Allied Spring Forward to a Sunday Lunch |
| The clocks going forward conjure up the onset of Spring and the vision of holidays and warm, sunny days. But, if you are an Allied Mason, Spring also brings with it the date for the West Lancashire annual lunch on the first Sunday in April. |
 |
 |
| The lunch has been held at Ferraris near Preston over the last couple of years. However, this year the dinner was held at Brookfield, the home of Westhoughton Masons, a great venue with nice gardens, good parking and a growing reputation for fine dining. |
| Westhoughton has a long history, including a Royalist / Parliament battle, a mill being burned by Luddites, and, of course, its local nickname of “Keaw Yed", Lancashire dialect for "cow head." The folk lore suggests that "Keaw Yed" referred to a local legend that a farmer, finding a cow's head stuck in a gate, decided to saw off the cow's head instead of removing the gate!! What a story if true, but apparently it actually resulted from rolls of cloth, carried by cotton weavers, and which when silhouetted the rolls resembled a cows head?? Spoilsports, are there any Keaw Yedders out there who can confirm the meaning for us? |
 |
| Back to the script, the District Grand Prefect, and his wife Sally, welcomed an excellent turn out of many Allied Masons together with friends and family, and a sprinkling of Keaw Yedders, all contributing to a wonderful occasion and a packed dining room enjoying the culinary delights on offer. |
 |
 |
| And what comes naturally if there is a gathering of Masons……… but organising a raffle for good causes, with many donated prizes on offer. |
 |
 |
The success of this raffle, together with District meeting donations, meant that a number of smaller local charities would benefit from the contributions so readily given, and these will include:
|
| What a wonderful day, good company, good food and great fundraising. If you haven’t experienced the Annual Allied Sunday Lunch, make sure that you book in for next year, you won’t be disappointed. |
| Words and photos by our Westhoughton Correspondent (and Brookfield Photos from the website). |
