Frazer Shaw and Friends

A Freemason from Prince Alfred Lodge, which meets at Westholme in Mossley, Bro Frazer Shaw put his best foot forward in pursuit of raising money for the TLC fund.

TLC is a Masonic Charity with one very specific purpose. TLC, you see, stands for Tender Loving Care, or, in our case, Teddies for Loving Care. The fund simply provides a free teddy bear for all children who find themselves somewhat lost and alone in hospital as the result of an illness or accident to themselves or their family.

These TLC bears are one small way of helping to speed recovery and cheer up an otherwise unhappy small person. Clearly it is no miracle cure, but these bears always bring a smile to a child’s face. They demonstrate that they have support and help from others in the community.

Of course, providing these little bears costs money. For many years Freemasons have been buying and wearing tiny metal bear shaped badges in their lapels to show support for the TLC fund. Masons pay £2 for these badges, with the proceeds going to pay for small but eminently cuddly bears. However, the demand for the soft cuddly teddies continues to grow and we end up needing more money than can be provided just from the sale of badges. This is where Bro Frazer Shaw really comes into the picture.

Frazer raised £210 by running the Manchester 10K and gaining Sponsorship through a “GoFund Me” page on the Internet. An additional £100 was added from his employer (Co-op Group, Manchester) making a grand total of £310 to provide support for young children through the TLC fund.

Steve Clarke, the Provincial Charity Steward for the Freemasons of the Province of East Lancashire, came along to Mossley Masonic Hall to collect the money. He was joined by Peter Douthwaite, Chairman of the Ashton & Mossley District, and Stuart Tennant, the District Charity Steward.

Thank you Frazer, for showing that we each have a path to run and during our journey we can make someone we have never met smile.

The text of this article is copyright Frazer Shaw and the photograph is by Niall Perry and is copyright to him..