TUCSON LODGE #4, F. & A. M. 3590 N Country Club Road Tucson, Arizona 85716 520-323-2821 TL4SO@hotmail.com www.tucsonlodge4.homestead.com WILL WILKINSON Senior Warden 981-1200 will4az@gmail.com CRAIG GROSS, P.M., Lodge Secretary - 795-3932 cgross12@cox.net JOHN PROKOP Website Editor - 529-2807 jfprokop@comcast.net VOLUME 136 MARCH 2017 NUMBER 3 From The East NICK ANDRESS Worshipful Master 400-9739 nico7a@gmail.com B rethren, March is upon us and brings with it the promise of birth and renewal inherent in the notion of Spring. It is the part of the annual cycle of seasons that we become one with the spirit of nature and reap what was sown in the autumn and gestated beneath the frozen ground through the winter. The cycle has gain come full circle and we stand at a point in the center watching time and nature take the course of ages as intended by the Great Architect of the Universe. This is also the season of the year which throughout the course of history and cultures has marked the resurrection of Jesus Christ among Christians, the re-birth of Osiris for the Egyptians, the fertility festivals dedicated to the Roman goddess Ceres, and Ishtar of the Babylonians as well as a plethora of other deities linked to birth, growth, love, and plenty. In the heavens above, the progression of the Zodiac undergoes a HANNES MEYER Junior Warden 271-8048 hannes@hannesandjoyce.com Mar 1st Mar 2nd Mar 4th Mar 8th Mar 9th Mar 15th Mar 16th Mar 22nd Mar 23rd Mar 25th Mar 29th Mar 30th March 2017 Calendar Stated Meeting Dinner 6pm Stated Meeting 7pm Fellowship Breakfast 7am Degree or Practice 7pm Past Masters Night 6pm Potluck Dinner 6pm Deadwood Breakfast 11:30am @ Laverna s Coffee Shop Degree or Practice 7 pm Please remember to register for the Stated Dinner by contacting the Secretary at 795-3932 or 323-2821, or by email TL4SO@hotmail.com transition from the most feminine of signs, Pisces, to the most masculine, Aries. They meet at the Vernal Equinox, the dawn of Spring a time for birth and rebirth when Nature again brings its blooms to flora and fauna alike. It is also a time when the remnants of the Spring harvest are traditionally plowed under to make the soil fertile for the re-birth of life-giving crops. It is no surprise that this is the time of the year that we dispose of the old to make room for the new as we launch into spring-cleaning endeavors and emerge from our wintry, indoor lives to enjoy the Sun, flowers, and outdoor gatherings with our friends, neighbors, and loved ones enrobed in the swaddling caresses of the warm sunshine. Let us mark this point in Nature s cycle as Masons as a time to re-emerge into the light of the world and share the beauty the blooms within our hallowed lodges. Let us reap the fruits of our strength of labor this past fall, and the wisdom and love which we have garnered from each other over the Yuletide season, carried forward by the hope that accompanies the dawn of every new year s arrival. Let us re-commit to come together regularly, learn a bit more about the fraternity which we all share in our hearts, and spread our honor and values over the fields of mankind with each sunrise. Let us take a lesson from the voices of the ages and help Masonry to bloom and become fruitful at this most appropriate time of year. -Fraternally, Nick Andress,Worshipful Master YOUR 2017 DUES ARE NOW PAYABLE. PLEASE CHECK YOUR WALLET.
From The West From The South We had a busy week with our stated meeting on February 2, an Official Visit to Epes Randolph Lodge, #32 on February 8, the George Washington degree at the Scottish Rite Cathedral on February 11, we were dark for February 15 and we held a First degree practice on February 22. The Tucson #4 wagon float in the February 23rd Rodeo Parade was a great experience for all riding on it again. This month the stated meeting will be on March 1, we will have a degree practice or Masonic education on March 8, and our past masters will exemplify a first degree this month on March 15. On March 23, the lodge members and their families will enjoy a potluck dinner. Our activity for March 30 is uncertain and depends upon the readiness of our current lodge degree candidates. As Masons we all believe in the existence of a supreme being. However, we practice genuine religious tolerance and accept Brothers of all faiths. We extend this social tolerance to persons of other cultures and persons who speak other languages and practice different customs as well. There is an isolated island nation state located in the Indian Ocean off the eastern coast of southern Africa about 2,000 miles from other land bodies. This nation is known as Mauritius. Our famous Masonic Brother Samuel Clemens, pen named Mark Twain, wrote the following about the island. Mauritius was made first and then heaven; and heaven was copied after Mauritius. The Republic of Mauritius is a multi-ethnic society composed of Indians, Africans, Europeans (mostly French and Dutch) and Chinese. This nation hosts multiple religions in large numbers, Hinduism (52%), Christianity (31%), Islam (15%), Buddhism and other religions make up the remaining two percent. These varied cultures and religious groups work well together. Even having to import almost all resources to survive and operate