The North Carolina Mason

Page 4 The North Carolina Mason May/June 2015 USS NC, from page 1 STATE, from page 3 We can only speculate how many Masons were on board dur- ing her time in WWII and the short two years after war's end. Also, we can only speculate whether or not there were Masonic degrees held on board. If there were, no records remain. All this changed, though, on May 2, 2015. St. John's Lodge 1, with Master Terry Kuhn presiding, held the first ever Master Mason's Degree on board the USS North Carolina on her mess deck. e rest of the line included Senior Warden Adam Jennings, Junior Warden Frank Barfoot, Senior Deacon Jim Brandt, Junior Deacon Chris Jones, Senior Steward Jason Harris, Junior Steward Ben Sorensen, Secretary Jim Frost, and Treasurer Ted Hueskes. Playing parts in the degree were Terry Kuhn as King Solo- mon; Adam Jennings as senior grand warden; Jim Frost as the secretary; Jim Brandt, Chris Jones, and Frank Barfoot were the searchers; and Phil Rhodes, James Watson, and David Carpen- ter were the ruffians. While the staffs, gavels, jewels, and Bible came directly from Saint John's, the podiums were period wooden crates found on board the ship. e light that illuminated the Bible was a lamp from a ship bunk. e line dressed according to the period. Blue jeans and shirts as sailors would have worn in the 1940s were the garb for the evening. e candidates had already stood proficiency in their cat- Plymouth Perseverance 59 was to hold their Second Annual Motorcycle Ride for the Masonic Home for Children May 23. Music from the Seeds of Change was scheduled to entertain the riders. is year's ride honors the memory of John Sawyer. — Perseverance Lodge Catawba Riverside 606 held their Ham Day in March. ey served through breakfast, lunch, and din- ner. Plates were eight dollars, and two dollars got you a ham biscuit. Money raised was bound for the Home for Children, the MESH Foun- dation, the NC Masonic Foundation, and their local Boy Scout troop. — Wyatt David Princeton St. Patrick's 617 did a first degree and had a steak supper for their first meeting on their new night. ey now hold their stated communica- tions on second and fourth ursdays. St. Patrick's Lodge held barbecue pork/bar- becue chicken supper March 7. — Brent Evans Deep Run Pleasant Hill 304 held an all-you-can-eat pancake supper fundraiser March 20. — Lynn Hill Concord Stokes 32 sponsored a Red Cross Blood Drive May 2. ey had a 30-unit goal. ey were working Relay for Life the same day. Coming up in June is an open house featur- ing Terry Cox's program "e Secrets of Mason- ry" on June 13. eir Annual Chicken Dinner was set for June 20. — Stokes Lodge and omas VanEtten Salisbury Sophia 767 was hosting Masonic artist Ryan Flynn on May 2. e New Hampshire na- tive has produced paintings, patents, and faux stained glass windows around the world. He was the first American Ambassador to the Associa- tion of the Masonic Arts. — Doug Calhoun Cornelius e 31 st Masonic District was having their Ladies' Night at the Port City Club here April 29. e full menu included beef, chicken, and fish. Tickets were $25 per person. — Robert G. McIntosh Spencer At their second stated meeting in March, Spencer 543 had a promising program planned. Lodge members were urged to participate in an antique show-and-tell. — On the Square Graham omas M. Holt 492's Masonic Charity Golf Tournament was to be held May 16. ey were playing at Quaker Creek Golf Course in Me- bane. It's their first fundraiser of the year. — Todd Smith Atkinson Atkinson 612 held a shad fry at their March 23 stated communication. — Newsletter Gastonia Bob Howe recently got his Diamond Jubilee for his 60 years as a Mason. Members of Gas- tonia 369 visited him at his home March 22 to present the award. More awards were set to be presented at Gas- tonia Lodge's Past Masters' Night at their May stated communication. — Joe Waller and e Trestleboard Kenansville St. John's 13 is installing an elevator in their lodge building. ey, as other lodges, are hoping to ease access to their