Page 4 The North Carolina Mason May/June 2019
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(USPS 598-260) is published bimonthly by e Grand Lodge of AF & AM
of North Carolina, 2921 Glenwood Avenue, Raleigh, NC 27608.
ird class postage paid at Oxford, NC 27565.
POSTMASTER: Send address changes to !e North Carolina Mason,
School Of Graphic Arts, Masonic Home for Children, Oxford, NC 27565.
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 ..................................gccline77@gmail.com
Grand Chaplain Richard A. "Rick" Williams.....rickwttu69@hotmail.com
Grand Lecturer Dalton W. Mayo (PGM) ................... dmayo@glnc.us
Grand Historian Ludwik J. Wodka .............ludwikwodka@yahoo.com
NORTH CAROLINA
The Mason
Doing the right thing
is a Mason
ʼ
s obligation
By Beth Grace
Editor
R
ules were made to be broken. I don't
know about you, but I've heard that
phrase countless times in my life –
uttered mostly by folks who didn't know or like
the rules.
I have developed a renewed
respect for rules in almost three
years working with this Craft.
Masons, it's true, have a rule
for almost every eventuality. And,
it turns out, they were not only
created for a reason – there's good
reason to follow them.
Rules, obligations, promises. All
of them are important. ey make
this fraternity what it is: a haven for
fellowship, community and charity.
is issue of the NC Mason
takes a look at some of those obli-
gations, promises made and broken,
good intentions either faded away
with time or simply forgotten.
Take, for instance, Masonic widows. e
women behind the men of Freemasonry.
ey spent a lot of time – some, decades of
their time – supporting their husband's love
of the Craft. ey attended ladies nights. ey
proudly watched as their husband moved
through the chairs to become Master of his
lodge.
ey formed friendships and groups of their
own among fellow Masonic wives and girl-
friends. Some joined the Order of the Eastern
Star to share through sisterhood that "indis-
soluble chain of sincere aection" that exists
between their husbands and his brothers.
ese good women were all in on their
husbands' behalf. Brothers agreed at their
raising to be all in on behalf of widows and
orphans in need. In our front page story this
month, meet some of those women who still
treasure their connection to Masonry.
If you take anything away from the story,
take this message: Call your lodge
widows and say hello. ey will love
hearing from you, and the rewards
of their friendship and participation
are endless.
e Grand Master's column
takes the message of obligation a
bit further. His message: Masonry
is not only work, it's a good idea.
"Making good men better is not just
a slogan, it should be a way of life,"
he writes.
Deeper within this issue is a
column from Grand Secretary Walt
Clapp that focuses on the nancial
obligations of brothers to support their lodges
nancially. "e higher the value we place on
our fraternity," he writes, "Men will be inspired
to participate in something they have had to
save and work for."
And then there are this month's new items
in the standing Traveling the Tar Heel State
and Mileposts sections. Nowhere can you see
the fullment of fraternal obligations more
clearly than in the stories about fundraisers,
raisings and special awards for those who have
been good brothers for more than 70 years.
I invite you to take some time during the
long summer to read these stories and re&ect
on what Masonry means to you.
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