A crowded Lodge room on Thursday 6th May 2004 bore testimony to the popularity of Brother Bobby Seggie, Past Master, as one hundred and eleven Brethren from all over Central Scotland gathered to witness the honour of Distinguished Service Membership being conferred upon him.

Invitations to the Lodges with which Bobby had an association had been sent out, and it was only by good fortune that he was kept unaware of the proposed ceremony, as he had been a visitor to three Lodges on the evenings when the invitations were about to be read.

Even when the Brethren were struggling to find a seat in the Temple, Bobby was still unaware of the real reason for their attendance, assuming that they were all there to witness the Entered Apprentice Degree about to be conferred by the Senior Warden.

Lodge business was transacted, after which a Deputation from the Provincial Grand Lodge of Dunbartonshire, headed by the Provincial Grand Master, Brother John F. Herrick, was admitted. Still Brother Seggie felt no foreboding of the ceremony about to happen.

An excellent Degree Ceremony was thereafter carried out, and the newest Entered Apprentice took his place in the North-East Corner of the Lodge to witness the remainder of the business.

The Master, Brother David Seggie, Bobby’s son, then requested the Director of Ceremonies to carry out his special duty. Brother Bobby Seggie was presented in the West of the Lodge where the Master apologised for keeping him in the dark over the previous few weeks, and thereafter asked the Secretary to read the following tribute:

Brother Bobby Seggie was Initiated into Lodge Cadder Argyle on 21s January 1961 at the age of 27. He was one of 5 Candidates for Initiation. He and the other 4 were Passed to Fellowcraft on 2nd March, and Raised Master Masons on 15th April 1961. All three ceremonies were carried out by the Office–bearers and Brethren of the Lodge.

Brother Seggie was not long in taking to the floor of the Lodge. He attended his first Instruction Class on 7th February 1961. On 25th April, a week after his Master Mason Degree, he took an active part in the Entered Apprentice Degree at a Regular Meeting of the Lodge.

It was not long before he took Office. In December 1961 he was Installed into the post of Junior Chaplain, the post of Senior Chaplain in those days being taken up by Reverend George W. Macarthur, Minister of Chryston Parish Church.

The Minutes of the Instruction Class Meetings in those days are quite detailed, and indicate that in his first year as a Freemason he was stepping into more senior offices and taking an active part in the ritual of the Lodge. This was to become his hallmark for the future.

By 10th April 1962, a year after being Raised, he conferred the Entered Apprentice Degree on 5 candidates, one of whom is here tonight, and of whom more will be said later.

In December 1962 he was Installed into the office of Inner Guard, then a more senior post than it is today.

The Minute of the Instruction Class of 3rd September 1963 records that he instructed one candidate in the more important points of the Entered Apprentice Degree. (I would imagine that this meant that he did the lot himself.) The minute reads “At the close of the Meeting Brother R. Seggie was accorded a warm vote of thanks on the call of the Master.” (It is to be regretted that this is the last Minute recorded at a Meeting of the Lodge of Instruction.)

Senior Offices followed quickly:

1963, Junior Deacon; 1964, Senior Deacon; 1965, Junior Warden; 1966, Senior Warden; and finally on 16th December 1967, he was Installed into the Chair of his Mother Lodge by the Installing Masters, Brother Matthew Henderson and Brother W. Ian M. Smith.

As Master he took the duty of looking after all aspects of the Lodge very seriously, and soon took on the role of Social Convenor, a role which saw him manning the bar on Tuesdays, Fridays and function nights for quite a few years. During this period his son David was introduced to Freemasonry by way of the Children’s Christmas Party, a function David is still attending at the age of 43.

He was not one to take the Chair one year, support the Master as Immediate Past Master the next, and then disappear into oblivion, as so many had done before and would so do thereafter. Two years after being Installed as Master, he was in December 1969, with the assistance of Past Master Brother Sam McCracken, carrying out the Installation of his star pupil, Brother Billy Menzies. Thirty-four years later, Brother Menzies is still trying desperately to emulate his hero, mentor, and very close friend.

The Installation ceremony that day must have had an effect on the Office bearers of those times, as Brother Seggie was chosen as an Installing Master every year for the next seven years, Installing the Master on five occasions, and the Office-bearers twice

After Installing the Masters yet again in 1978 and 1981, and not content to carry out Installations within his Mother Lodge, he then Installed the Master of Lodge St. John Slamannan No. 484 in 1984. It was now time for a rest. He did have a wife and family to care for after all, and other Brethren needed a turn.

He was brought out of retirement in 1993 to Install Brother David Wightman, and after another short break during which time he had filled the post of Lodge Chaplain, he Installed Brother McKerral in 2002 and his own son Brother David Seggie, in 2003. Time for a rest? I think not. As present Depute Master, he’ll be Installing the current Senior Warden, Brother Mackie, into the Master’s Chair this December.

It was with great difficulty that the proposal to confer this honour was carried out, as in terms of Law 131 the intention must be put to the Lodge at a Regular Meeting, and a vote taken at a subsequent Meeting. The attendance record of Brother Seggie is such that he has rarely missed a Regular Meeting, and to miss two in succession is unheard of. A cunning plan was therefore devised to allow the proper procedure to be carried out without his knowledge. Not an easy task.

That, Right Worshipful Master, is a short narrative of the Masonic history of the Brother now standing before us, whom I now leave in your hands for further advancement.

The Master then read the inscription on the Diploma, and along with the Provincial Grand Master, made the presentation. Brother Bobby Seggie was then introduced as Distinguished Service Member to the assembled Brethren. The Brethren received him with rapturous and lengthy applause.

Giving a short and heartfelt thanks for the honour bestowed upon him, Brother Bobby Seggie stated that since being Initiated into Freemasonry in 1961 he had enjoyed every minute of his Masonic career, and made mention of the thousands of Brethren he had befriended over the years, many of whom were present on this night.

Truly a richly deserved honour for a highly regarded and well-known Brother.