businesses there is no unemployment, high literacy at 98%, almost no crime and high respect for each others rights and dignity. The people of this paradise-like island nation choose to celebrate their ethnic and religious diversity and proclaim it to be their major strength. It enables them to accept each other and to work together for the common good of all. As Masons, locally and worldwide, I am pleased and proud to say that I believe we do this too. Thank for the opportunity to serve you this year as your Senior Warden. Never hesitate to let me know what I can do to serve you better in our lodge. Hearing this phrase starts a film in my mind. Verizon had the actor Paul Marcarelli travel all over the map with a cell phone in his hand asking this question, presumably testing the coverage and reach of Verizon s signal. Although the commercials don t air anymore and Paul Marcarelli is now working for Sprint, the idea of testing the coverage of a network is still a living picture in my mind. For one, it takes a person to travel to the farthest reaches of the network to test where the limits of communication might be. But of course it also requires that there is a network. For a successful conversation, it takes at least two parts, one that transmits and one that receives. In Verizon s case, it takes a cell phone transmitter that transmits clearly and with enough power that the far ends can be reached. For Paul at the receiving end it takes careful listening to try to receive the message. The transmission fails either when the transmitter is not clear and loud enough or when the receiver is not sensitive enough to receive. Only when both sides are right, the question Can you hear me now? can be answered with Good. In our Masonic journey we are also in need of communication. We learn about the attentive ear and the instructive tongue. Would we travel by ourselves, no communication would be necessary, but we are on the journey together with all other brothers. For us it is important to find the right balance between speaking and hearing. If I just walk up to someone and speak and then turn around and walk away, no communication took place. There has to be a time when I need to confirm that the other person understood what i said. If it is just a Got it, I know that communication has taken place. The Verizon picture of testing the limits goes much further. It takes a lot of sensitive listening, when we go to the edges of communication. Things that are not easily said, or complicated to express take a lot of sensitive listening. Particularly when feelings are involved, we need to strain our attentive ear even more. Though it is easier to talk, it is more valuable to listen. When I ask myself about my last conversation, was I doing the talking or did I take the time to listen Do I know more about the person after the conversation or did I just download my opinion on them? Maybe we need to fine tune our conversation skills just like the Verizon guy and get more sensitive in our conversations. We might hear things about the other person we didn t know or aspects that surprise us. Can you hear me now? can only be answered by one side talking louder or the other side listening more sensitively. When we find the balance of sensitive hearing and clear speaking we too can answer that question with Good!. -William Wilkinson, Senior Warden -Hannes Meyer, Junior Warden
Have you heard the story about that fellow who wants to go hunting? He needed a dog and consulted a Brother. That brother, who sold dogs, gave him one, called JW. "It's a very good dog", he said, "he knows a lot about hunting and you can truly rely on him". Our fellow took that dog. One week later he returned. "He s not too bad, but he doesn't seem to be very experienced. Haven't you got another dog?" "Sure I have", said the Brother. "This one for example is called SW and he's a bit more experienced. Try him and if you don't like him, feel free to come back." Indeed, our fellow returned the dog two weeks later. "He's quite good actually, but he's not what I'm looking for. Still I need a dog that is more experienced." "Well", said the Brother, "I can offer you a really experienced dog. He's called PM and you'll have good time with him." So our fellow took the animal. Just one day later he returned. "What's wrong with him?", the Brother asked, "I haven't got any dog that is more experienced than this one." "Well", our fellow said, "he might be experienced, but all he's doing is sitting there and barking!" Ladies Program During the stated meeting, Stacey Andress will be hosting a Ladies/Adult card game as well as offering follow up assistance for any ladies still needing help with their scarf project from the last meeting. SAHUARO HIGH TWELVE #523 Meets every Thursday 8:00AM Village Inn at 6251 N. Oracle Rd. OLD PUEBLO HIGH TWELVE #773 Meets 2ND & 4TH Fridays 8:00AM Hungry Fox at 4637 E. Broadway DEADWOOD LUNCH Past Masters and friends gather on the last Saturday of every month for fellowship at: LAVERNA S COFFEE SHOP, STARTING TIME 11:30 A.M. Deadwood has become a social gathering and tool for the Brothers of our Lodge. The knowledge you pass onto some of our less informed Brethren is priceless. You are the link from the past to the future.
