Volume LXIX:6 June 2007 Auston K. Weinberg, Bloomington, IL Randy L. Lyons, Farmer City, IL VALLEY OF BLOOMINGTON AASR, 32 MASONS Cathedral News Gary R. Reiners, Elliott, IL Andrew R. Erickson, Bloomington, IL William P. Oliver, Normal, IL Welcome to our newest brethren, who became 32nd Degree Masons during our Spring Reunion at the Bloomington Temple May 18th and 19th. These five brothers witnessed the 4th, 14th, 15th, 17th, 18th, 26th, 23rd, 31st and 32nd Degrees performed by members of the four bodies of the Valley of Bloomington. Commander-in-Chief 2 Letter from James L. Tungate, 33 3 Upcoming Events 4 Deaths 4 Membership with John Dorner 5 Family Fun Days 5 New Presiding Officers 6-7 Spring Reunion 7 Peace Meals 8
Commander-in-Chief Corner New Officers Progression The early summer passing of the baton has occurred. The officers in all four bodies changed with the May election and June installation. Certainly Bloomington Consistory made significant strides under the energetic leadership of Ill. Ronald K. Blue, 33 these last two years, and I recognize the challenges that lie before us as we attempt to build on the achievements of the recent past. After consultation with the advancing line officers, I took great pleasure in introducing Bro. Roger F. Aukerman, M.S.A. as our appointment to the Consistory line as Orator. Reunion We have also concluded the Spring Reunion. While we welcomed five new Sublime Princes of the Royal Secret, one cannot help but wish that more brethren might have been present to enjoy witnessing the superb degree presentations and impressive, indeed inspirational portrayals of our work. However, I was particularly pleased with the number of 32º Scottish Rite Masons who attended the first ever, in the Valley of Bloomington, presentation of the newly published 26 th degree. The brethren from the Valley of Danville did an outstanding job and the appreciative audience appropriately recognized their efforts. Focus I hope that you will review the activities and up-coming events the Scottish Rite is offering for the enjoyment of the members over the course of the Summer. Come on out and join your brethren in these fun and worthwhile events. You and your family will find enriching fellowship and the company of great people! Fellowship Indeed fellowship is the hallmark of our fraternity. But is takes your effort to enter in and renew your connection with the men, your brethren, who are devoted to enhancing their lives and contributing to the welfare of mankind through the work and expansion of our Rite. Membership The expansion of our Rite is a critical issue. Membership is the lifeblood of the fraternity. Certainly, everyone of us knows men who should be a part of our fraternity. We associate with them daily, at work, at church, in our volunteer not-for-profit organizational participation and in our neighborhoods. Feel free to discuss the good works and positive influence being a Freemason as had in your life with your associate. Invite him to join us in making this world better, a fit abiding place of the Grand Architect of the Universe. Both of you will be the richer for the experience. You will be enriched by the pleasure of opening new horizons to your friend and now new brother. He will find his life enriched through the unfolding of the rich fabric of our degrees for his enjoyment and edification. I trust you will participate in our activities and expand the circle of our fellowship to encompass those worthy men who should be our friends and brothers. Enjoy the Summer! Barry D. Weer, 33 Commander-in-Chief Valley of Bloomington Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry Scottish Rite Office (309) 828-6077 Commander-in-Chief Barry D. Weer, 33 Thrice Potent Master K. Randall Wilson Sovereign Prince John R. Barringer Most Wise Master Dale F. Arbour Executive Secretary David E. Young, 33 Treasurer Earnest G. Vittitoe, MSA Board of Trustees Billy M. Burden, 33 1st Lt. Commander Robert T. Trefzger, 33 2nd Lt. Commander Theron F. Noth Deputy Master J. Eric Barringer High Priest Paul J. Dillow Sr. Warden Steven L. Barr Trustee Richard M. Erickson Trustee Bill E. Tanner Trustee Gregory L. Clark, 33 Trustee Committees Audit Ronald R. Guthoff Membership John D. Dorner Finance Barry Weer, 33 History Dale F. Arbour Insurance Joseph M. Jackson Legal Russell E. DePew Permanent Fund Barry D. Weer, 33 Planning Billy M. Burden, 33 Properties C. Walden Crouch, 33 SRRA John A. Hulett, MSA Charity Gregory L. Clark, 33 Community Concerns Norman L. Meade, 33 Bill Tanner Family Life Scholarships Webmaster John D. Dorner Learning Center Janet Blue Newsletter Dale F. Arbour Roger F. Aukerman, MSA The Cathedral News is printed bi-monthly for the purpose of informing the members about events in the Valley. Page 2 CATHEDRAL NEWS
