R.W.Bro. Barrie R. Mansell District Grand Master
Welcome!
Right Worshipful Brethren, Distinguished Brethren, Dear Brethren and Friends all,
Welcome to the 2025 Assembly of the Mark District of Spain.
I would like to thank you all for joining us here today to help celebrate our Annual Assembly. I sincerely hope that you have all enjoyed it so far and that you feel your journey here, be it from near or far has been worthwhile. The presence of so many Brethren not only from all parts of the District of Spain but also from the United Kingdom, Belgium, France, Germany & Romania, is both humbling and pleasing. I am aware that for some Spanish Brethren the journey to be here has taken longer than that of our Brethren from the UK and Europe and has involved many miles on planes, boats and trains; your support Brethren not just today, but also over the past twelve months, is very much appreciated.
As always, the Annual Assembly has been a busy and exciting day.
Several District Officers have retired, and I would like to thank them all for their service and dedication.
I would like to make mention of two Brethren, VW. Bro. Rodney Hales who has retired today as Deputy District Grand Master and W. Bro Mike Baker who has retired as Assistant District Grand Master for the Canary Islands. Both Brethren have held their offices for many years and during that time have given wise counsel and unending support to me. I have benefited from their combined experience and advice during my tenure as District Grand Master and I sincerely hope that they will both continue to play an active role within the District for many years to come.
The shoes of these Brethren were difficult to fill. However, I know that in W. Bro Terry Porter, the new Deputy District Grand Master and W. Bro Chris Langley and W.Bro. Rod Bignell the new Assistant District Grand Masters I have three Brethren who will not only provide me, but also the District, with unfailing support and expertise. Thank you for accepting and taking on the most challenging of roles. I would call on all members of the District of Spain, not just those of you here today, to offer their help and support to these Brethren.
My congratulations also go to all those I have re-appointed, promoted or invested with first appointments today. These honours are awarded for your past services to your Lodges and the District; they are not automatic, and I expect you all to continue to support both your Lodges and the District. I am truly looking forward to working with you all and I hope that you enjoy your year. Many congratulations to you all, your recognition is well deserved.
I would also like to acknowledge those members of the District who received Grand honours last year. Michael Shilan and Gerald Hales who had first appointments and Chris Cook who was promoted to Past Grand Junior Deacon.
I am sure you would like to join me in congratulating those Brethren on their achievements.
I always feel that the sight of the Royal Ark Mariner Worshipful Commanders and their Wardens making their entrance into the Assembly adds pomp and ceremony to an occasion like today and I urge those of you who are not members of The Ancient and Honourable Fraternity of Royal Ark Mariners to seriously consider joining. It is always moored to a Mark Lodge to confirm the close connections between the two Orders.
District members who were honoured with Royal Ark Mariner Grand Rank last year were: Kenneth Kinnaird & Stuart Walters.
During the last year, members of the Temple Builders Installed Masters Lodge have undertaken many visits to Lodges spread throughout the District. The Team have visited 7 lodges (Mojacar, Barcelona twice, La Coruña, Madrid twice, Tribunal de las Aguas Valencia). The Travelling Keystone went with them on those journeys and was presented to the Lodges that were visited.
That was a hectic schedule, especially when you think of the geography of Spain, and I would like to publicly thank all those who travelled with the Keystone and made the journeys and visits the success that they were. I salute you all for your fortitude and more importantly your stamina!
Visits for this coming year will be published in due course.
With all this activity as you might have guessed the membership numbers have increased, and now we are at last above pre-covid numbers. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the Royal Ark Mariner membership which, whilst slowly improving, still has a way to go. This proves that we cannot rest on our laurels, and it is up to every one of us to actively encourage Brethren to join us in both Mark and RAM.
To encourage membership growth, Mark Open Days will be held throughout Spain so that non-members may learn more about us.
The Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Spain has generously agreed that reference to Mark and Ram, with contact details, may be added to the summons of Lodges in the Grand Lodge of Spain. If there is a Mark member in any Lodge, they may also give a short message about Mark and Royal Ark Mariner on the 3rd rising.
Earlier we paid homage to those of our Brethren who had passed to the Great Overseer above. All those Brethren will be sadly missed by their loved ones and us, on a personal note I would like to mention W. Bro Neville Jarrett. He was a Mark Mason of considerable standing and a long-term friend of mine. Neville had the most wonderful voice, possibly due to his Welsh heritage and I always appreciated his wise counsel and his humour, and I already greatly miss his presence. We also, recently lost V.W. Bro. Danny Coburn and W.Bro. Phil Gibson-Daw, two Brethren whose presence amongst us was truly valued. They were well-respected, long-serving members, larger than life, and they will be deeply missed.”
It would be remiss of me not to mention the terrible natural disaster that hit the Provinces of Valencia, Murcia and Andalucia at the end of October last year. I really cannot express my pride at the way the masonic community in Spain responded to the call for assistance initially in terms of food and clothing, practical help with the clear up operations then with financial donations to help rebuild homes and businesses. I was extremely delighted by the way in which you all responded. I would also like to mention the significant donation that was made by the Mark Benevolent Fund.
Brethren, these meetings don’t just happen; a lot of hard work goes into the organisation, so I extend my thanks to the outgoing District Grand Secretary, Chris Langley for his splendid efforts in organising today, his last responsibility as District Secretary. He was ably supported by the new District Secretary, Paul Mansell and all the members of the secretariat too numerous to mention by name but they know who they are. A special mention goes to Peter Johnson for his dedication in providing and managing the sound equipment throughout this weekend—a challenging task in this forum, handled with skill and professionalism.
My thanks also go to our Director of Ceremonies, W.Bro. David Wynn and his team for their exemplary performance today.
I would also like to thank the District Grand Treasurer Michael Shilan for his hard work in keeping the financial aspects of the District on the straight and narrow and for the many hours he has spent sorting out our always complicated affairs in two currencies and two languages.
Brethren, we have had a busy and I hope interesting weekend. We have had this meeting today and will shortly move on to our festive board. Yesterday we met at an informal reception to renew or make new acquaintances, and we were also honoured to have W. Bro Mike Neville, a fellow Mark Mason, giving us an interesting talk on Masons & the Evolution of Forensic Science and I thank him for that.
Whilst we have been busy, many of our relatives and friends a record-breaking 90 of them, have taken the opportunity to join the coach trip and they are visiting a Bodega to taste the wine products of this part of Spain, which may be a costly affair for some of us, followed by lunch. Hopefully, they are having a great day and enjoying themselves.
Brethren, I hope you have all had an enjoyable weekend and for those of you returning home today a safe and pleasant journey and may the Great Overseer of the Universe bless and keep you well till we all meet again.
Finally, I thank you all for your enthusiastic welcome for myself and my Executive and most of all for your unstinting support of this fantastic Order; it was a wonderful year and let us make 2025 even better. Please, all enjoy your Mark Masonry for, as we say, “Among Mark Master Masons you will ever find friends”.
