The North Carolina Mason

July/August 2011 TRAVELING THE tar heel state News From North CaroliNa's lodges By Ric Carter Highlands Dog Sale July 2. They set up at United Method- ist Church. Robbinsville The Heritage Festival of Graham County furnished the opportunity for Robbinsville 672 to show itself in the neighborhood. They were serving smoked barbecue for the occasion. They were cooking at the lodge and feeding on the town square. Asheville The 39th Drive April 30. The site was hosted by Nicols- West Asheville 650. Masonic District held their Blood — Dean Blair Mount Hermon 118 raffled an ounce of gold (one gold Krugerrand) as a charity fundraiser. Chances were $20 each and limited to 200 sold. — Trestle Board Benson inch television. Relief 431 was having a July raffle for a 50- — Grover Dees Cherryville Clay Thornburg received this year’s Cher- ryville Masonic Lodge Scholarship. Rep- resentatives of Cherryville 505 got to pres- ent the award at Cherryville High School’s awards night May 26. For a second year, Cherryville Lodge contrib- uted to the local little league. — News Out of the Blue Oak Island On March 19, they held a gold digging contest at Oak Island 758. Members were asked to bring their own shovels. At least that’s the way they ad- vertised it. Conveniently, the prospecting area in the lodge’s front yard coincided with the path of the new sewer lines which need installing. — Brent Wuchae Swansboro Seaside 429 held their Grilled Chicken Din- ner Fundraiser June 18. Everything went well despite their tent blowing away early in the afternoon. They brought in $1,800 for the Ma- sonic Home for Children. — Trestle Board Winston-Salem Old Town 751 has had great success in the past with their Bicycles for Books program. They repeated it this year. The program gives bikes to children who show great improvement in their reading skills. They awarded eight bikes this year. The one they found most touching was the youngster who became the first person in his family literate in English. Old Town Lodge was planning a charity raf- fle. Lodges may conduct raffles so long as they have permission form Special Activities Com- mittee and all funds go to a charity. — On the Level at Old Town Lodge Canton Traci Hoglan launched and has produced Valley of the Moon, a newsletter for Sonoma 472 and several other Masonic organizations, five years ago. She recently finished her masters degree in ministry and has taken a job as chap- lain with local hospice. The newsletter appears to be dying with her exit. You did a great job, Traci. Thanks! — Valley of the Moon Gastonia King Solomon 704 Junior Warden Chris Hall has been scanning all the lodge’s past mas- ter portraits. They will be storing the digital copies off-site in case some catastrophe should befall the originals. Longer term, they will likely be using the scans to restore and replace some of the damaged pictures and those which have suffered with aging. — The Plumb Line ert Biggerstaff presented a program on “Inter- esting Masonic Facts.” At Gastonia 369’s June stated meeting, Rob- — Rick Clanton Thomasville Thomasville 214 was presenting service awards at a May stated communication. Sched- uled to receive their Diamond Jubilees for 60 years membership were Frank Pickelsimer and Lawrence D. Hiatt. Qualifying for Veteran’s Emblems honoring 50 years membership were Charles E. Stout, Ellis W. Jackson, Fred G. Morrison Jr., Fred Y. Plummer, Gus E. Plakakis Jr., and Harold R. Hilliard. In our last issue, we misinterpreted a mis- spelling of Von Louya’s name. We apologize for compounding the error. Louya recently earned his 50-year award. Just as their sale of pine needles is wrapping up, Thomasville Lodge is selling tickets to the Hi-Toms games. Profits from the sales go to the Home for Children. — Trestle Board Blue Ridge 435 was holding their annual Hot — Derek Cheek Spencer Spencer 543’s 11th Annual Back to School — Derek Cheek Pool Party is coming up in August 20. They take a truckload of school supplies to the Masonic Home for Children and entertain the kids with a party at poolside to make the return to school reminder more palatable. Solicited supplies in- clude binders, whiteout pens, correction tape, in- dex cards and boxes, wireless composition books, and mechanical pencils. Junior Warden Mike Decker pledged $25 to the supply fund for each time 25 members attend a meeting of the lodge. Spencer Lodge continues to build their con- tingency fund for major, but predictable expens- es of the lodge (air conditioners, roof, and the such). They use a railroad motif to honor donors. The current fund has grown to nearly $13,000. The lodge’s annual major fundraiser at the North Carolina Transportation Museum’s Rail- Days was set for June 11–12. — On the Square Rocky Mount Corinthian 230 recently