On Wednesday evening, March 27, I attended the final School of Instruction hosted by Lancaster Lodge No. 54. While the quality of the work was excellent (Lancaster pulled off a word perfect opening!) the attendance was quite disappointing. Working on upping the attendance at the Lincoln SOI will definitely be a project for the upcoming officers. It is so important that we learn to do the work correctly both in word and floor work. It is our ritual that teaches us and ties us together.
Monthly Archives: March 2013
Plattsmouth Lodge No. 6 Past Masters Banquet
On Tuesday March 26, I attended the 89th annual Past Masters Banquet honoring the most recent Past Master, WB Roy Walton, Jr. We had a great meal and the had some words from WB Walton. This was followed by a presentation of a new custodian apron to WB Roy Smith. WB Smith was also the entertainment for the evening giving us a very interesting walk through symbols used on head stones in Cass county cemeteries.
FC and MM Part 1 School of Instruction / Omaha
On Monday the 25th I attended the School of Instruction hosted by Nebraska Lodge No. 1. Once again the Lodge was packed with around 80 Brothers attending. The work was excellent and fellowship afterwards was excellent as well. It’s always good to attend these every year to brush up on the finer points of our work.
Sat-ra Temple No. 59 Daughters of the Nile Installation
Today I attended the seventy-eighth installation of officers for Sat-ra Temple No. 59 Daughters of the Nile. It was a beautiful ceremony and I wish Queen Angie Huebner the best of luck in her year as queen! (This year is also the 100th year of Daughters of the Nile!)
FC / MM School of Instruction / Lincoln
On Thursday, March 21, I attended the FC / MM School of Instruction hosted by Liberty Lodge No. 300. While attendance was not great, those in attendance did good work and we had productive feedback on the work from Grand Custodian Bruce Watkins.
EA School of Instruction / Omaha
On March 19th, I attended the Entered Apprentice School of Instruction at Centennial Lodge #326 in Omaha. The Lodge was full to capacity, which was great to see. We had a great school with good feedback from WB Bruce Watkins our Grand Custodian. Hope to see you all there again for the next school!
Kansas Annual Communication
On March 14 – 16 I attended the annual communications of Kansas. It was good to see some old friends and make some new ones. The best part is learning new ideas of things we could do here in our jurisdiction. The week ended with installation of the officers. The Masonic Temple in Salina is a wonderful piece of architecture both inside and out. If you ever get a chance to stop by, it’s worth the time.
Masonic – Eastern Star Home for Children Board Meeting
On March 13, I attended the regular meeting of the Masonic – Eastern Star Home for Children board. The home is in great shape! They are near capacity on children and are continuing to have many success stories.
The Brothers and Sisters that are on this board are working hard and have the best interest of the Home in mind at all times. They are always looking for ways to improve the care, the facility and the lives of the children. We can truly be proud of this facility and it’s operation. Ron Gieselmann and his staff are top notch and are one of big reasons the Home is so successful.
Please take the time to thank Ron and his staff and the Board members for all they do!
EA School of Instruction / Lincoln
On March 8th, I attended the EA School of Instruction for the Lincoln area. I have to admit that I was disappointed in the number of Brothers that showed up. These schools of instruction are important as quality ritual work is what sets the foundation for a new Brother’s time in Masonry. If the ritual is done well and accurately, it is more likely to impress upon the candidate the lessons of Masonry.
I understand that it’s one more night out of your schedule however, it’s a very important night. We all need to keep our ritual and floor work as accurate as possible and one of the best ways to do that is to attend the schools of instruction.
Grand Custodian Bruce Watkins does a great job of explaining the finer nuances of the ritual and floor work and is very easy to work with. Come to a school and you’ll learn a lot!
Here’s hoping we have a better turn our for the FC and MM!
Liberty Lodge No. 300 Visit
On Thursday, March 7, I visited Liberty Lodge 300 for their regular business meeting. The meeting was opened in form with good ritual work and the meeting itself was well run. Liberty has a fair amount of degree work coming up and they worked on the trestle board for an upcoming FC degree.
The picture below is the WM Mark Turner and myself. The WM is holding the Liberty Lodge No. 300 24″Gavel. (It’s a great story, attend lodge and ask some time!)
