Bro Alex More - Our Senior Past Master

It was with a great deal of expectation that a small, but nonetheless extremely distinguished,

delegation of No XII Past Masters – Bros Kenny Morrison, Alistair Glenny and me (Iain White) - travelled from South to North on Monday 9^th November.  The destination was Luncarty in deepest Perthshire.  The journey of exploration was to visit No XII’s Senior Past Master Bro Alex More at his home in Luncarty. 

Bro More was in the Chair of No XII when I joined in 1974.  I can recall few things about my Entering but I so remember Bro Alex’s imposing figure in the East, his voice still characterized by his Caithness upbringing and him saying at the end that he was sure that No XII’s new Entered Apprentice would be pleased that ‘His Father is now his Brother.’  You see my Dad, Bro Harry White of Lodge Greenock St John’s No 175, was there on the evening and he and Alex knew one another very well as teachers of Technical Education.  My Dad finished his career as Assistant Rector of Castlehead High School in Paisley and Alex as a lecturer at Strathclyde University in the Faculty of Education.




















We were indebted to Bro Alistair whose consummate motoring and navigational skills got us to the previously unknown streets of Luncarty and, after a wee bit of footering, to big Alex’s monobloc drive.  We were strangers in town.  I had flashbacks to the Clint Eastwood films of my favourite genre – the spaghetti Western – as we approached Alex’s door with neighbours’ curtains twitching and the hombre next door giving us a quizzical look. However, all was well as the door opened and we were met by big Alex, just as we remembered him and giving us the warmest of welcomes.

It was 4 hours that flew by as we ranged through a discussion that took us back to No XII and Greenock in the 1960s and 70s, Alex’s many interests beyond freemasonry and the sad period of ill health and recent passing of his wife Mary. We helped Alex get up to date with local ‘worthies’ of our mutual acquaintance and heard many amusing tales of Alex’s escapades as a part-time house builder of some distinction and expertise.  In amongst all of this he cooked us a delicious 3 course lunch which we all enjoyed.

Alex is a fit and active 89 year old (90 in three months) who would put shame to many who are twenty or thirty years his junior.  We left him around 5pm sharing the hope that he will be able to visit us in the Saloon at a Lodge meeting sometime soon. 


Bro Iain White PM