raised $1,200 for the Relay for Life by selling 360 quarts of Brunswick stew to the community. Relay for Life is an American Cancer Society drive which fights cancer. Corinthian Lodge member Benjamin T. Da- vis got his Veterans’ Emblem for 50 years mem- bership. They presented his award during the lodge’s recent Past Masters’ and Ladies’ Night. — The Corinthian Column Warsaw morial Day. They were putting the money in the building fund. Laurinburg The members of Laurinburg 305 were having a Golf Tournament June 18. They were to play at Deercroft Golf Club in Wagram. — Ric Best Warsaw 677 enjoyed a spaghetti lunch Me- — Warsaw Lodge The North Carolina Mason Wilson Mount Lebanon 117 was planning an out- door degree for August 13. — Grover Dees Wallace To celebrate their centennial, Wallace 595 has adopted a new uniform, a white button-up shirt with their lodge name. They are thinking about adding a polo shirt as well. — Bulletin of Wallace Lodge Beulaville the return of the Oxford Masonic celebration in October. Spruce Pine Vesper 554 gets frequent favors from the skills of their members. Levi Hefner recently prepared a top notch meal for a lodge Third Degree. No hot dogs for his brothers; Hefner is graduate of Johnson and Wales Culinary School. Pete Jarrett took care of some landscaping and drainage chores for the lodge. Wayne Hen- line handcrafted a set of columns for the lodge. Vesper Lodge recently donated to the Spruce Pine Boy Scout troop. — The Beacon Cary The Spring Barbecue at Cary 198 sold out 1,500 pounds of the pork by 5:30 in the afternoon. — Trestle Board Bailey Kids are forming a new Cub Scout Pack in Bailey. Bailey Lodge stepped up to sponsor and offer a meeting place at least during their one year probationary period. Keep your safety in mind around the lodge. Bailey 411 recently had the fire marshal re- mind them that their fire extinguishers need- ed to be serviced. Pilot Mountain Pilot 493 was to present their scholarship at East Surry High School on May 27. On May 16, just two days before his death, Elmer Holst was visited by a delegation from Pilot Lodge. They were there to present his 60- year membership award on behalf of the Grand Lodge of Oregon. A Pilot Lodge Bike and Hotrod Ride on July 30 was to leave the temple at 11:00 a.m and re- turn to the local Veterans Park at 4:00 p.m. for hot dogs. Other upcoming events there include conducting the WhiteStone chapel service on September 18 and the lodge’s Widows’ Dinner on August 18. — The Pilot Mountain Traveler Paw Creek Not only does Steve Chachoff contribute as a Oxford Lodge Golden Owl Award pats kids on the back OXFORD — Oxford 122 has wrapped up another year of partnering with the West Ox- ford Elementary School to sponsor the Ma- sonic Golden Owl Awards. The Golden Owl Award recognizes those students who show ex- ceptional character and are positive role models both in and out of the classroom. The students are nominated by their teachers and are selected by the schools administration based on criteria established by the school and the lodge. Last school year, nearly 120 children were selected for the recognition. A member of the lodge presets each winner is Greensboro After meeting with Grand Master Lewis Ledford and Scottish Rite Sovereign Grand In- spector General William B. Brunk, the groups involved in the Greensboro Masonic Temple have dropped plans to sell or abandon the build- ing in downtown Greensboro. Large strides in brightening the facility have been made, and res- ident pride is rising rapidly. We will soon have a report on their progress. The Arthur Johnson Memorial Golf Tour- nament was held May 21 at Holly Ridge Golf Links in Archdale. It is sponsored by the lodges of the 23rd Masonic District. This year’s tour- nament raised $10,000 for scholarships for children at the Masonic Home for Children in Oxford. Since it was launched, the tournament honoring a past member of Gate City 694 has sent more than $90,000 to that cause. Several Gate City Lodge members were honored this spring with volunteer awards from WhiteStone (MESH). Greg Woodard was named WhiteStone’s Volunteer of the Year for 2011. Gate City’s annual hot dog and hamburger supper was set for June 18. They were offering lodge tours and homemade ice cream. — Trestleboard Raleigh Wilkerson College 760 hosted its June 11 meeting here in the Raleigh Masonic Temple. Michael Halleran, author of The Better Angels of Our Nature presented the program. After the meeting, they moved on to the North Ra- leigh Hilton for a low country buffet and enter- tainment by pianist and Raleigh 500 member Elmer Gibson. — Larry Thompson Masters 754 seems to be enjoying their move to Millbrook Lodge’s building. They held their pre-stated meal at the Golden Corral in May. They were holding their Lodge Family Picnic June 