HEREFORDSHIRE Freemasons have made a donation of £1,000 to the Hereford Breast Cancer Haven. This continues a long tradition of support from Freemasons for this excellent and worthwhile organisation, and the Province has made a commitment to support the Haven with at least £1,000 a year through the charity's Guardian scheme.

The Provincial Grand Master, The Rev David Bowen, accompanied by his deputy Michael Roff, and the Provincial Charity Steward Nick Swan made the presentation on March 18 at the Haven's premises in St Owen Street, Hereford. In thanking him, Frankie Devereux, Hereford fundraising manager, said that £1,000 was an ideal donation because it pays for one person to go through the tailor-made programme of therapy and support that the Haven provides.

The Province of Herefordshire is committed to its support of this very worthwhile and valuable service, and is proud of its status as a Guardian of the Hereford Haven.

The Haven provides a range of therapies, including acupuncture, hydrotherapy, nutritional therapy, massage and counselling. Visitors, as those benefitting from the service are called, come at different stages in their illness – maybe soon after diagnosis, but often when the programme of clinical treatment is over and they have a need for further support. It expects to receive about 300 new visitors during 2016, mostly women but sometimes men, and is entirely dependent on voluntary support for its income.