TAMWORTH

66
125 YEARS OF MAKING GOOD MEN BETTER
Wyong Lodge Traveling Gavel Collection
Worshipful Brother Rick Howes of New South Wales, Australia is one busy fellow --- or ‘bloke’, as
they say down under. A retired carpet layer, Brother Rick decided he wanted to bestow a lasting
memento on another lodge to which he travelled witnessing a friend’s third degree. He struck upon the
travelling gavel idea – beginning a monumental worldwide undertaking.
Finding that other brothers warmed to the idea, Rick began creating more and more of the artefacts,
putting them into circulation throughout Australia, Europe, Asia, and now – with the gavel which
travelled through Moose Lodge – America. In all, there are now 12 Wyong Lodge Gavels spanning the
globe.
The Wyong Lodge Travelling Gavel enjoys a place of honour in Moosup Lodge
A delight to speak with, WB Rick has that familiar Aussie brogue, and is a one-man tourism bureau for his
native land – bragging not only of its beauty and charm, but of its residents’ famous grit. [This information for
you though Rick: 5 below Celsius is a balmy 23 above Fahrenheit. Here in New England we call that ‘summer’.
Going to great pains to fabricate these gavels, Rick cuts matchstick-sized pieces of wood to create the desired
effect, with some of the gavels numbering over 23 odd thousand individual pieces. Rick also revealed that he is
currently working on a forty thousand piece gavel! As they would say in Australia,”Blimey! The boy’s a loon!”
Brother Rick tracks each individual gavel in its travels, calling to assure that the custodian lodge keeps the gavel
moving on in a timely fashion. Rick also requests a letter from each lodge detailing a brief history of the area
and the lodge itself. Rick sends copies of these letters to each lodge on the gavels’ trails, uniting lodges
worldwide. Whenever these gavels have come to their collective end, Rick plans to turn the documents over for
posterity.
Thanks to Ionic Lodge No. 28, of Rhode Island for providing us with the opportunity to host this marvellous
symbol of worldwide brotherhood and friendship. [Ionic received the gavel from Warwick Lodge of Providence,
which had received it from Warwick Lodge of New York, which in turn had received it from Warwick Lodge of
Warwick, England!] And another thanks and large tip of the hat to Wyong Lodge and WB Rick Howes, through
whose dedication and effort, Moosup Lodge was able to share for a time one of Wyong Lodge’s fabulous
Travelling Gavels.
There being no more information about Moosup Lodge, once again this Gavel is on the march again, this time it
travels to Massachusetts where it is presented into three (3) Lodges
Moosup
Moosup is a village in the town of Plainfield, Connecticut in the United States.
The population was 3,237 at the 2000 census (January 2000)
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