Since a long time it was the desire of the brethren of Lodge Fellowship to immortalize the name of our Late Bro. Subbu, who was instrumental in reviving Lodge Fellowship & was a leading light in Freemasonry. With this aim in view & considering his cherished dream of educating the under privileged, in the year 2007 the brethren of Lodge Fellowship decided to set “W. BRO. M.N. SUBRAMANIAN, LODGE FELLOWSHIP YOUTH DEVELOPMENT CENTRE”. A centre which would reach out to those youth who cannot afford to go to premier private schools or tuitions, yet dream of wanting more knowledge through good learning methods & better exposure to the modern world., where youth can be subjected to a holistic personality development program.
Along with “UNNAT”, an NGO run by one of our brethren, Col. Dr. Yashavant Joshi, we were finally able to set up this project which was inaugurated on 20th January 2008 by R.W. Bro. Vasudev Masurekar, R.W. The Regional Grand Master of W.I. in the presence of R.W. Bro. Meher Gimi, The regional Grand Secretary & W. Bro. Tushar Zaveri, ARGM.
The Inauguration was preceded by a welcome song by the children of the area, nukkad nataks staged by the staff of Unnat stressing the need of education, which was highly appreciated by the audience which consisted of nearly 200 residents of the area. R.W. Bro. Meher Gimi, the Regional Grand Secretary, then mentioned briefly the qualities of Late W. Bro. Subbu, who was his very close friend & on behalf of R.W. The Regional Grand Master announced that a sum of Rs. 12,000/= would be given by the Region to meet the 2 months recurring expenses of the centre.
W. Bro. Suresh Mehra then conveyed the message of Mrs. Gomti Subramanian who was very happy that the brethren of Lodge Fellowship had started this centre in the name of her late husband & wished she were present on this auspicious occasion. A vote of thanks was then given by W. Bro. Arun Atrey.
R.W. Bro. Vasudev Masurekar then inaugurated “Subbu’s Youth Development Centre” & unveiled the plaque & paid homage to Late W. Bro. Subbu by lighting the lamp. He was then shown around the centre & talked to & encouraged the children sitting in the library.
The initial establishment expenses amounting to Rs. 1.20 lacs have been met from the generous contributions received from the brethren of Lodge Fellowship. However, to run this centre, recurring expenses of nearly Rs. 6,000/= p.m. are required for the first 2 years till it starts generating its own income to become self reliant. An appeal has already been forwarded to R.G.L. of W.I. & through them to The Grand Lodge of India for providing assistance. The brethren of Lodge Fellowship are confident that as in the past, The R.G.L. of W.I. & THE G.L.I. will support them in this endeavor.
R.W. The Regional Grand Master then had lunch with the brethren & ladies & in the evening graced the installation ceremony of W. Bro. Manjot Singh Oberoi along with the esteemed members of his deputation.
A welcome speech was given by our ARGM, W. Bro. Dr. Iqbal Hakim & then the project details, aims & objectives were explained by Bro. Col. Dr. Yashavant Joshi in a very impressive manner after which R.W. The Regional Grand Master surprised the audience by rendering beautiful poetry explaining the 3 Masonic virtues of brotherly love, relief & truth. He mentioned that he was overwhelmed by the enthusiasm & appreciated the efforts of the brethren of Lodge Fellowship in setting up the project & also thanked the residents of the area for being present in such a large number. He urged the children & women of the area to utilize the facilities of the centre.
1. | Library Books | Rs. 25,000.00 |
2. | Furniture (Cupboards, chairs tables etc.) | Rs.60,000.00 |
3. | Computer & Printer | Rs.29,000.00 |
Total | Rs. 1,14,000.00 |
1. | Salary of one teacher @ Rs. 5,000/= per month | Rs. 60,000.00 |
2. | Administration Expenses | Rs.12,000.00 |
Total | Rs. 72,000.00 |