December 2005 Plumbline, Walden Lodge No. 274
Greetings from the East
My Brothers all:
Visit the new Walden website and leave a message in your lodge Guestbook! We have tried two free website companies but continued to have problems. I suppose you get what you pay for. Our site is now up and running with its own domain name: http://www.waldenlodge274afm.org. Also, if you wish to e-mail an officer, it will be much simpler as you only have to type in the officer title and then the normal @waldenlodge274afm.org. For example, to send the Secretary an e-mail, you simply send the message to secretary@waldenlodge274afm.org. E-mail addresses will change for the new officers on or about December 27.
We had a special guest at November’s regular communication meeting as our Junior Grand Warden, Right Worshipful Brother Jay Adam Pearson, was officially received. He thanked the lodge for our support during the recent Grand Lodge elections and made other pertinent comments. We are always most pleased to have RW Brother Jay visit Walden.
The Awards night was super. Right Worshipful Brother Jay Adam Pearson, Junior Grand Warden presented the 50 and 60 year awards and Past Grand Master, Most Worshipful Brother G. Kent Elkins presented the 25 and 40 year awards. We also had a good number of brethren and several family members present for these important awards. It is always good to hear the Brethren receiving these awards talk about their experiences in Masonry and life. Read more about the awards in our Senior Warden’s article. Those eligible for these awards are listed at the end of this page.
Children’s Christmas Party: As mentioned in November’s Plumbline article, Walden’s annual Children’s Christmas Party will be held on Sunday, December 4, 2005 from 2:00 pm until 4:00 pm. Worshipful Brother Art Strandemo is chairing this event once again! This is a great time to bring the kids to the lodge. As usual, Santa is scheduled to visit with the children. As in the past and not to be slighted, “adult” children will probably offer their wish list to Santa as well! Bringing children is not a requirement … come out and enjoy some light refreshments and wonderful fellowship during this special time of the year.
Degree work: When you read this article, we will have completed an Entered Apprentice degree. Assuming all goes as planned there will be a FC degree in January. We will not plan a degree in December due to the many family activities normally occurring in December.
Walden Lodge No. 274 was requested to give Masonic Rites for our departed brother, George Lagree Breland, Jr., on Sunday, November 6, 2005. Worshipful Brother Jack Grady administered the Masonic Rites. Six members of Walden Lodge and four members of other 18th Masonic District lodges were in attendance, including our District Deputy Grand Master, Right Worshipful Brother Bill Rogers.
Right Worshipful Brother Bob Kendrick reported that the Table Lodge for Katrina relief was a success and over $3,000.00 was raised. Walden was the sponsoring lodge. Congratulations for a job well done and for such a worthy cause as we support our brethren in other Grand Jurisdictions affected by the hurricane.
My brothers, as we approach Christmas, let us keep in mind the “reason for the season”. Although Freemasonry doesn’t require one to be a Christian to be a member, I am hopeful that most of the Walden members do not mind paying special attention to Christian beliefs. That is where my heart is. Regardless of religious affiliation, we all know that there is only one God and it is with Him that we place our trust. During this season, I find it helpful to reflect on many of the symbols of Freemasonry and the lessons taught by each. My first thought is that of the triangle, which represents the Trinity, or the three attributes of Deity. The square and compasses are of particular importance to Master Masons and are easily recognized as the “badge”, if you will, of Freemasons everywhere. Do you remember their Masonic meaning? Do you remember some of the other symbols? The level, plumb, gavel and trowel? My brothers, if the meaning of these instruments does not readily come to mind, look to your copy of the Ahiman Rezon. Take a few moments and read again about the working tools. What does this have to do with Christmas? If these moral precepts are understood and remain foremost in our mind, I’ll bet that the Spirit of Christmas will be such a blessing it will not be able to be contained. Best wishes to you and your families.
In closing I would like to thank each of you for your support, words of wise counsel and encouragement, and especially your prayers as I conclude my year in the East. It has been a pleasure and a blessing. I am thankful for being able to serve you this year and I love you all. God bless.
“What we have done for ourselves alone dies with us; what we have done for others and the world remains and is immortal.” Albert Pike
Fraternally and sincerely,
Mel Sinclair, Worshipful Master
Tidings from the West
Greetings Brothers,
It has been my honor and privilege to serve you as Senior Warden this year. At our annual awards meeting in November, we saw a number of brothers receive their 25-year pins, and we were honored to see Brother Gene Watson receive his 60-year pin.
Brothers I don’t have to tell you how impressive that was to see, and how much I enjoyed his company. Sixty years serving the craft is an accomplishment few make. During the intervening years since he was raised, he has seen hot and cold wars. Disco came and thankfully went. He has seen a king take the music world by storm, and a King tell us of his dream. He watched a wall divide a city, but not steal it’s soul. Twelve presidents of the United States have occupied the Oval Office. He has watched as once bitter rivals unite against a common foe. A man landed on the moon. Spam went from something that you eat, to something to avoid. Hardware, software, fax, blog, and e-mail were added to the lexicon, just to name a few. I can only hope to see sixty years of age, let alone sixty years of service to the craft.
Brothers, while I haven’t been here for sixty years, my time as your Senior Warden has been a pleasure. I look forward to our final meeting of the year.
Sincerely, and fraternally
Chris Grantham
Senior Warden
From the
South:
Had the Junior Warden written an article, it would have appeared here.
Henry H. "Chick" Davis, Junior Warden
Award Night 2005
November 3, 2005: Awards were presented on November 3, 2005 with Right Worshipful Brother Jay Adam Pearson, Junior Grand Warden presenting the 50 and 60 year awards and Most Worshipful Brother, G. Kent Elkins, Past Grand Master presenting the 25 and 40 year awards. Those eligible (not necessarily present) are as follows:
25 Year: Lawrence "Larry" Crane; John F. Daniel, Jr.; Richard A. Gossett; John W. Grady, III; Joe C. Hall; Robert W. Kendrick; Roger D. Kuykendall: Steve A. Patton; Robert R. Shand; James A. Warren; George T. Williams, Jr.;
40 Year: Buddy Cleveland Bridges; Clarence Ashbell Ellis; Charles William Eppes, Jr.; James Leondra Gillespie, Jr.; Webster Stanley Jones; Melvin Clark McClellion; Eugene David Thompson; Dallas Bearden Wilson; Larry Ray Wilson;
50 Year: James Ralph Bledsoe; Charles Richard Clay, Jr.; Richard Lamar Hand; Richard Boyd Lankford; James Thomas Merck; Malcolm Gordon Thruston, Jr.; John William Wasson; Leon Briscoe Williams;
60 Year: James Odell Coin; William Louis Gregory; and Eugene Bailey Watson.