Lodge of St Augustine and Charity

Our Charities

Every Mason is encouraged to give generously within his means and absolutely without detriment to himself his family or his work.

Unlike many other organisations, Freemasons never ask the general public for money. We do not make street collections or public appeals.

Raising Money

At each Masonic meeting there is a collection, which we call ‘collecting alms’ and there is usually a raffle at the dinner following the meeting. Members are encouraged to donate prizes for the raffle. It is not uncommon for the night’s proceedings to raise hundreds of pounds for charity, without any one member giving large sums.

Through the Masonic year there will also be a number of events organised by the current Worshipful Master. These may include barbecues, fireworks displays, quizzes or any type of event the WM may consider would be popular and would help raise money. These events are by invitation only, but are open to non-masons.

If you are interested in becoming a Mason these are an excellent way to find out a bit more about the Lodge and its members, and Freemasonry in general.

Distributing Money Raised

All charitable donations are distributed in accordance with the directions of, and by prior announcement by the Worshipful Master (WM).

This may be for the benefit of and shared between several chosen charities or worthy causes, may be for the Provincial charitable ‘Festival’, a local Almoners Fund or a Lodge Benevolent Fund.

At the moment, and until 2027 a Provincial ‘Festival’ is the process of raising funds on behalf of the Masonic Charitable Foundation. The Lodge of St Augustine has attained Bronze status and is soon to attain Silver status in respect of this Festival. What this means is that the Lodge members have collectively raised a considerable amount of money towards the charity. We are very proud of this, and long before the conclusion of the Festival we fully expect to have attained Gold status.  

The system in place ensures that different Provinces around the country head ‘Festivals’ in turn. Currently it is the turn of the Province of Hampshire and Isle of Wight to host the Festival which runs until 2027. (Remember – Bournemouth falls under the old pre-1974 boundaries for Masonic purposes, so our Lodge is in Hampshire, not Dorset.