Page 4 The North Carolina Mason March/April 2019
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ird class postage paid at Oxford, NC 27565.
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Grand Master
Dwight M. "Mack" Sigmon
Board Of Publication
Kenneth Wayne Lambert, Chairman
John R. Beaman III
John S. Dodd
Adam Russell Cloninger
Dwight Stephen Decoskey II
Editor
Beth Grace
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From the editor's desk
Grand Master Dwight M. "Mack" Sigmon .............msigmon@glnc.us
Deputy Grand Master P. Shaun Bradshaw ............ sbradshaw@glnc.us
Senior Grand Warden R. David Wicker .................... dwicker@glnc.us
Junior Grand Warden Larry B. ompson Jr. ........lthompson@glnc.us
Grand Treasurer Lewis R. Ledford (PGM) ............... lledford@glnc.us
Grand Secretary T. Walton Clapp III ...........................wclapp@glnc.us
Senior Grand Deacon Kevan D. Frazier .....................kfrazier@glnc.us
Junior Grand Deacon Donald E. Kehler .....................dkehler@glnc.us
Grand Marshal Robert W. Rideout ............................ rrideout@glnc.us
Grand Steward Steve M. Norris ................................... snorris@glnc.us
Junior Grand Steward Gilbert D. Bailey ......................gbailey@glnc.us
Grand Tyler Guy E. Cline
Grand Chaplain Richard A. "Rick" Williams
Grand Lecturer Dalton W. Mayo (PGM)
Grand Historian Ludwik J. Wodka
NORTH CAROLINA
The Mason
Keeping the family in
our Masonic lives
By Beth Grace
Editor
I
've been thinking about community. Not
the kind of community you find in the city
where you live, the church you call home or
the circle of friends you run with.
I've been thinking about the Masonic
community.
I am always impressed by the
community formed by the 36,000-
plus Masons in North Carolina. In
fact, I've never seen anything like
it. While the Code dictates what
Masons must do to be a Mason,
it seems to me that kindness and
humanity dictate the extended
friendships, lifelong loyalties and
mutual support I see almost every-
where I travel.
I hope you had a chance to read
"Everyone Has a Story" in the last
NC Mason. Grand Secretary Walt
Clapp posed some interesting ques-
tions that clearly had an impact. I heard from
more of you on that piece than any other we
have run in the last couple of years.
His story about connecting with a brother
who had lost community with his lodge hit
home with many of you, and it inspired me
to think more deeply about and look farther
afield into the Masonic community.
I started wondering about aging brothers,
who attend lodge regularly despite physical
odds that would keep a lesser man home. I
thought about much-loved brothers now gone
"to that house not made with hands" – and the
women who loved and supported them as they
made their Masonic journey in life.
And I went in search.
I found Luther Eure and Lilton Umphlett,
lifelong friends and brothers in Masonry. At
91, they never miss a lodge meeting. ey
participate in as many lodge events as they can.
ey are brothers to the very bone.
eir lodge – Gatesville #126 –
celebrated them last month with
an award each had truly earned: a
70-year certificate.
What a joy to see them celebrate
and share a moment of their great
humor and deep love for their
brothers, their families and commu-
nity. ey share many of the life
moments we all take for granted.
eirs is a unique journey that they
have traveled together and apart.
Read all about them on page 1.
Next issue, watch for a story
looking at our much loved Masonic
widows. e women behind the
brothers have amazing stories of love, faith and
fellowship.
Many of our lodges take great pains to
remember and honor them – and these
amazing women tell me that it means the
world to them. ey were part of the family
once; that connection – and the desire to
remain part of something so dear to their
husbands – lives on, long after the funeral
ends.
So take a few minutes this month to read
and remember – the brothers who make this
Craft a true family, and the sisters who stood
behind their men and supported their Masonic
journey, while sharing the road to friendship
and family.
Who's opting out? You'd be surprised!
In the last year, more than 200 brothers have chosen
to opt out of receiving the print copy of the NC Mason in
favor of reading it online.
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trees.
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