The glory and beauty of the day

Well, that was easy.

As of our next meeting, Friendship Lodge No. 33 in Southington will offically hold their stated communications on the first and third Monday of every month (July and August excepted), havign changed from the first and third Wednesdays.

Late last year we started discussing the possibility of changing the meeting day because of the difficulties that members were having in parking, due to the several new restaurants that opened in the downtown area, plus several other community events that always took place on Wednesdays. Some of the younger members suggested that changing the regular meetings to Mondays might make things easier because several of the local eateries are closed on that day. Likewise, there don’t seem to be any activities on the town green on Mondays, which means a less crowded parking lot.

There is a certain irony in that the changes to the outside of the building, making it more accessible to the older members, were made by the owner of the building next door, which houses one of the new (and popular) restaurants.

We need a 30 day notice to change our By-Laws, and at our last meeting we had a small pre-discussion about it. When it came time to vote last night, I was actually surprised that between the members present and the emails solicited earlier, nobody objected to the change. Had I been thinking, I should have made at least a token objection, as befitting my Past Master status, but I was too stunned. I mean, come on – nobody?

Actually, a number of members are involved with a local Scottish Rite, and with the local Shrine – both of which meet on Wednesday evenings. Several other members attend other functions that happen to meet on Wednesday nights, which compels them to choose between those functions and lodge. Other members don’t care one way or the other.

Out of curiousity, we did dig up an old By-Law book from 1917, and found that Friendship was meeting on the first and third  Wednesdays at least that far back. Hopefully none of the members from that time will stop by on the wrong night.

Inclemencies of the Seasons

It’s an overcast Saturday afternoon in the middle of January, there’s six inches of snow on the ground, and the temperature is 17º F. So, what do you do for fun?

2009 Sloper Polar Plunge

Well, if you’re from Friendship Lodge, apparently you take a dip in the lake.

Friendship’s new Worshipful Master Eric Charrette, accompanied by a chilly suite of officers, took on his second “Polar Plunge” in a week to help raise funds for Camp Sloper, the the local YMCA camp. The polar plunge took place at the camp’s small lake,  Sloper Pond. Known locally as the home of a semi-ficticious chelodian, a snapping turtle by the name of Mama Cass, the pond was the scene of several dozen people (accompanied by several hundred warmer supporters) willing to brave the elements – specifically, the frigid air and freezing water.

Each volunteer had to commit to a minimum of $100 in cold, hard cash, to be used for the upkeep and maintenance of the popular camp. Several local organizations sent their hardiest, or certainly, their craziest members. Friendship Lodge, which raised about $550 toward the camp benefit, was one of several other local organizations that managed to raise almost $2,000 for the camp, now in it’s 60th year of operation.

WB Eric was joined by RWB Gary Arseneau, Senior Deacon Kevin Cyr, and John Miller, Senior Warden from Frederick-Franklin No. 14 in Plainville, all of whom spent about 30 seconds in the water. . . and then another 30 minutes warming up afterward.

And according to Kevin Cyr, the adage that you don’t feel cold because the water is warmer than the air is a complete myth. “It was like thousands of stinging needles,” he reported. And while everyone agreed, they all offered to jump in again.

20 Years of mutual recognition

1989 is when it all changed.

The state of Connecticut has a not-undeserved reputation for being “the land of steady habits,” populated with staid (some might say “stodgy”), old-fashioned conservatives. But in 1989, Connecticut was on the forefront of the first wave of mutual recognitions between the AF & AM Grand Lodges and their MWPH counterparts. And while it’s true that Oregon made an attempt to recognize PHA lodges in 1890, and Massachusetts made an attempt right after World War II, both states quickly rescinded those decisions in the wake of opposition from other Masonic jurisdictions. It wasn’t until the mid-1980s that the political climate was ripe enough to allow other states to revisit the issue.

The following article by RW Carl Ek is reprinted from the January 2009 issue of The Connecticut Freemasons publication, which is running a series of articles celebrating the 20th anniversary of our mutual recognition.

