The North Carolina Mason

July/August 2017 The North Carolina Mason Page 11 If your lodge has a newsletter for its mem- bers, make sure The North Carolina Mason is on your mailing list. Lodge newsletters are a major source of news from Masons around the state. If you don't have one, think about starting one. Newsletters are a good way to keep your members active, happy, and informed. TraveLinG the tar heeL state DALLAS – Gaston County Freemasons came together in June for a day of family celebration at a "Fam- ily Fun in the Sun" event to raise funds for The Shelter of Gaston County: A Battered Women's Residence and Resource Center. Brothers from across the 36th Masonic District (Belmont, Bessemer City, Cher- ryville, Cramerton, Dallas, Gastonia, Lowell, McAdenville, Mount Holly, and Stanley) joined with local civic organizations to provide music, food, games, demonstrations, and entertainment. In addition to a monetary donation to The Shelter, Freemasons donated numerous items the shelter needs on a regular basis. Gaston County Sheriff and Freemason Alan Cloninger welcomed guests and Mack Sigmon, senior grand warden, shared greetings on behalf of the Grand Lodge. He was joined by Kevin Otis, administrator at The Masonic Home for Children at Oxford and Mark Kolada, executive director of WhiteStone: A Masonic and Eastern Star Community. Shelter coordinator Cathy Cloninger thanked the Freemasons for supporting The Shelter. The Gaston County Beekeepers Association provided demonstrations, brother Fred Cloninger stamped names in horseshoes, the Gaston County Amateur Radio Society demonstrated communications around the globe, and a fire truck provided rides around the park, complete with lights and sirens. KERNERSVILLE – Go team! Kernersville #669 WM Brian Anderson (last row left, holding photo) and Secre- tary Chad Delp, last row, standing) presented awards to the lodge's own Little League Team, the Kernersville Ma- sons in June. Many parents were in attendance to help present these awards to the players. ELIZABETH CITY – Acting on their commission to carry the message of the Masonic Home for Children to families in need, First Masonic District's Ambassadors Doug and Deborah Brickhouse coordinated with the 2017 North Carolina Potato Festival Committee to bring the home's message to the northeast corner of the state. MHCO CFO LuAnne Clark and PQI Director Saman- tha Coleman spoke with community members about the work and mission of the home. Participants helping staff the booth introduced MHCO to the community, helped recruit house parent candidates and explained the process of referring children to the home. On hand for the festival were (L-R): Phil Johnson PDDGM, Samantha Coleman, Lu- Anne Clark, Ambassador Doug Brickhouse, Master Eureka 317 and Ambassador Deborah Brickhouse. DURHAM – "Our brethren! Ye are welcome here, a truthful noble band. We're one in mystic bonds today, We're one in heart and hand." Brothers from two lodges banded together Saturday, June 24, to commemorate the 300th anniversary of the founding of the Grand Lodge of England and the annual Feast for St. John's Day with a seven-course feast. Brothers of Mosaic #762 and State College #770 joined in toast, teaching, song and laughter, marking an elegant, moving evening honoring the Craft, its history and the lessons it teaches. State College Worshipful Master Jonathan Un- derwood says the lodges hope to make this an annual event.

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