Friendship Lodge No. 210

Transcription

1 Friendship Lodge No. 210 Free & Accepted Masons Of California Charted October 14, 1871 Nov 2009 Trestleboard November 1 thru 30 Toys for Tots Drive San Jose Masonic Center Nov. 5 th Thursday 6:30 PM Stated Meeting Dinner Turkey Dinner $7.00 RSVP REQUIRED Family, Ent. Apprentice & Fellowcraft Welcome [CT] Nov. 6 th Friday 6:30 PM Sciots Pyramid 9 Installation Los Gatos Masonic Center All Welcome Nov.12 th - Thursday 1 st Degree Practice [AS] SJMC [CA] Nov. 17 th - Tuesday 6:30 PM Mt. View-DeAnza No. 194 OAM Swan Song and Installations/Protocol Continued on Page 4 A/S = Advanced Stations, R/S = Regular Stations, T = Tuxedo, B/S = Business Suit CT = Coat and Tie, CA = Casual Attire, SCA = Smart Casual Attire Page 1

2 Friendship Lodge No. 210 Trestleboard 2500 Masonic Drive - San Jose, CA Stated Meeting - First Thursday Each Month Web Site: *** November 2009 *** From the East Hello Brethren, For those of you that did not make it to the Constitutional Observance dinner/program, you missed a great evening. At the dinner we dined on smoked meatloaf prepared by Greg Hall, Master of Morgan Hill Lodge. Worshipful Greg or Chef Greg has a special smoker that he uses at special events. After dinner we adjourned to the Lodge room where the Zorah Grotto Mystic Order of the Veiled Prophets of the Enchanted Realm had an impressive program about the Constitution. They had several guessing games that a number of the audience members played yep you guessed it about the Constitution. After the games Allan Casalou, Grand Secretary gave an impressive lecture on Masonry and the Constitution. I would like to give a big thank you to all of the Brethren of Friendship Lodge that helped with setting up the dining room/ Lodge room and staying late to help clean up. We had our annual golf tournament at the Villages golf course, which is located in the lovely east foothills. There were a total of 5 teams with 4 players on each team; it was a staggered start, which means the last team had to wait for the other 4 teams to start. At the end of the day prizes were awarded to the first and second place teams, the longest drive and the closest to the cup. My team came in second no thanks to me, since this was the first time I ever played golf some of my divots went further than the balls; but never the less I had a great time along with everybody else. It was nice just being outdoors with the Brethren and friends. Thank you to Worshipful Jim Grove and his wife Kathy for a great day. Grand Lodge Annual Communication was held in San Francisco. Most Worshipful Ken Nagel was elected to serve as our Grand Master for MW Ken is a member of Liberty Lodge #299, which is a lodge in our Association. MW Ken s theme this year is, The Blue Lodge The foundation of our craft, Coming Home ; my best wishes to MW Ken on a great year. At the Saturday nights banquet Friendship Lodge s ritual team received a plaque for coming in second place at the state ritual competition. Congratulations to all of the members of our ritual team. Friendship Lodge along with San Jose 10 will be hosting a Halloween costume party Friday October 30 7:00pm at the SJMC. There will be games, candy, haunted house, and dancing for all of the little and big trick-or-treaters. Be sure to come in costume, please refer to flyer for more information. We will be having a toy drive for the Toys for Tots in the month of November. The United States Marine Corps Reserve sponsors the Toys for Tots. The mission of the U. S. M.C. Reserve Toys for Tots program is to collect new, unwrapped toys during October, November and December each year, and distribute those toys as Christmas gifts to needy children in the community- in which the campaign is conducted. We will have donation bins set up at the SJMC. At our meeting in November we will be voting on Mr. John Robert White and Mr. Jonathan Bengio Cruz to receive the degrees of Masonry. In addition we will be having our election of officers; I look forward to seeing you there. Randy Shelton, Master From the West Brethren As we enter the month of November we look forward with anticipation to that last Thursday of the month to celebrate Thanksgiving Day. On average, the United States will consume 45 million turkeys on this day! For many of us, this day holds different meanings. However, how many of us really know the history behind this day? If you are unfamiliar, let me share some of this historic day s past. In 1620, the Plymouth pilgrims celebrated the first thanksgiving for having survived the first winter in the new world. They were thankful despite the fact they had lost ½ of their total population that first brutal winter. They soon formed friendships with the local Indians who taught them how to hunt, fish, and gather food to last all winter long. In 1621, they planned a 3-day feast, which they called a Harvest Festival, to give thanks for their newfound friendships and knowledge they learned. They dined on Page 2

