Brethren�I would like to start off by thanking our IPM W Bro Matt Pindera for stepping back into the East in April and running our Regular meeting as I was feeling a little under the weather. It reminds us all of the importance of the IPM�s position and how he can seamlessly jump in to help with our Masonic labours. I look forward to also being able to assist our lodge as I transition into this important role in the coming year. With that in mind we look forward to May as Corinthian Lodge will finally hold elections again at our Regular meeting. For the first time since May 2019 we will have a new Master-elect and a new slate of Officers to govern our lodge.

I would also like to congratulate Bro Michael Bellsmith on becoming our newest Master Mason as he was Raised to the sublime degree at our Emergent meeting on April 14th. It was a great night for our first Raising since September 2019 with everyone performing well including our friends W Bro Nathan Pablo and Bro Chuck Vanya from Tottenham Lodge who assisted us by filling Officer chairs.

As I stated, May�s Regular meeting will be election night for us and the Emergent meeting will be step up night as the new Master-elect and Officers will perform a second degree. Please try to come to both meetings to help choose our new Officers and support them in their new roles on step up night.

This will also represent my last month in the East at Corinthian lodge after 36 months. At my Installation in June 2019 no one could foresee the challenging times Masonry would face with a looming pandemic just over the horizon. Masonry in general and our lodge in particular faced these trying times with vigilance and determination. The call off of our labours in March 2020 by Grand Lodge saw us defer our elections and have a repeat Worshipful Master for the first time since 1986. Throughout this difficult time we communicated constantly with our membership and I�m proud that we still sent out a Summons every single month. We did this simply to stay in touch and to try to ensure that some kind of Masonic correspondence found our membership on a regular basis.

Our ability and willingness to hold online Zoom meetings from September 2020 to February 2022 showed that our membership was truly engaged and I would like to thank all those Corinthians who joined us each month for their dedication to Masonry. The pandemic only halted in-lodge meetings but from Grand Lodge committee work, to individual lodge business to an array of online Zoom meetings, there was always something Masonic going on.

Brethren, the reputation of Freemasonry and the power it has to be a force for good in the world, or even its very existence, is in the hands of every single Freemason. We at Corinthian Lodge No96 must all therefore accept the responsibility to be its ambassadors every day. If we truly believe that Freemasonry has any worth in the world, we must also believe that we are worthy of Freemasonry. The survival of the Order is inextricably linked with our behavior so only by our demonstration of every moral and social virtue will the Craft be preserved for years to come.

I would like to thank you all for giving me the opportunity to govern our lodge for the past three years. It has been a great personal experience and there are many things that I will miss when I finally put our lodges sacred collar on the new Worshipful Master at Junes Installation. Thank you for taking time each month to read my Message�s from the East, for all your assistance, advice and compassion as we collectively endeavored to keep our lodge lights lit during an extraordinary time in our Masonic history� from the bottom of my heart, I truly thank you all�..

V.W. Bro Garry Perkins FCF

WM Corinthian Lodge No96, Barrie

�Once we stop asking questions, symbols stop teaching