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W.Bro.
Peter Andrew Bennett, PAGDC
WM Tyrian Lodge No. 253
 I regret to announce the passing to the Grand Lodge Above
of W.Bro. Peter Bennett, PAGDC.
Bro. Peter came to Derbyshire Freemasonry just a few years
ago. Already an accomplished Freemason, he held Grand Rank in United Grand
Lodge, having been a Provincial Warden in Warwickshire. He earned a silver
matchbox from the Emulation Lodge of Improvement and had the rare
distinction, shared by only seven other people worldwide, of having it
inscribed with the maximum four “scratches”, indicating he had completed all
four ceremonies word-perfect. In addition to knowing the whole of the
Emulation Ritual book, he knew most if not all of the Lectures, both
questions and answers.
He quickly established himself in this province for his
warmth and good humour. He joined Tyrian Lodge and the Derbyshire Lodge of
Installed Masters and at the time of his passing he was in the Chair of
Tyrian. In 2007 he organised the first Derbyshire Lecture Festival,
providing an opportunity for Master Masons across the Province to learn to
deliver the Craft lectures to a high standard and an opportunity for the
rest of us to hear them in the way they were intended.
I was privileged to interview Peter when, after contracting
cancer, he told us he wanted others to know of his experiences with the
Masonic Samaritan Fund. The MSF gave him hope when the NHS could not and he
could not speak more highly of the staff and the way they operate. What most
impressed me was the courage with which Peter approached his illness; not as
a battle but as an opportunity to learn more about himself. A Mason with
rare qualities who truly live respected and died regretted.
Tony Harvey
Director of Communications
Derbyshire Festival 2014
Those who knew Peter Bennett and were unable
to attend his funeral on April 14th may like to see a recording of a short
piano piece written especially for the occasion.
The video clip is available on 'YouTube' by searching the phrase 'In Memory
of Peter Bennett'.
The composer and pianist, Rob Smallwood, was Senior Warden at Tyrian, number 253, at which Lodge Peter was WM at the time of his sad
demise. |
Leonard's
Story
Leonard
Sellars
- High Peak Lodge 1952
 In
March 2007 Leonard Sellars was advised by his consultant that he needed an
operation to replace his aortic valve (the valve controlling the flow of
blood from the heart to the main artery). Without surgery he was told that
his life expectancy was 12 – 18 months.
After a wait of about six
months he was admitted to hospital in Sheffield only to be told, the night
before his scheduled surgery, that he was not fit enough to undergo the
operation due to the poor state of his lungs. He was therefore discharged
without treatment and left to ponder his fate.
Further research identified
that Leonard would be suitable for a relatively new procedure which involved
the use of keyhole surgery which would not be available via the NHS for at
least another 12 – 18 months. An approach was made to the Masonic Samaritan
Fund in January 2008 and he underwent surgery in March at the Glenfield
Hospital, Leicester.
Any private medical treatment
is expensive and heart surgery is no exception. Leonard and his wife could
not afford to consider paying themselves for the surgery he needed. Thanks
to the generosity of many Freemasons and their families the MSF exists to
help in exactly this type of situation and was able to make a grant to
enable Leonard to receive treatment for a life threatening condition. He is
home and making a good recovery thanks to the support of the MSF and all
those who have donated so generously to it since it was established in 1990.
Elizabeth's
Story
Mrs Elizabeth
Musson
- St Thomas Lodge 2583
 In
2003 Mrs Elizabeth Musson underwent surgery to replace her right hip. The
operation was funded by the Masonic Samaritan Fund. Despite the success of
this procedure she continued to suffer with osteoarthritis with an
inevitable deterioration in the quality of her life. This was brought to a
head following a recent fall when an x-ray revealed deterioration in her
left hip which she was advised needed replacement.
Faced with a 4 to 5 month
wait for treatment on the NHS Mrs Musson turned to the MSF in January and
underwent surgery in early April. She readily agreed to tell her story in
the hope that others will be able to benefit as she has done from the work
of the Fund. In writing to thank the Fund for their help her husband said
“it makes one feel very humble to receive such help. The pain was so intense
that we don’t know how she could have managed the wait for NHS treatment.”
Audrey's story
Audrey Shaw
- Pioneer Lodge No. 9065
Mrs. Audrey Shaw
developed arthritis in both knees and over the years the condition has got
progressively worse. By the middle of 2008 the pain had got so bad that she
could not walk more than fifteen yards.
Her GP referred her to
a consultant surgeon who confirmed that both knees were “kn***ered”
(apparently a technical medical term) and advised that two new ones were
needed. Audrey was put onto the NHS waiting list and told she would have to
wait eighteen weeks for the operation.
