Meet the Freemasonry Grand PooBah of Lodge Cavanbah in Byron Bay, Nick Towers. Nick has taken the chair for the seventh time during the past 30 years, and is calling on local men to get engaged with the organisation.
He told The Echo they have supported many different charities and others who sought help over the decades. The Byron Bay Croquet Club is the most recent beneficiary – they recently received a state-of-the-art, automatic, voice command defibrillator from Lodge Cavanbah.
‘Lodge Cavanbah has been going since 1903’, says Mr Towers, and according to www.masons.au, it’s the longest-serving community organisation in the town.
‘Only the lighthouse, built 1901, has served the town longer in a continuous capacity. Freemasony in Byron Bay has operated in the town longer the Byron Shire Council (now in Mullumbimby), which commenced in 1906, or the Surf Lifesaving Club which commenced in 1907 and the Boy Scouts Group which started in 1910.
‘Charity has always been our main focus,’ says Mr Towers. ‘In the past, with strong membership, we preferred to just give, quietly. Charity has no bragging rights. Yet today, membership is falling’.
He says the group are hoping to attract new members who are interested in helping others.
‘George Feros was an active member of Lodge Cavanbah’, he said, referring to the ‘loveable eccentric’ Byron local who successfully campaigned for an aged care facility.
Not a religion
‘Freemasonry is not a religion’, he says. ‘Nor do we discuss it. It’s the same as with politics’.
‘We are seeking out a younger generation with their heart in the right place’.
‘Those older than me are in their 80s and 90s, yet they never miss a meeting!’
According to www.masons.au, ‘The eligibility criteria includes being male, over 18, and to ‘Believe in a Supreme Being or not be an atheist’.
The group meet at 1/6 Byron Street, Byron Bay on the third Thursday of the month from 7.30pm. To get involved, email [email protected].
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