Grand Orange Lodge of Western Canada

Loyal Orange County Lodge of Alberta

Annual County meeting to be held in Innisfail in March, 2010. The meeting will be held on the Saturday. 10a.m. following the Friday meeting of the Alberta Orange Foundation for Children which will be held at the Continental Inn in Edmonton.

Bi-Enniel Meeting

June 6 - 10, 2010

St. John's, Newfoundland

Contact your lodge secretary for further information

 The Queen and her husband, the Duke of Edinburgh, have accepted an invitation to visit Canada next year, Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced Sunday.

Queen Elizabeth, 83, waves as she arrives in a horse-drawn carriage on Ladies' Day of the Royal Ascot horse racing meeting at Ascot, near Windsor, in June. (Sang Tan/Associated Press)

The tour will be the Queen's 24th official visit to Canada. She and Prince Philip last visited Canada in 2005.

Further details on the dates and locations for the 2010 visit will be provided at a later date, the Prime Minister's Office said in a statement.

Canada's newly appointed secretary to the Queen, Kevin MacLeod, will be co-ordinating the visit.

"It is always a high honour to host a royal visit," Harper said. "This visit by the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will be a celebration of our shared heritage and values, which are enduring sources of pride for millions of Canadians."

Last month, Gov. Gen. Michaëlle Jean announced that the Queen's eldest son and heir to the throne, Prince Charles, would visit Canada this November, bringing with him his wife, Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall.

Details of that visit have yet to be announced.

 LOYALTY

 We, the Orangemen and women of the County Grand Lodge of …………….. assembled at ………… to commemorate the 319^th anniversary of the victory at the Boyne, reaffirm our loyalty to the Throne and person of Her Gracious Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and of her other realms, Defender of the Faith.

 Her Majesty occupies the throne subject to the constitutional statutes that followed the Glorious Revolution of 1688. These laws established a Protestant monarchy and democratic parliament that have served this nation well for over 300 years. Our present multi-faith and multi-cultural society benefits from the legacy of religious liberty and tolerance that began with William of Orange. This country – and the interests of all its people of whatever faith – is best served by a Protestant monarchy, and we pledge ourselves to resist all attempts to alter the British Constitution and put these precious liberties at risk. 

 Her Majesty the Queen is an exemplary monarch who has been a shining example to us all. We acknowledge with pride her wonderful record of service to nation and commonwealth.

 God save the Queen! Long may she reign!

 OUR PROTESTANT HERITAGE

 As a Protestant fraternity, we in the Loyal Orange Institution are inheritors of the faith and freedom won for us at great cost by our Reformation and Covenanting forefathers. In this 500^th anniversary of the birth of that great Reformer, John Calvin, we acknowledge our debt to his faith, his courage and his determination. We also recognise the key role he played in inspiring others, and in particular John Knox, who turned back the tide of spiritual darkness in Scotland and set our nation alight in the cause of Reform and the precious Gospel of Jesus Christ.

 We honour also the faith and fortitude of the men and women of the Covenant, who faced persecution, hardship and death rather than submit to an enforced state religion. As we look forward to next year’s 450^th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation we pledge ourselves to remain true to the authority of the Bible and to the liberating power of the Gospel.   

 In the increasingly secular society we live in today, we call upon the Kirk to speak with much greater clarity and authority for the Protestant people of Scotland. We call upon the Kirk to return to the faithful preaching of the Word of God that once defined the greatness of our nation. 

STATE OF THE NATION

 As loyal subjects of the British Crown, committed to the maintenance of the United Kingdom, we pledge ourselves to oppose all attempts to sever the union that binds us to our kith and kin in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

 The present economic crisis has proven beyond all doubt that Scotland’s best interests are served within the combined strength and security of the United Kingdom. Attempts by the First Minister to convince us that we would be better off as a small independent nation like Iceland or Ireland have been discredited by world events. The British Union is here to stay and we pledge ourselves to maintain it. United we stand - divided we fall.

 We are dismayed by plans to give the Scottish Parliament even more responsibilities when it has failed to deliver on the powers it already has. The present Holyrood administration has presided over an appalling decline in moral, health and educational standards. Scottish education – once the envy of the world – is now trailing behind other countries. Far too many of our young people, poorly educated and lacking career opportunities, are being drawn into a deadly culture of binge drinking and drugs.

 We call upon our politicians, whose own reputation has been so recently stained by personal greed and corruption, to discipline the guilty parties in their own ranks and show the leadership, honesty and commitment that the people of our nation demand and deserve.

Meets the last Saturday of every second month in the Orange Hall, Innisfail at 12:30pm.  The Innisfail LOL meeting normally follows.  The Knights normally meet in the restaurant beside the grain elevators (south of main street) for lunch prior to meeting. (11-11:30 thereabouts)

Meetings dates for 2009:

January 31st, March 28th, May 30th, July 25th, September 26th, November 28th.

Brethren & friends,  I am a member of the County Antrim Grand Orange Lodge Cultural & Educational Committee and we have produced an 'Orange Empire Map' to mark the World Imperial Orange Council meeting to be held in Belfast, 2009.  The map is printed on card and measures a massive 55cms x 45cms and details the spread of Orangeism across the globe.  Every Grand Orange Lodge ever established is detailed along with dates etc.  The info around the edges of the map gives a history of the Orange Order and a greater detail of its expansion.
 
From an educational & cultural point of view it is hoped that as many District & private lodges as possible will purchase a copy of the map to hang in Orange halls etc.  The maps are priced at £5 each (excluding P&P, probably £2.00 extra) and just over 250 have been printed in total.  I have enclosed a pic of the map and there is an ebay link below so that you can purchase one direct.  If you do not have access to ebay then get in touch & we can arrange a cheque or postal order payment. 
 
ALL proceeds from sales go directly to the committee and the funds will then be used to run events etc within the County and further Orangeism.  Any questions etc, please get in touch, yours fraternally, Gary Campbell ( LOL498)
 
Ebay link: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Orange-Order-Empire-Map-Orange-Lodge-Unionist-Ulster_W0QQitemZ190284813943QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_Collectables_Paper_RL?hash=item190284813943&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1683%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318