W.Bro. Ken Shaw
contacted the Masonic Samaritan Fund directly who arranged for a Past Master
of Ken’s Lodge to visit and complete the forms, the Almoner living over
hundred miles away.
Within three weeks of
contacting the MSF, Ken and Audrey were told that the MSF would fund the
first knee operation and would consider an application to fund the second
when Audrey’s consultant advised that the time was right. The decision was
based upon:
-
The
unacceptable delay in waiting for an operation on the NHS
-
The
acute level of pain Audrey was enduring
-
The
fact that the Shaw’s could not fund themselves the £10,500 required to
replace each knee without incurring financial hardship
From the moment that
the MSF informed the Shaws that they would fund the operation it made
all arrangements needed with the surgeon and the hospital. Audrey went into
hospital on Good Friday, five weeks after first contacting the MSF. It
would have been sooner but for the surgeon’s holiday.
W.Bro. Shaw says, “The
MSF could not have been more helpful. I have nothing but praise for them.
Not only did this operation relieve my wife’s considerable pain but they
have taken a weight off our minds over the finance and other arrangements”.
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Peter's
Story
W.Bro. Peter Bennett,
PAGDC
- W M of Tyrian Lodge 253
No one present at
the Christmas meeting of Tyrian Lodge on 23rd December could
possibly fail to come away other than inspired and in awe of the courage and
determination of the Lodge’s well known Master, W.Bro. Peter Bennett. At the
Festive Board W.Bro. Peter announced that he had been diagnosed with cancer
of the oesophagus, that it had spread to his lungs and that the condition
was inoperable. The NHS having offered only chemotherapy and a
life-expectancy of six months, W.Bro. Peter informed the meeting that he was
undertaking an alternative therapy and had the support of the Masonic
Samaritan Fund. He told us that this cancer would not defeat him. Here is
his story so far.
As a consequence of experiencing digestive
problems, Peter underwent a number of investigations including a gastroscopy,
which included some biopsy’s and a CT scan. On 20th November he
returned to hospital to hear the diagnosis. The tumour on the lungs was
classed as inoperable. Peter was given the choice of six months to live, or
a few months more with chemotherapy. After discussing the effects of this
treatment he turned it down and left the hospital determined to deal with
his condition through other means.
 Peter is an hypnotherapist and an advocate
of alternative therapies. A colleague told him of the Dove Clinic, located
near Winchester, one of four places in the world that provides Photo-dynamic
Therapy (PDT), part of an holistic treatment that works on the whole person
using a combination of homeopathic medicines, diet and lifestyle changes.
Peter contacted the Clinic and discussed the treatment, what it would
involve, its cost (at least £11,000) and how to proceed.
He then wrote to the Masonic Samaritan
Fund. Up until this point Peter admits he had treated all the rhetoric
about this and other Masonic charities with a degree of cynicism, “although
I had no evidence to base that on” he says. Nevertheless he wrote to the MSF
explaining his situation. Two days later Lynda Taylor of the MSF phoned
Peter to tell him that the MSF knew of PDT and its successes and had funded
treatment before. With Peter’s permission, Lynda sent the MSF’s assessment
forms to Peter’s Lodge Almoner who went to see Peter the morning they
arrived. Together they completed the forms, which Peter says were “very
straightforward, easy to complete and not at all invasive.”
 A few days later, less than two weeks
since he wrote the initial letter, Lynda phoned again to confirm that the
MSF would consider funding the cost of treatment further to the Dove
Clinic’s Consultants report, as well as the cost of Peter’s accommodation
while he was undergoing the treatment itself. Indeed, the MSF even arranged
to pay the cost of accommodation in advance so that Peter didn’t have to pay
out of his own pocket.
It is worth adding at this point that
Peter’s case was brought forward for consideration at the final MSF funding
meeting in December. This to make sure that the treatment booked in January
(classed as urgent by the Dove Clinic) could take place on time.
This was indeed the case as Peter’s
treatment, involving two visits of three-days each to the Dove Clinic,
started on the 19th January. Before the first visit, Lynda Taylor
phoned Peter to wish him well. He can not praise the MSF enough. “Right from
the start the MSF have been incredibly helpful. They made it so easy, unlike
an insurance company who look at what you can’t have.”
 At the time of writing Peter is waiting to
go back to see how the effective the treatment has been. He is incredibly
optimistic. Indeed, his attitude to his condition is especially noteworthy.
“I see cancer as a gift to give me greater insight into myself and I
sincerely hope in time to help others.” We will follow and report Peter’s
journey, with his permission of course. I know that all members of the
Province of Derbyshire wish him well.
Tony Harvey
Director of Communications
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