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(Editor’s note: in the span of several months in mid-1989, the Grand Lodge, A.F. & A.M. of Connecticut and the Grand Lodge, F. & A.M.,Prince Hall Affiliates, of Connecticut, Inc. crafted an agreement that changed how Masonry operated, not just in Connecticut, but worldwide. Two decades later, almost 80% of United States Grand Lodges have formally recognized Prince Hall Masonry, including several south of the Mason-Dixon line. How did these Connecticut organizations bring together under the umbrella of recognition two old and proud bodies? A series of stories will appear in Connecticut Freemasons this year to celebrate the 20th anniversary of mutual recognition.)

Prince Hall Recognition

“Is there anything further to come before this Grand Lodge session?” The newly installed Grand Master asked the question perfunctorily, almost as though it was a necessary piece of the ritual.

The craft – more than 500 uncomfortable, tired brothers, seated in the ballroom of the Park Plaza Hotel in New Haven that day in March 1989 – were sure they knew the answer to that question. They looked forward to the closing of what would surely be recalled as the most rancorous Grand Lodge session in decades, if not ever.

The heating and cooling systems of the era were often mutually exclusive, providing either heat or air conditioning, and not easily shifting from one to the other. Less than a week into spring, it was not expected that the outdoor temperature would rise to nearly 80? on March 29. In the ballroom, brothers’ tempers would raise that figure significantly.

The year 1989 was already an historic year for Connecticut Masonry. The Grand Lodge had been chartered in 1789 and a New Haven brother installed as the first Grand Master. Thus, New Haven was an appropriate city to host the Grand Lodge kickoff of the bicentennial. Further, the Masonic Charity Foundation was celebrating its centennial, having been incorporated in 1889. There would be much to celebrate in the coming year.

To help Masonry grow into its third century, a ‘task force’ had been commissioned to learn what was good and what needed to be changed about the fraternity to make it more relevant, especially for young men who would be desirable prospective members. Consultant Dudley Davis, a non-Mason, was employed to survey Masons and non-Masons alike, distill their thoughts, and offer proposals for change in an organization not noted for embracing that concept.

Most Worshipful Grand Master John Gonsalves had the unenviable task of presiding over the session. The task force had presented five recommendations, three of which the voting delegates approved as a package, apparently unanimously, by voice vote. A controversial proposal to change the requirement to reject a candidate for Masonry from one black cube to three was also approved, but only by a one-vote majority. As a by-laws change needed a 2/3 majority, this proposal failed, but showed an amazing degree of open-mindedness among the craft.

The ‘leadership’ proposal was the most controversial, and the Grand Master announced that there would be two hours allotted for commentary from the craft before the vote would be taken. He then began calling upon appointed Grand Lodge line officers to read supportive speeches that had been prepared by the task force. The delegates, ready to have their say, remained respectful as RW Bro. Ken Hawkins read his tract. Then RW Bro. Sam Walker took the microphone.

By midpoint in the presentation the craft had had enough. They realized that someone had planned to use as much of the debate time as possible by having line officers read “their” remarks, thus allowing little or no time for the lodge delegates to express their positions. This these delegates would not allow.

Past Grand Master Herbert L. Emanuelson, Jr., who was shepherding the task force proposal, took the microphone in the Grand East. Acknowledging the obvious – that the craft would not be excluded from being heard – he asked that the floor be opened for comments. It was clear to even the most enthusiastic backer of the task force’s work that the last proposal would not even reach the slim one vote victory.

The work of the day completed, it was time for the concluding events of every Grand Lodge session – the then private installation of the Grand Lodge officers, the roll call of lodges, and closing. For those who had been in the ballroom for more than eight hours, lunch excepted, closing could not come soon enough.

MW Past Grand Master Gail L. Smith, 1968, took the Grand East for the unique opportunity of installing his son, Gail N. Smith, as Grand Master for the Bicentennial year. The elder Smith installed his son and the corps of officers with dispatch. The usual presentations of jewels, past and present, followed. Departure would be soon for those occupying the delegate seats.

