North Harrow Lodge no.6557 is still experiencing an unprecedented surge of members.
The website continues to be a success in more ways than one. While 70% of new members have been secured directly through our site, the renewed enthusiasm shown by our existing and new members has in turn proved a draw for others.
In 2011 we were fortunate to have initiated four members which, for most Lodges, would have been a great achievement.
However, the numbers continued to grow with eight new initiates in 2012 and seven in line for 2013 plus 3 joining members. This takes the total to about 39, almost double our previous membership.
At this point, we found ourselves facing a new set of challenges.
With almost 30 outstanding ceremonies projected at the start of 2012, we had to make sure new candidates didn’t lose interest while waiting to progress through their respective degrees.
For us, standing still was not an option.
Mentoring and communication play an important part in retention and keeping a prospective members’ interest in Freemasonry. As we are busy in the Lodge, we are able to give them work at the earliest opportunity without them feeling under any pressure as progression within the Lodge is now subject to merit and ability.
We have also been fortunate to have the support from a number of other Lodges in Middlesex who have had no scheduled work and were able to take on most of our Second & Third degrees.
This means:
1. Our candidates can progress as quickly as they want.
2. It boosts the numbers at the meetings of the other Lodges because we will attend to support our candidates
3. It gives enthusiasm to the other Lodges as they have work to perform.
4. Most importantly, supporting our candidates at other Lodge meetings enables friendships to be made between us and those Lodges.
To do this, we initially interview interested candidates to make sure of their eligibility to join the Craft and if successful, give them the option to be initiated into another Lodge in Middlesex to suit their availability.
We then produce a spreadsheet to track the Candidate Progression
Over the last couple of months, we have introduced 8 candidates for initiation to seven Lodges and will, as part of our initiative, continue to monitor their progression and where possible attend their meetings, just to make sure all parties are happy.
We have also continued to expand our online offering by launching this new blog (http://www.northharrowlodge.org/) where members can keep up to date with each other’s activities. Daily visits to the blog continue to grow week on week, and the popularity is helped greatly by our Twitter presence (http://twitter.com/HarrowFreemason) which now has over 400 followers.
By putting our efforts into digital and social media, we have been able to tap into a growing online community of existing and would-be freemasons. In doing this, we have provided a place where people can learn about, discuss and eventually join our Lodge more easily than they have been able to in the past.
If you are not a Freemason and want to find out more, you can contact me directly through the website, or if you are a Freemason why not visit us and see how we do things? Just email me to book in and arrange to be sent a Summons: Secretary@NorthHarrowLodge.org
If you are not a Freemason and want to find out more, you can contact me directly through the website, or if you are a Freemason why not visit us and see how we do things? Just email me to book in and arrange to be sent a Summons: Secretary@NorthHarrowLodge.org