The North Carolina Mason

January/February 2010 The North Carolina Mason Page 5 eNCompassiNg the world By Ric Carter Notes Recognitions of NC Prince Hall Several grand lodges have recognized the Prince Hall Grand Lodge of North Carolina since out Grand Lodge recognized in 2008. e grand lodges of England, Oregon, and Virginia have specifically granted recognition. Several others automatically share recognition as soon as the body sharing the territory recognizes. Masonic Olympics ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO — e Fourth Annual Masonic Olympics were scheduled here for July 25, 2009. It was a lodge against lodge match up. e all-day event in- cluded bowling, poker, darts, basketball, bocci, dominoes, horseshoes, cribbage, and Masonic Jeopardy. A Shrine unit even offered child care for the day. ere were snacks available. Tro- phies for each event and an overall winner were to be presented. — e New Mexico Freemason Indiana Freemason Week INDIANPOLIS, INDIANA — Indiana Gov- ernor Mitchell E. Daniels Jr. declared the week of June 6 Indiana Freemason Week. Celebratory activi- ties included laying a wreath at their capital's World War Memorial, recognizing the 100 th birthday of Freemason's Hall, and saluting the 125 th year of Shrine in the state. A parade and rededication cer- emony were set for June 13. — Indiana Freemason NFL Hall takes Mason CLEVELAND, OHIO — Another Mason entered the National Football Hall of Fame in August. Ralph C. Wilson Jr., the only owner the Buffalo Bills have known, was inducted into the Hall. He is the founder, owner, and president of the Bills and a founding owner of the American Football League. Wilson is a 60+-year member of Kilwinning 297 in Detroit, Michigan. e 90-year-old is the oldest owner in the NFL. — Beacon Mason day with the Reds CINCINNATI, OHIO — Ohio Masons will enjoy the 72 nd Annual Shrine/Masons Family Day with the Cincinnati Reds on August 1, 2010. e Reds take on the Atlanta Braves. — Beacon FIJI — is is straight scoop as reported by BBC (British Broadcasting Company) on July 17, 2009. From the New Zealand Herald and confirmed by Richard Nun, Adelaide, South Australia. A group of Freemasons had to spend a night in jail in Fiji, after local villagers complained they were practicing witchcraft. ey were doing a second and were about three-quarters through it when interrupted by a knocking at the door. ere were about ten men, some police and some landowners, there insist- ing on coming in. ey collected all parapher- nalia from the cupboard including 'Yorick'. ey asked to see the permit to hold a meeting which the Masons did not have. All 14 were then transported to Nadi police station, where they were informed that under the emergency powers they could be detained for 48 hours without reason, and would be kept until each had been interviewed individually. No in- terviews were conducted, and at about 3:00 a.m., were informed they were being held for sorcery. e penalty for sorcery is five to 14 years. ey were allowed to use their cell phones, Stem cells are cells in the human body that have the ability to change into any other cell type. Stem cells are at the heart of a new field of science termed regenerative medicine. Because stem cells can dif- ferentiate into blood cells, muscle, bone, cartilage, and other specialized types of cells, they have the potential to be used to treat a wide variety of diseas- es, including leukemia, Parkinson's disease, diabetes, cancer, Alzheimer's, and heart disease. One day, they may even be used to regenerate organs, bringing or- gan transplantation medicine to the forefront. Badger Masons meet MADISON, WISCONSIN — At their most recent communication, the Grand Lodge of Wisconsin kept their current per capita rate of $31. ey changed their Masonic Code to refer- ence observance of the Sabbath without men- tion of Sunday. Since not all religions recognize the Sabbath as Sunday, they were striving to put various faiths "'on the level' and not favor one religious faith over another by recognizing only Sunday as the Sabbath." — e Wisconsin Masonic Journal State-wide open houses INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA — Indiana lodges were hosting a state-wide open house November 21. All branches of Freemasonry were urged to participate in sharing "with our communities who we are, what we believe, and where we are located." e grand lodge there was placing advertise- ments in newspapers and radio around the state. eir grand master was even making an address on the Internet via Facebook, YouTube, and similar sites. — Indiana Freemason Lightfoot sings for MMRL UTICA, NEW YORK — e 50 th anniver- sary benefit concert for the Masonic Medical Research Laboratory was set here for July 25. Famed singer/songwriter Gordon Lightfoot was performing at the Stanley Center. — MMRL Update Ohio Masons raise their mark OHIO — If you think you've read this be- fore, it's understandable. Ohio's Masons have again broken their record for contributions to the Special Olympics in Ohio. eir contri- bution of $205,000 this year made the third straight year they have broken the $200,000 barrier. e parade of Masons leading the opening ceremonies held at Ohio State Uni- versity was welcomed with a rousing ovation. Over the years, Ohio Masonry has contributed nearly $3,000,000 to the cause. — Beacon Freemasons accused of sorcery The Masonic Medical Research Labora- tor y (MMRL), in order to remain at the cut- ting edge of discover y and to better meet the ever-changing needs of human healthcare deliver y, has inaugurated a stem cell program at its world-renowned facility in Utica, NY. The new Stem Cell Center will be focused on regenerative medicine as well as the novel use of pluripotent stem cell technolog y to generate human models of disease. — MMRL Update MMRL gets stem cell center MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA — On October 24, Masons from the Grand Lodge of Minnesota were to set the cornerstone for the University of Minnesota Amplatz Children's Hospital. e facility will "unite pediatric and maternal services in one location." Its clinical programs will include pediatric organ transplan- tation, blood and marrow transplantation, cancer treatment, and heart surgery. NEBRASKA — At the behest of their grand lodge, all of Nebraska's