement E.M. Bird, of the District Grand Lodge for Barbados and the Caribbean. Accompanying Mr. Bryan in making the presentation was Mr. John Bedford, Almoner for Unity Lodge 9166.
By way of introduction, Mr. Bryan briefly described his role in the organization by noting: “I wear several hats in the Free Mason Association. I am the Treasurer for four different lodges or chapters, and I am also the Charity Steward in the local Unity Lodge.”
He went on to comment on the source of the donation saying: “The District Grand Master has allocated US$15,000 from his charity fund to assist first responders and upfront staff of the area’s hospitals in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. There are some ten countries in our area which are the recipient of such donations. The funds are not shared equally, but because Anguilla did not have many active cases of the corona virus, we have received a somewhat lesser amount of US$750.”
Mr. Bryan then introduced Mr. Bedford who said: “What has happened in Anguilla is a huge blessing. People had reacted to the COVID-19 lockdown in ways that you have not seen in many other places. Just about every island in the area was affected by the virus. We, as a district of Free Masons, wished to make a point of thanking everybody who was involved, especially our nurses and the staffs at the hospitals. We hope that this donation would be helpful to the nurses in any future dealings with the pandemic. We hope that there would be no problems when we really start to open up and get back to a semblance of normalcy again.”
He mentioned that he admired the tremendous improvements that were currently being undertaken at the hospital. Mr. Bedford hails from the UK and the US, and he recalled that when he first came to Anguilla in 1989, nurses were operating under the antiquated system of the old Cottage Hospital. He said that he was pleased to see the remarkable changes that have been made since then.
In receiving the donation, President of the Nursing Association, Mr. Matthew Brown, thanked the Lodge on behalf of the nursing team: “I would like to say a big thank you to the Free Masons Lodge on behalf of the Anguilla Nursing Association. We thank you for recognizing the nursing fraternity for our efforts and hard work. I do hope that in the future we can partner in community projects that we would like to undertake. Thanks again so much for your kind contribution.”
Mr. Bryan promised Mr. Brown that he would convey his thanks and his message to the Lodge’s District Grand Master.
- Staff Reporter, James R. Harrigan