Gaslight Theatre Adventure! We still have tickets for our April pilgrimage to the Gaslight Theatre. This time it is the swashbuckling adventure "Curse of the Pirates Gold". I have 18 tickets remaining for the Saturday, April 29th show. Our tickets are for the 6 PM show and are in the same area as where we were last time. Tickets are $20 for adults and $10 for children will be sold on a first come first serve basis. For questions or reservations, please drop me a note at psimpson130@gmail.com. Paul Simpson, PM Bring family, friends, and anyone interested to our fellowship breakfast on Saturday March 4th. NAME MASONIC BIRTHDAYS RAISED DAY YEARS HALL, HARRY GATTER 2010 1 7 BELTRAN, WILLIAM TAFOYA 1983 2 34 FABIAN, LASZLO 1982 3 35 SOULLIARD, CHARLES JUDE 2003 3 14 ABDULHAMID, AYMAN ISMAT 2002 5 15 FISHER, BRUCE ANDREW 1963 8 54 RANDOLPH, JAMES RICHARD 1975 8 42 ESTRELLA, JOSE 1988 9 29 HILL, JAMES BLAKE 2011 9 6 BAILEY, NEIL ALLEN 2014 12 3 SEAMANDS, DONALD LAURENCE 1956 14 61 PYLES, BRUCE DANIEL 2012 16 5 HOBBS, E DAVID 1948 17 69 LOSS, DENNIS MICHAEL 1975 19 42 ELROD, MORRIS VAN 1980 22 37 JOHNSON II, RUSSELL BLAIR 2005 23 12 MEYER, HANNES JURGEN 2004 24 13 DOONAN, STEPHEN ODELL 1998 25 19 WADLEY, JAMES DONALD 1979 26 38 SHAMBO, EARL JOSEPH 1979 27 38 KERFOOT, RALPH FLEMING 1972 28 45 YANDELL JR, WESLEY 2012 28 5 MADDUX, JOSEPH FRANKLIN 1960 30 57 STEINBERG, HOWARD MARC 2016 30 1 JESS, DONALD MELVIE 2003 31 14 Weekly specials, Gene s Grits (subject to Gene s Schedule), eggs to order, pancakes, potatoes, biscuits & gravy, and bacon. 7:00 am till 11:00 am Name Raised Death Ernest Wesley Newbrey PM 01/23/57 02/01/17 Ronald Dean Eaton PM 01/31/68 02/04/17
TUCSON LODGE MASONIC FAMILY SCHEDULES Arizona Chapter #2, OES, First & Third Tuesdays... 7:30PM Saguaro Chapter #48 OES, Second & Fourth Mondays... 7:00PM Olana Temple #131, Daughters of the Nile, Third Mondays.... 7:00PM Oasis Court #75, Ladies Oriental Shrine, First Mondays... 7:00PM Bethel #25, Job s Daughters, First & Third Saturdays... 10:00AM Assembly #2, Rainbow Girls, Second & Fourth Tuesdays... 7:00PM For use of the Lodge Building call 795-3932 or send an email to lgross100@cox.net
2017 LODGE OFFICERS Worshipful Master... Nick Andress (Stacey)... (520) 400-9739... nico7a@gmail.com Senior Warden... Will Wilkinson (Laurie)... (520) 981-1200... will4az@gmail.com Junior Warden... Hannes Meyer, PM (Joyce)... (520) 271-8048... hannes@hannesandjoyce.com Treasurer... Gordon Beatty (Teresa)... (520) 731-1174... beattytg@centurylink.net Secretary... Craig Gross, PM (Lynda)... (520) 795-3932... cgross12@cox.net Secretary Emeritus... Bob Conrad, PGM (Jackie)... (520) 748-8627... bjcon1@juno.com Senior Deacon... Marty Jones, PM (Leanne)... (520) 360-7740... emptyjones@aol.com Junior Deacon... Nick Posuniak (Tracy)... (505) 573-2633... nposuniak@gmail.com Senior Steward... Greg Hammonds (Denys)... (719) 330-0997... southernrockysf@yahoo.com Junior Steward... Glen Sampson (Danielle)... (520) 965-4797... gsampson79@gmail.com Marshal... Robert Ribbeck (Mercedes)... (520) 505-9156... bullfrog918@hotmail.com Chaplain... Leigh Creighton, PM (Nancy)... (520) 360-9798...ljcr8n@gmail.com Tyler... Ronald Hill, PM (Linda)... (520) 990-4111... rhill517@concast.net Ritual Advisor... Paul Simpson, PM (Cathy)... (520) 572-7152.... psimpson130@gmail.com Trustee 2017... Marty Jones, PM (Leanne)... (520) 360-7740... emptyjones@aol.com Trustee 2017... Ronald Hill, PM (Linda)... (520) 990-4111... rhill517@concast.net Trustee 2017... Vince Santos, PM (Doreen)... (520) 370-3519... vmsantos@comcast.net Trustee 2018... Gene Wickey (Gloria)... (714) 313-7000... geno1945@aol.com Trustee 2019... Jon Schmidt, PM(Shari)... (520) 465-5485... willowbe99@gmail.com Website Editor... John Prokop (Sharlot)... (520) 529-2807... jfprokop@comcast.net Widow s Assistance... Paul Simpson, PM (Cathy)... (520) 572-7152.... psimpson130@gmail.com Newsletter Editor... Nick Posuniak (Tracy)... (505) 573-2633... nposuniak@gmail.com TUCSON LODGE NO. 4, F. & A. M. 3590 N COUNTRY CLUB ROAD TUCSON, ARIZONA 85716 Ph: 323-2821 Non-Profit Org. U.S. POSTAGE PAID TUCSON, ARIZONA PERMIT NO. 400