second floor lodge room for their aging members. St. John's Lodge sent $750 to each of the Masonic Homes at the end of 2014 and another $900 to the North Carolina Masonic Foundation. —Lodge Log Hope Mills Lebanon 391 were holding their annual charity golf tournament May 30. — 17 th Masonic District Burlington Bula 409 is giving away a 64-gigabyte Apple iPad in their Spring Raffle. Tickets are five dol- lars, and the drawing is set for June 8. — Bula Lodge St. Pauls Members of the 18 th Masonic District were invited to join St. Pauls 474 for supper on March 3. ey were having a game night menu with deer chili and pheasant bog. — Ken Wical Raeford On March 24, Raeford 306 was hosting the 21 st District Colonial Degree Team. ey were performing their specialty, a Colonially cos- tumed Entered Apprentice Degree for one of Raeford Lodge's candidates. — Gene Maples Youngsville Youngsville 377 held a Red Cross Blood Drive March 8. It was held at their Main Street lodge. — Dean Mooney Mount Holly irty guns in thirty days are on the line in June at Mount Holly 544's gun raffle. ere was a drawing every day, and each $30 ticket got you a chance in all those drawings. ey are raising money for the Home for Children. — Steve Tate Pilot Mountain Dickie Crump's Squeeze Box hot dogs were the attraction for a Masonic Charities fundraiser sponsored by Pilot 493 on May 2. e Mount Pilot Main Street landmark Sandwich Shop was open for donation only business during the town's Cruise-In. — Pilot Lodge Mebane Bingham 272 held a Past Master's ird De- gree March 16. ey were enjoying supper be- fore the raising of two new Masons. — Todd Smith Midland Union 618 was celebrating their 100 th anni- versary on March 28. ey were having a party from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. with Grand Mas- ter Douglas Caudle the featured guest. Free food and entertainment and an exhibition of historic Masonic artifacts were featured. — Mitch Elliott Cary April 10 was the date for Cary 198's Annual Spring Barbecue. e eat-in/take-out starred 1,500 pounds of pork shoulders. — Ben Oakes Jr. echisms before the degree. e degree went on without a hitch at about 8:00 o'clock that Saturday evening. e attendance was nothing short of amazing: 157 brothers were there, including the Grand Master Douglas L. Caudle. e lodge closed with Grand Master Caudle presiding who led all 157 of the brethren present in the Closing Charge. e Battleship Degree was a huge success; St. John's 1 was proud to hold such an historic event on one of North Carolina's great historic jewels. Ben Sorensen is a member of St. John's 1. Southport Pythagoras 249 was holding their annual Fish Fry on June 5. eir Independence Day Hot Dog Sale is coming up July 2–4. Pythagoras members Hubert Keith Brit- tain and Harold Travis Spencer recently re- ceived their Veteran's Emblems for 50 years Masonic membership. — Newsletter Kenly All the educational programs in your lodge don't have to be strictly about Masonry. At an April meeting of Kenly 257, they enjoyed a pre- sentation about turkey hunting. — William C. Barrett Clemmons Enterprise 752 celebrated their 40 th Anniver- sary Celebration on April 18. — Joseph Gibson William Pitt helps Homes WILLIAMSTON — William Pitt 734 (Greenville) presented checks to our Masonic Homes on April 28 when Grand Master Douglas Caudle held his District Meeting here at Skewarkee 90. They gave the Masonic Home for Children $2,085 and WhiteStone's Masonic and Eastern Star Foundation $1,085, money they earned with a Pancake/Sausage Supper they held on March 13. Seen here are, from left, Home for Children Administrator Kevin Otis, William Heath, Pitt Master William Carl Harris Jr., Pitt Secretary Thomas B. Jones, and WhiteStone Administrator Mark Kolada. — Carl Harris Ric Car ter photo Solace for the roadside YOUNGSVILLE — Here is the pick-up crew from Youngsville 377. They are primping their stretch of adopted highway "making a difference and leaving a positive wake." — Dean Mooney

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