Brethren,
Welcome back from the summer! I hope everyone has been able to relax and stay cool with friends and family.
I missed many of you in June, but Bro. Senior Warden informs me that everything went very well. I’d like to commend everyone for a successful Warden’s Night. Having the opportunity to move up in the line and continue to validate our proficiency in ritual is key to our ability to open and close our Lodge, manage business, and make new Masons. Everyone should be working, when you have time, to memorize any lines you may have in ritual, as well as the lines of the seats ahead and behind you. It is your responsibility to follow through on your obligations while managing your cable-tow, and that includes attendance in Lodge.
To that point, we will be moving our weekly Discord meeting to Wednesdays from 8-9pm for anyone interested in practicing ritual or discussing Lodge business. The Pillar Officers have agreed that our agenda will be to open the meeting with practice of the opening ritual, we will discuss ongoing business and planning, and conclude with practice of the closing ritual. If you need access to the server, reach out to W.B. Stephen Motroni, PM, for an invite.
As many of you know, we recently lost an amazing Brother, an extraordinarily dedicated Mason, and a wonderful friend, WB John C Regner. John fully dedicated himself to everything he did - he was deeply involved with the Eastern Star and Job’s Daughters, as well as much of his church community, and we would not be the lodge we are today without his unwavering support during his service as Secretary of the Lodge for a staggering 23 years.
I had the privilege of joining W.B. Karl Gruel, W.B. D.W. Stephenson, W.B. Sam Chin, and W.B. Anand Trivedi in representing St. John’s Lodge No. 11 at the funeral services in Jamestown, NY. To say the service was well attended would be an understatement, as the funeral home was so full that there was only room to stand for many of us. He received Masonic funeral services performed by our friends in the Mount Moriah Lodge No. 145, an Eastern Star funeral service, and full military honors with a 21-gun salute—which, upon hearing, made it very difficult to keep my composure. At the conclusion of the services, we joined friends and family at the Jamestown Masonic Temple for the wake, where we regaled each other with some of our favorite memories and stories of John.
We will be coordinating a memorial for John that will likely take place in the Fall. Please keep an eye out for further details as we begin the planning phase.
A final note about upcoming events: in August, we are planning to host an old-fashioned ice cream social with a variety of fun flavors, toppings, floats and summertime treats. In September, we will be organizing a Masonic Movie night accompanied with Bingo. Both events are friends and family friendly, so feel free to bring Brothers, prospects, partners, and children for the festivities.
I know that there are some of you that I owe drinks for the previous iteration of trivia. Find me in Lodge, and I’ll deliver. For those still interested in playing, the rules remain the same: correctly answer the pinball trivia question below and I’ll buy your first drink.
Medieval Madness boasts character voice credits from which SNL Alum?
Sincerely and Fraternally,
W.B. James M. Hall
Worshipful Master
Full Trestleboard available here.