The Regalia Reunited to the rightful owners.
A Tale of Stolen Masonic Regalia.
Sadly, the strict moral judgement practised among freemasons is not to be found everywhere, and a reminder of this was provided to W. Bro. Arthur Sanchez of Barra Hall Lodge No. 8096. Following a successful Lodge meeting earlier this year, which saw a double Passing of Bro. Earl Palas and Bro. Carlito Gonzales, the brethren continued the evening’s fellowship at a restaurant in Hammersmith, West London. On returning to his car W. Bro. Arthur Sanchez found that it had been broken into and a number of masonic items belonging to him (including his Grand Lodge Certificate) and also of W. Bro Nic Casana had been stolen. The matter was reported to the Hammersmith and Fulham Law Enforcement Team who attended the scene. They work with the local police regularly conducting joint patrols and pooling their resources to work smarter, coordinate patrol times and ensure better coverage at all times.
This collaborative approach enables the council to prevent, detect, crack down on and reduce local crime more quickly and effectively.
One can only imagine the horror of not only having your car broken into but losing your Grand Lodge Certificate and other masonic apparel which raises the stress to a different level.
Faith in Humanity
However, the story then takes a turn for the better. Once the thief/thieves had realised that the items stolen would have no intrinsic value to them, they ditched their hoard which was after found separately by two members of the public. These two stalwart honest and responsible citizens independently got in touch with the Lodge Secretary, W. Bro. Andy Pearce and also the Lodge Visiting Officer, W. Bro. Lindsay Read, to say that they had found regalia together with a copy of the Lodge summons and asking whether they had been lost. Fortunately, the Lodge Summons was the key to the repatriation of the stolen items as it contained the telephone numbers of the both the Lodge Secretary and Visiting Officer. Not only were masonic items taken but Bro Nic had also had his house keys taken.
Certainly, the intervention of these two stalwart members of the public restored everyone’s faith in their fellow citizens and all ended well. Sounds like they might be possible candidates to Freemasonry. Did anyone give them a Form P?
Thank you to W. Bro Ian Mitchell PProvSGD member of the Media Team for the edit.
