Welcome to Wayne Cowley, our new Local Secretary for South Wales East. Wayne was initiated into Hamlet of Van Lodge No. 8334 in 1999 and is a member of the corresponding Royal Arch Chapter. He has since joined some many other lodges and orders. Wayne has been a member of QCCC since 2006 and attends our meetings in London whenever he is able to do so.
Outside of freemasonry, Wayne was formerly a civil servant at the Welsh Assembly and now works with the Citizens Advice Bureau dealing with employment issues. His interests include running and, being a Welshman, rugby. He can be contacted at 07866 604892 or via email at cowleyw@gmail.com.
Welcome to Andrew Mackay, our new Local Secretary for South Somerset in the UK. Andrew is a Past Master of Parrett and Axe Lodge, No 814, and its corresponding Chapter, meeting in Crewkerne in the Province of Somerset, as well as a member of a number of other masonic bodies, and is active in promoting Freemasonry in Somerset, Devon and Dorset.
Andrew can be contacted at 07973 882537 or via email at aimackay@btinternet.com
The winner of this year’s Norman B. Spencer Essay Prize is Marshall Lim Yu Hui, a member of The Zetland in the East Lodge, No. 508 E.C., and Lodge St. Michael, No. 2933 E.C., Singapore. His winning essay is titled ‘Sovereignty over Pedra Branca – Freemasonry’s unintended involvement in an international dispute between Malaysia and Singapore and a reflection on record keeping in the Craft’.
Welcome to Calin Govor, our new Local Secretary for Romania. An engineer by profession, Calin lives in Floresti, part of the Cluj-Napoca metropolitan area.
Calin was initiated in 2014 and raised in 2015 in Fraternitas Lodge No. 77 in Cluj-Napoca, on the roll of the United National Grand Lodge of Romania. He is also affiliated with Endeavour Virtual Lodge No. 944, and the Victorian Lodge of Research No. 218, both under the United Grand Lodge of Victoria, Australia. Calin is presently Director of Ceremonies at Napoca Felix Lodge No. 454, National Grand Lodge of Romania, having previously served as Treasurer and Secretary.
Calin can be contacted at calingovor@yahoo.com.
Written in lock down over the past six months and published in late-August, Ric Berman’s latest book, The Grand Lodge of England & Colonial America: America’s Grand Masters brings together for the first time a unique collection of pen portraits of America’s Colonial Grand Masters. Ric presents an unvarnished picture of who they were, how and why they were appointed, and their impact on American freemasonry. He shines a sharp light once again on the origins and nature of early American Freemasonry. Ric’s earlier books are available here.
Welcome to James Logan, our latest Local Secretary serving Nova Scotia in Canada.
VW Bro James Logan is a retired veteran of the Canadian Navy and currently works for the Canadian Defence Department.
He was raised in Cornwallis Lodge No.95, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, in 2014, and is a Past Master & Lodge Historian. James is currently the Junior Grand Deacon, Webmaster, and Facebook administrator for the Grand Lodge of Nova Scotia. He is also active in the Royal Arch.
James has a keen interest in Masonic education and research, and has written several articles, lectures, and study guides for his jurisdiction. He can be contacted at: james.f.logan@gmail.com
Originally from Chicago, Ill, Jose A. Venzor, Jr. was made a Mason in 2018 in Federal Lodge No. 1 (est. 1793), a founding lodge of the Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia, F.A.A.M. During his time in the Craft he has focused on research and travelling as a Mason and looks forward to promoting Masonic scholarship in the nation’s capital. Professionally, he is a civil servant in the U.S. federal government and has degrees in international relations and law. He is a supporter of the Chicago Cubs and Tottenham Hotspur!
Jose can be emailed at QC.LocalSecretary.DC@gmail.com
We are delighted to confirm that we will be working with the Grand Lodge of California over the next few months to produce a series of live online lectures and Q&As. The presentations will be given by members of QC (Mike, Brent, Mark and Ric), and QCCC (Hans and Ben) and are detailed below. The delivery times will, we hope, suit members in the USA, Canada, and Latin America, as well as some of those in Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Rim. For those based elsewhere and in less convenient time zones, and those unable to make the specified times and dates, the lectures will be recorded and will be available online on demand the following day on the GL of California’s Masonic Speakers Series’ Archive Page. With the exception of my ‘lunch time’ lecture, all presentations are live at 7.00 pm California time (PST).
If you wish to attend these presentations, either all or some, please register by clicking on the relevant link.
5 August at 7.00 pm Pacific Standard Time (GMT+7)
Dr Hans Schwartz – Freemasonry in Revolutionary New England
To find out more and to Register, please click here
12 August at 7.00 pm Pacific Standard Time (GMT+7)
Dr Mike Kearsley – Rob Morris, The Conservators, and the failure to establish a Grand Lodge of the United States
To find out more and to Register, please click here
19 August at 7.00 pm Pacific Standard Time (GMT+7)
Dr S. Brent Morris – The Higher Degrees in the USA, 1730-1830
To find out more and to Register, p[lease click here
26 August at 7.00 pm Pacific Standard Time (GMT+7)
Ben Williams – Freemasonry in the Territory of Colorado – Masons, Miners, and the rush to Statehood
To find out more and to Register, please click here
9 September at 7.00 pm Pacific Standard Time (GMT+7)
Mark Tabbert – American Freemasonry: Three Centuries of Building Communities
To find out more and to Register, please click here
23 September at 12.00 pm Pacific Standard Time (GMT+7)
Dr Ric Berman – The Antient Grand lodge and the Foundations of American Freemasonry
To find out more and to Register, please click here
We are delighted to welcome Michael J. Ramos as our new Local Secretary for the San Francisco Bay Area. Michael lives in the Bay Area and works at the Grand Lodge of California as its Lodge Development Manager and as a Leadership Development committeeman, and will be known to many California masons.
Michael holds membership under both California and English Constitutions in Craft, Chapter, and the Progressive Orders. He is a Past Master of Crow Canyon Lodge No. 551, Primus Master of Templum Rosae Lodge No. 863, a Founder Steward of Essex Cornerstone Lodge No. 9968, a joining member of Lodge of Merit No. 8523, and is a life member of the Northern California Lodge of Research. In Chapter, Michael is a Past First Principal of Siminoff-Daylight Chapter No. 163, a joining member of Shoeburyness Chapter No. 6665, a life member of the Golden State Chapter of Research, and serves as Inspector of the 15th District for the Most Excellent Grand Chapter of California.
Additionally, Michael has been a founding member, and holds current office, within various bodies of the Progressive Orders. His research interests primarily revolve around early 18th-century English Freemasonry and the development of various ‘high degrees’ and rites throughout the British Isles and Continental Europe.
Michael can be reached at MRamos.QCCCSec@gmail.com
Welcome to Wayne Frampton, our latest Local Secretary for Portsmouth and the surrounding area. Wayne has been a member of QCCC for some four years and is based in Portsmouth on the south coast of England. He is the current Worshipful Master of The Portsmouth Lodge, 487, where he was initiated in 1991; Wayne holds Provincial Grand Rank in Craft (PPDepGrReg), and in Royal Arch, (PPGrSwdBr).
Wayne can be reached at wayneframpton@ymail.com and at 07941 866518.