lodges were holding a Back to Lodge Night in September. e purpose of the evening was to give inactive members a way to "comfortably reconnect" with the lodge. All lodge members were to be sent an invitation to the evening, and a meal was to be served be- fore the meeting. In addition to supper, there was to be a Rusty Nail Degree in which long absent members would be reacquainted with the signs and words necessary to enter and open the lodge. The heads of appendant organizations also signed proclamations with the grand master "urging their members to visit their home lodges." — The Nebraska Mason NEW JERSEY — New Jersey Masons are being offered a premium for helping men find the fraternity. e prize is a lit crystal carrying the grand lodge logo and a letter of recognition from the grand master. To get the award, a Mason must be the top line signer of three petitioners who pass their Master Mason examination be- fore April 1, 2010. e start time for the program was May 1, 2009. — e New Jersey Freemason Come home nights set in mid-west but had to make calls with an officer present. (ey were also allowed to order McDonald's as the McDonald's owner was in jail with them.) A call to a higher authority, resulted in the men be- ing released at 8:00 a.m. ey were told that, by order of the Prime Minister's office, the matter was still under investigation. Also, the PM was coming to view the evidence later that day. It would appear that the landowners had pre- viously seen the lodge sign of mortality (Yorick) as it had been left out and the raid was planned two weeks ahead. — From Fraternal Review, Southern California Research Lodge Recruiting rewarded Such ceremonies are only a small part of the re- lationship Minnesota Masons have with the Uni- versity. On April 24, the University hosted the an- nual dinner for the Masonic Cancer Fund. At the dinner, Partners for Life co-chair Roger Ledding announced that they were within two percent of their ten million dollar goal to build the Masonic Cancer Clinic. e audience immediately contrib- uted $17,000 more. — e Minnesota Mason Minnesota Masons support medicine Hominy staying busy in the neighborhood CANDLER — Hominy 491 hosted its annual Fish Fry September 12. Seventy-eight Brothers and family members attended. It was a suitable reward for a lodge that has been very busy this year. They have been actively involved in working with Habitat For Humanity, helping to build housing for fami- lies in their community. For the last two years, they have been involved in a backpack program which provides backpacks of food to school children on weekends, who would not have anything to eat until they returned to school on Monday. They designed and implemented a district web site for the 39 th Masonic District, to help keep the district lodges informed on activities in the area. — Jim Burrows Teamwork brings in $15k for Home BAKERSVILLE — Two lodges from Charlotte ventured up to Bakersville in July to help a smaller lodge run a fundraiser for Masonic charity. Bakersville 357 hosted the food sale. James K. Polk 759 (twice as big) and Steele Creek 737 (three times bigger) enjoyed their trip to the hills and the chance to meet some fresh faces as they all helped support the Masonic Home for Children. They are seen here presenting their check at Grand Lodge Annual Communication in September. ASHEBORO — Members of Balfour Lodge again participat- ed in SHOOTOUT 2K9-BRAVO, the 4 th US Naval Sea Cadet "Shootout" training weekend. Members of the lodge have served as instructors for this event since it's inception in the spring of 2008. Shootouts are held in the spring and fall of each year at Tom's Creek Nursery just south of Asheboro. Over the course of the training event, cadets receive extensive training in firearms safety and marksmanship, hand to hand com- bat, emergency medical procedures, rappelling, rope bridge con- struction and river crossing, land navigation, combat patrol tactics, room clearing, vehicle take downs, camouflage and concealment, and various team building exercises. Training begins Friday after- noon and continues nonstop through Sunday afternoon with ca- SPINDALE — Eighteen Masons were present in Spindale 673 on August 14, 1945, V-J Day, the day Japan surrendered, end- ing World War II. ey passed a resolution honoring their nine members who served in the conflict. On December 7, 2009, at another Stated Communication, Spindale Lodge recognized Masonic Armed Services veterans for their service to our country by passing a resolution and presenting each with a lapel pin. ere were 14 veterans present hailing from six Lodges: Spindale 673, Cliffside 460, Hollis 535, Casar 579, Saluda 482, and Chesnee 294 (Tennessee). Echoing the lodge's earlier salute, the resolution paid "trib- ute and honor to those, our honored brethren, who have offered themselves in the defense of liberty, equality, and freedom for all mankind throughout the world." Shown here at the gathering are, front from left: Johnny Kinard (Saluda 482) and Howard McKinney (Spindale 673). Second row: Hal Cooke (Casar 579), Bailey Gillespie (673), James H. Smith (673), Clyde Earley (Cliffside 460), Roy McKain (673), and David Ray (Hollis 535). ird row: Tracy Yelton (460), Howard Yelton (673), Wayne Spears (673), Clayton Wright (460), Terry Brown (Chesnee 294), and Roger Darby (294). — Creighton Lovelace Fourteen veterans of our armed services were on hand at Spin- dale 673 for a special salute December 7. Spindale repeats historic vote Balfour trains Sea Cadets dets rotating through the various training exercises. e culmina- tion of the training is the field training exercise held on Saturday night, when cadets are split into teams and given a mock mission which tests the skills they have learned. e exercise often contin- ues into the early hours of Sunday morning. Instructors from Balfour Lodge include Jason D Strucinski, Frank Hibbs, Lawrence Clark, ad Farlow, Brian Davis, Jason Gilliland. ey were also to be conducting cold weather survival training for them at Tom's Creek Nursery from December 26 through January 2. Balfour Lodge is committed to building a stronger community through the support of youth organizations like the USNSCC and is proud to offer its members expertise in the field. By Jason D Strucinski Ric Car ter photo

• Cover