November has arrived and we are staying busy with our lodge activities. We just raised a brother to the sublime degree of a master mason. By the time you read this, we will also have passed a brother to the degree of fellowcraft. Added to that, we have an initiation coming up soon, and more petitions in the wings. It is a pleasure to see so much activity and new membership in our lodge! If you haven’t been to the lodge in a while, you are urged to come and get to know some of the new brethren, and assist in helping them on their masonic journeys. And, if you are a regular attendee, keep up the good work! It is truly an exciting time to participate in Waco 92.
On October 23rd we had our open house, and it was a great event. We had 20-30 visitors, or more; they came and went over the hours and I wasn’t counting. We had displays from the Waco Historic Foundation, Texas Rangers Museum, and the Dr. Pepper Museum. Free smoothies were also served by a local vendor.
Brother Keith Sanders, our Senior Warden, set up a fine educational film in the lodge room, playing continuously, museum style. In fact, the whole lodge was set up as a museum; special thanks go out to Brothers Robert Marshall and Dave McHam for their efforts in organizing and arranging this event. Without their efforts, it could not have been the success it was.
Coming soon, we will be conducting a raffle for a gift card, and the results will be announced in February; the proceeds will go to our scholarship fund. If you are interested in buying any of these tickets, or would like to help sell some, please contact Brother Secretary or Brother Carroll, who is spearheading this event for us. You will not receive them unless you ask for them, but feel free to ask!
We will also be conferring entered apprentice degrees fairly regularly over the next two to three months, as petitions and investigations come in. Finally, there are two events happening in December that are a long established tradition with Waco 92, which is bell-ringing for the Salvation Army and delivering poinsettias to our widows in memory of their husbands’ masonic service to our lodge. If you get a chance, get involved in one or both of these activities, since it is highly unlikely that you will regret it. A third possible tradition has reared its head as well, and that is the Christmas Wish program that Coach Chapman of University High School administers yearly to make the season as joyous as possible for several students who are attending there. The brethren were quite impressed with his presentation last year, and quite a few have expressed an interest in making it another one of our holiday traditions.At the time of this writing, I have not arranged it, but I plan to have Coach Chapman present the program again at our next stated meeting. His efforts on behalf of needy families at the school are truly inspiring and selfless.
As we enter this holiday season, I hope that you will all have a great one. It is a time to remember those around us who are less fortunate, or those who are in times of grief or sadness as well. While I hope that grief and sadness will also take a holiday, that may not be the case for some of us or the people we know. Let us remember to reach out to them, and let them know we care.
Until next time, be blessed!
Mark Brickhouse, WM
From the Secretary’s Desk
Greetings Brethren,
I hope that everyone is doing well. We had a very active October in our lodge. We had several brothers being Raised and a very successful Open House. Thanks to everyone that was involved in those activities. We have several other opportunities for the membership to get involved with over the next two months. On Thanksgiving morning, if you are able, please join us at the Waco Scottish Rite to pack meals for the Meals on Wheels program. That is a very worthwhile activity to be involved with. All the lodges in the Waco and surrounding areas will be there to help with this worthy project. On Saturday, December 3rd we will be ringing the bells for the Salvation Army at the Wal-Mart in Hewitt between the hours of 10am to 8pm. There is a sign-up sheet at the lodge on the bulletin board in the dining area. Please signup and help with this great project. Saturday morning, December 19th we will deliver the poinsettias to our Waco area widows. We will start our delivery at 10am at the lodge.
The 2017 Dues notices will be in the mail soon. This is just a reminder that the dues for 2017 are $100.00. The Grand Lodge Assessment Fee has also gone up. It is now $27.50. That fee is optional. Please remit your dues as soon as you get your dues notice. I am hoping that we will have 100% in our dues this coming year. Last year we only had a hand full that did not get their dues in on time. Let’s shoot for 100% dues this year. Those of your who are Endowed, Life, or 50 year plus members will receive your 2017 dues card in the mail as soon as they are delivered to us.
I am not meaning to sound political right now, but this month is the time for our national elections. Please take time and cast your vote.
Installation of Officers for 2019-2020 Masonic Year This year’s Installation ceremonies took place at the Helen Marie Taylor Museum in downtown Waco. […]