3 roast goose, cod, and corn. (No stuffing to be had that will come later.) Not until 1777, did our nation s newly formed Continental Congress decree that there should be a national day of thanksgiving. It was largely up to the 13 colonies to decide when and where this day would occur. In 1863, Abraham Lincoln, upon the strong recommendation of a female news reporter, declared that last Thursday of November to be a national holiday, Thanksgiving. This date was chosen four months after the battle of Gettysburg. It was Lincoln s hope that this day would help unify our country. And as they say, the rest is history. meal so I expect no less for this year as well. To make sure that we plan and prepare plenty of food, and ensuring cost to the lodge is kept at a minimum, I will need early reservations for this dinner. As Worshipful Randy already mentioned, our community service program for November will be a toy drive for Toys for Tots. This is an excellent program coordinated by the USMC and is a great opportunity for our lodge to come together and share with those who may not be as fortunate. These programs are designed to show that our lodge really is a leader in its community and does really make a difference. Please plan on participating. An interesting fact about Abraham Lincoln although he was never a Mason he did apply for membership in a lodge in Springfield, Illinois shortly after he was nominated for president. He withdrew his application because he did not want the public to think his Masonic ties were a political ploy to win votes. Lincoln planned to resubmit his application when he again returned to private life. John Wilkes Booth derailed this plan. So this Thanksgiving, as you wait for that turkey to finish cooking and the smell of pumpkin pie fills the room, reflect on how Thanksgiving Day came to be and be thankful for how blessed we all are. Happy Holidays Larry Muller, Senior Warden From the South Brethren, Thanksgiving is traditionally a day of gathering to thank God for the bountiful harvest which He has put forth. With this in mind, let us look back at the last year we have enjoyed together promoting each other's welfare and rejoicing in each other's prosperity. Let us not forget that Masonry is the common bond bringing us all together as one society of brothers and friends and we should, every day, give thanks for the peace and good fellowship we enjoy. Every single person in our extended Masonic family is responsible for this bountiful harvest. Let's all make a point to give thanks for all we have shared together. Our November stated meeting dinner will be a traditional Thanksgiving fare hosed by Brother Larry Muller and me, along with the help of our loving families. We had a fabulous turn out last year for this Page 3 To make a reservation for the stated meeting dinners please use the following contact information: Phone: (408) kirk.wells@sbcglobal.net Kirk Wells, Junior Warden Brethren, Lodge History This month s article is very short, due to the fact that November was a very uneventful month for the years that I report on. I did manage to find one interesting item fro Joe Martinez, PM 2005 Lodge Historian This Month in Friendship Lodge History 30 Years Ago At the November 1979 stated meeting, two special awards were presented, with over 100 people in attendance: Brother Henry S. Coe received his 50-Year Golden Veterans award. Brother Coe was the son of Henry W. Coe, the namesake of Henry W. Coe State Park. That same evening, Brother C.C. Bud Wilson was presented with the Hiram Award. The award was kept as a surprise to Brother Bud. He was escorted up to the east by his son, Worshipful Robert L. Wilson and presented the award by Senior Warden Marvin Horowitz. Brother Bud was at a loss for words by the surprise, but pulled together some nice remarks.

4 After the ceremonies and congratulations, the guest retired to the dining room for games while the stated meeting continued. Source: Lodge Minutes Secretary s Table Dues Repeat Update! November Birthdays 1 - Waldo Williams 18 - John Mc Clelland 2 - Marcos Vielma 18 - Wallace Stovall, PM 4 - Edward Osgood 19 - Rodolfo Tan, PM 5 - David Soutas, PM 24 - Walter Rickett 10 Noe Lopez 26 Tony Gonzales 12 - Edwin Amstutz 28 - Aaron Berman 16 - Richard Quisenberry 30 - Jack Fischer 17 - Billy Mills, PM 30 - Robert Cortez Mark Your Calendars Upcoming Events November 1 st thru November 30 th Toys for Tots Drive San Jose Masonic Center Dues for 2010 will be $ Please make your checks payable to: Friendship Lodge No. 210 and mail them to the Secretary: Jim Greer 1152 Prentiss Drive San Jose, CA Dues payments are due on or before January 1, If you have any questions about your dues payment or want to know about Life Membership you can call me at: or me at: jrgoofus@sbcglobal.net Jim Greer, Secretary Calendar Continued: Nov. 19 th - Thursday - Tentative 7:00 PM 1st Degree Conferral (AS) John Robert White & Jonathan Bengio Cruz San Jose Masonic Center (T) Nov 21 st - Saturday 11:00 AM Masonic Heritage Bethel 103 Mountain View Mountain View Masonic Center (CT) Nov 29th- Sunday Past Masters Dinner Place & time TBA Page 4

5 2009 Officers Officers (Wives) Master Randy Shelton (Lori) Senior Warden Larry Muller (Aleina) Junior Warden Kirk Wells (Armani) Treasurer Joe Alarcon, PM (Rose) Secretary Jim Greer (Sherri) Chaplain Gene Meyer (Pam) Senior Deacon Jose Pulido Junior Deacon Dorcas Dory Taylor (Katie) Senior Steward Vassil Bebelekov (Maria) Junior Steward Steven Hua Marshal Kendall Mills (Janet) Tiler Helmuth Litfin (Evonne) Inspector 341 st Masonic District Henry A. Hank Vlcek, PM (Linda) Head Officers Coach Kendall Mills (Janet) Page 5