“Is there anything further to come before this Grand Lodge session?” Newly installed Grand Master Gail Nelson Smith paused, silence being the expected response for all but three brothers sitting in that session.

“Yes, Grand Master, there is!”

The growl thundered from the southeast corner of the all-but deserted dais in the Grand East. Past Grand Master Gail Linnell Smith stalked back to the podium, pulling a crumpled sheet of paper from his pocket as he went. The exhausted brethren were all but beside themselves. What could he possibly need to do now, well past 5:30 p.m.?

Gail Linnell Smith needed to change the history of Freemasonry in Connecticut.

Brother Smith read a resolution proposing that, with the approval of both Grand Lodges, there be mutual Masonic recognition between the Grand Lodge of Connecticut, A.F. & A.M. and the Grand Lodge, F. & A.M., Prince Hall Affiliates, Inc.

To be continued…

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Tao of Masonry | Freemasonry | Masonry

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From EA to WB

It’s the joyous season here in Connecticut… no, not the season that you’re thinking of; that’s passed already. Sweaters and blenders have been returned, the last of the turkey, ham, or goose has been eaten, and there are more needles on the carpet than on the tree. No, as the Masonic year generally coincides with the calendar year (give or take a month, depending upon the lodge), it’s now Installation season. Out with the old and in with the new!

The Installations of officers are often semi-public events here in Connecticut. I can hear some of our brethren in other areas gasping for breath, but really, now that we’ve pretty much shown everything on the History Channel and You-Tube, why is this an issue anymore? In my area, the “secrets of the chair” are imparted several weeks beforehand, which obviates one of the needs to hold an Installation in a tyled lodge. Just before the Installation ceremony itself, the lodge is tyled and the outgoing Master opens the lodge for the last time and then goes to Refreshment. The then fun begins, and afterward, the new Master closes the lodge.

Some members still prefer a closed ceremony, but I submit that it’s a great way for a man to introduce his friends and family to his lodge; if only to show that his brothers and fellow members are a great bunch of guys to work with. Indeed, most new Masters are rather proud to have been elected to lead a lodge, and it’s quite natural for them to want to show it off. Accordingly, Installations – at least for those who have not done it several times over – are often held on a weekend and a large reception party is held afterward.

I was Master in 2006, which means that I’ve been out of an office for almost as long as I’ve held an office. This makes me “a moss-backed, old turtle” according to some members of Friendship Lodge, several of whom had better be careful or I’ll smash their tail lights with my walker. But having been out of office for a while is giving me some interesting perspectives on why Past Masters develop the not-totally-undeserved reputation that invariably follows them. These new guys are, well, new, dammit! They do things differently than I did. I worked hard at changing some of the old, boring, inefficient things that Masters before me had done, and now, these upstarts come along and change things that I did.

And good for them! Friendship is an active lodge with a lot of younger members who are generally happy to participate. For years now, we’ve had every officer’s chair filled, and have often had a backlog of people waiting to get into the officer’s line. I can’t imagine that people around here are interested because we keep doing the same old thing all the time.

Worshipful Brother Eric

Eric 2009

Some time between Christmas and New Year, we installed Brother – Worshipful Brother Eric into the big chair. I’m very proud of WB Eric. He is one of the first people that I, as a new officer, helped to conduct around the lodge. Now, understand that I’m not a particularly large guy. When I met Eric, he was a very young, very nervous, and very big guy. My job was to guide him through his initiation, which involved wrestling him around the small lodge room, and trying to keep a grip on his arm through the copious amounts of sweat. Think “tugboat” and “ocean liner”, and you’ve got the picture.

Anyway, after having my tux cleaned, Eric and I became friendly. It’s been a pleasure to see him go from being nervous and shy, to becoming a planner and organizer, and someone who can talk about his goals and aspirations.  When I was a Junior Warden, Eric was at my right hand, and remained there until I was out of the East, passing from Senior Steward to Junior Deacon, to Senior Deacon. Each year, each position, saw a little growth and maturity, and I’ve been proud of him ever since.

Look well the the East, Worshipful Eric. I’m sure that you’ll do a great job.