Freemasons continue to do some great work in Victoria.

On Thursday at Ivanhoe Grammarians Lodge’s ‘Buckley Night’, a $5800 cheque was presented to the Banyule Children’s Gift Appeal. This provides Christmas toys for young boys and girls, and gift cards for disadvantaged teenagers in the area. Sometimes it is the only Christmas gift that the kids receive.

A $10,000 cheque went to Ivanhoe Grammar School for the perpetual Rev. Peter Holloway prize that recognises excellent charity work by teenage girls and boys. In future, the Lodge is expanding to focus its schools charity work to the 33 other schools (mostly State and Catholic schools) in the Banyule municipality.

Admiral Collingwood Lodge members combined to run a Christmas Dinner Ball to help raise cash for the Gift Appeal. Freemasons Foundation Victoria was generous in its major contributions to both presentations.

Ivanhoe Grammar has a campus (‘Plenty’) at Mernda, and was at Yea during World War II years. There are many Murrindindi families with ‘Ivanhoe’ links.

Pictured: Val Fraser (widow of Max Fraser, the Appeal’s original ‘champion’), Cr Peter Castaldi (Banyule Council) , Judy Thompson (Diamond Valley Community Support), and Haydn Gregson (Ivanhoe Grammarians).

Second photo: Simon Browning (Master, Ivanhoe Grammarians Lodge) with Gerard Foley (Principal, Ivanhoe Grammar School).