4 at Adrian Hatfield’s home. — The Trowel James B. Green 735 cooked supper for the Rainbow Girls Grand Assembly June 26. The lodge had one of their summer ice cream socials set for July 30. — Dustin Tarditi presented a special certificate, a custom bumper sticker, and pen with the school and lodge logo. This year, lodge members Danny Williford and Carl Hann were instrumental in organizing and presenting the awards to the students. In addition, lodge member Rich Weaver was recognized by the school for his ongoing volun- teer work in the school. He presents drug pre- vention and awareness programs to the students and faculty throughout the year. These preven- tion programs are also sponsored in part by the Oxford Lodge. They are looking forward to con- tinuing the work next year. — Rich Weaver Jacksonville Semper Fidelis 680 had their Family Day on a recent Saturday. More than 50 folk were on hand. There was the sound of kids playing and cracking bocce balls and horseshoes ringing in the heat. Bill Frost entertained with a mag- ic show. Several people spoke about the joy of hearing the sounds of children around the lodge. Semper Fi Lodge has had a busy year. As of early June, they’ve taken in 13 petitions and raised 11 new Masons. On the community involvement front, they cooked 1,000 hot dogs for athletes and coaches at the Onslow County Special Olympics. They sent donations to earthquake and tornado vic- tims. They helped with the Onslow County Scholarships which gave five $1,200 to gradu- ating high school seniors. Their fall barbecue fundraiser for the Masonic Homes is set for September 9. — Trestle Board Bakersville April 21 was the date for Bakersville 357’s Annual Ramp Supper. — The Beacon Dunn Past masters filled nearly every station when Palmyra 147 held their June 28 Past Masters’ Night. They raised two new members that night. Nineteen Palmyra past masters were there and four past masters from other lodges were visiting. — Jonathan S. Johnson Selma Selma 320 recently held a raffle to help fund their scholarships. Five dollars got you one chance on one of three prizes: 42-inch televi- sion, and a $50 or $25 gift card. They held a blood drive June 1. — Grover Dees Liberty Among the state’s needy population, there is often great need for dental care. Liberty 714 hosted a dental clinic for them June 17. It was especially for residents of Liberty, Asheboro, Franklinville, and Ramseur. — Paul Bruchon primary coach at West Gate 738, he’s also their go-to man when it comes to refrigeration. When their ice machine died, it was Chachoff who got the “a great price” on a replacement. The lodge recently replaced some ceiling tiles and painted the foyer, keeping things looking nice around the building. — News From the West Charlotte Charles M. Setzer 693 had a special ceremo- ny June 20. They were celebrating new additions to their lodge room and honoring Russ Elliott and Doug Childress. Jack Stallings installed a new mosaic pavement in the lodge. They also have a new altar thanks to the craftsmanship of Kenny Barnette. — Trestleboard Hickory The computer age marches on at Hickory 343. They have had a Facebook page for a while. Now they are using an Internet-based phone tree. The system sends phone notifications of upcoming lodge events. The new system has an option for sending text messages to your cell phone. The lodge is also offering electronic ver- sions of their newsletter. The Plez Teague Memorial Pancake Break- fast was set for May 7. They hold it to raise money for Masonic charities. It is appropriately named for the late Plez Teague, one of the state’s biggest supporters of our charities. Hickory’s new DeMolay Chapter needs help getting going. James John Kuba Jr. was looking for volunteers to help out. Salisbury The temple trustees at the Salisbury Ma- sonic Temple understand the need to main- tain and improve their building. A recent work list included ceiling and wall plaster repair, lock changes, rain spout clearing, new frying pans for the kitchen, and fire extin- guisher maintenance. They have also started a window replacement drive. Forty windows at $600 each makes for a big sponsor search. They have pledges so far of more than $6,000 and continue to promote the drive. Fulton 99 and Andrew Jackson 576 make their homes there. — Master’s Journal see STATE, page 7 If your lodge has a newsletter for its members, make sure The North Carolina Mason is on your mailing list. Lodge newsletters are a major source of news for Masons around the state. If you don’t have one, think about starting one. Newsletters are a good way to keep your mem- bers active, happy, and informed. — Hickory Lodge — Newsletter Beulaville 658 is planning to charter a bus for — [St. John’s 13] Lodge Log Page 3

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