It meets on the first Monday of every month between October and April and the first Tuesday in May in the historic Freemasons’ Hall in Faversham.
This lovely old building was built as the Faversham Free Grammar School at a cost of £30, money that was raised from the town’s inhabitants and funded the purchase of 60 tonnes of oak used in its construction.
Work began in 1587, with carpenters Nicholas Clerke and Lewis Browne responsible for its building. They constructed a large school room, now used as the lodge meeting room, supported on moulded hexagonal oak pillars over a covered playground for the pupils. That open area has since been enclosed and is now used as the dining room after meetings.
Members of the Lodge of Harmony are drawn from a wide range of professions, from the armed forces and accountancy to marketing, law and building. It is a friendly and inclusive group that welcomes applications from all men over the age of 21 with an interest in public service and a desire to enjoy good fellowship. The only qualification is a belief in a higher power, although that does not have to be founded in an organised religion.
The Lodge also has close links with another Lodge of Harmony, this one based in Copenhagen, and celebrated Her Late Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in June 2022 with a garden party at which we were joined by some of our Danish friends.
During the summer we also enjoyed a trip to the Battle of Britain Memorial at Capel-le-Ferne, near Folkestone, where one of the lodge members led an informal guided tour of the site.