Letter From James L. Tungate, 33, Active Member and Grand Treasurer General, The Supreme Council Dear Ill Bro. Dave, Please convey my appreciation to the officers and members of the Valley of Bloomington for their warm fraternal hospitality during the May reunion. It was great to see such good efforts for the candidates who enjoyed and appreciated the experience. Even more for me personally was to have a chance to visit so many outstanding members of the Valley who are so very dedicated. If a post reunion is scheduled I would like the opportunity to attend. I do want to specifically commend the team which brought the 17th Degree to the stage. I was impressed with the effective use of relatively few actors, greatly assisted by the effective set. Barry and I had the opportunity to discuss virtually all of the degrees, and a common thread to all is the difficulty of the short rehearsal time in the building. I think that will always present challenges. Again, my thanks to all of the officers and committees, and to you, for the enjoyable experience. Fraternally yours, James L. Tungate, 33 Commander in Chief Barry D. Weer, 33 with Grand Treasurer General James L. Tungate, 33 2007 McLean County Fair Booth August 1-3, (Wed-Thurs-Fri) Volunteer shifts: Noon-2:30, 2:30-5:00, 5:00-7:00, 7:00-9:00 Volunteer with a friend. Contact Roger F. Aukerman for more details (454-3385) CONGRATULATIONS! On May 12, Roger F. Aukerman, MSA, graduated from Webster University with a Masters in Business Administration (MBA). Three years to complete. The classroom was online. The professors were located as far away as China. The challenges were many. Professors were a diverse group including career faculty members, a senior economist for the U.S. government, a trial attorney for Sprint, and several retired corporate leaders. One interesting tidbit, the first textbook used had a section written by one of our own, Illustrious brother Jim Grimm. VOLUME LXIX:6 Page 3
Upcoming Events June 2007 30 Masonic Community Days, Bloomington Temple IL CHIP Program will be conducted Deaths These brothers have traveled to the home of the Supreme Architect of the Universe, that house not made with hands eternal in the heavens. Our sympathies go to their families and friends. July 2007 3 Trustee Meeting SRRA - No Stated Meeting 1-5 Imperial Shrine Session, Anaheim, CA 6-7 Illinois Rainbow Grand Assembly-Springfield, IL 7 Valley of Danville Golf Classic, Harrison Park GC 13-14 Illinois DeMolay Conclave-Eureka College 15 El Paso Car Show, Jefferson Park, El Paso, IL 21 Family Fun Day; 2-5 pm at Grady s Fun Park 25-28 Grand York Rite Sessions Peoria, IL August 2007 7 Trustee Meeting No Stated Meeting 1-3 McLean County Fair 11 Scholarship Reception, Consistory Sponsor 25-28 Supreme Council Washington, D.C. September 2007 3 Labor Day Holiday 4 Trustee Mtg 6 p.m., Stated Mt. 7:00 p.m. Lodge of Perfection Presides 18 NOVAT Unit 10th Annual Bratfest 19-23 Great Lakes Shrine London, Ontario 22 Valley of Bloomington Heart Walk-Council Sponsor October 2006 2 Trustee Mtg 6 p.m., Stated Mt. 7:00 p.m. Zerrubbabel Council Presides 1-3 Grand Chapter O.E.S-Springfield, IL 6-7 Grand Lodge Springfield, IL 27 DeMolay Commandery #24 Inspection November 2006 6 Trustee Mtg 6 p.m., Stated Mt. 7:00 p.m. Rose Croix Chapter Presides 11 Veteran s Day 16-17 Fall Reunion BCPA Building 22 Thanksgiving Robert D. Webb, Bloomington, IL May 9, 2007 Roger L. Shaffer, El Paso, IL May 7, 2007 Jack M. Iungerich, Sun Lakes, AZ April 26, 2007 James N. Webb, Lexington, IL April 16, 2007 Ralph E. Goodwin, Jr., Vienna, VA April 5, 2007 Robert S. Hinton, Foosland, IL March 24, 2007 Charles O. Garling, Morris, IL March 11, 2007 Ronald F. Smith, Cincinnati, OH February 28, 2007 Dannie L. Markham, Bourbonnais, IL December 27, 2006 James A. Spencer, Paragold, AR September 16, 2006 Billy J. Craig, Wilmington, IL July 29, 2006 Elijah G. Flowers, Big Sandy, TN May 17, 2006 C. Glen Miller, Carmi, IL October 13, 2005 Harry M. Randolph, Chillicothe, IL February 10, 2003 December 2006 2 Delmar D. Darrah 33 Club Christmas Dinner 3 Salvation Army Bell Ringing-LOP Sponsor 4 Trustee Mtg 6 p.m., Stated Mt. 7:00 p.m. Consistory Presides 11 Mohammed Shrine Election of Officers 25 Christmas Scholarship Reception: Bloomington Masonic Temple Saturday, August 11, 2:00-3:30, Speaker: Richard L. Beal Our Scottish Rite oversees about 57 college scholarships. Many are related to healthcare. This annual reception is our only face-to-face contact with the recipients. We support education. We want to make this a positive experience for the recipients and their families. Officers should be in attendance. Page 4 CATHEDRAL NEWS
A New Look at Membership John Dorner, Membership Chairman When you recount your favorite memories in Masonry, you might start to see a common thread. Whether it was the night you were initiated into the Fraternity, or the first time you had a part in a degree, or the time you and your lodge brothers met to work on cleaning or fixing up the lodge; each event had one thing in common...you were among a large group of your best friends. This is what membership development and recruitment is all about, memories of your best friends. Brethren, if I could ask ONE favor of you to help with membership development, it would be for you to attend as many of our Valley's events as possible! Let your love for the Scottish Rite and your enthusiasm for the programs show when you are back among your Blue Lodge brethren. That will convince men more than anything that the Scottish Rite experience is worth being a part. And you might even get something more from your membership than you think also! We are taking on some new ideas in the coming year to help bring the Rite to the attention of prospective members and assist you in bringing new members into our fold. Some are old ideas dusted off and others are outright new, hopefully all with be useful in bringing in new members. We have been trying to identify a list of current masons in our Blue Lodges that are not members of our Rite and trying to make contact with them. We are taking that to a new level with regular lodge contacts and earlier identification of recently raised men. We are extending that to include lodges in all of our communications with the hope that the additional promotion will bring in new members, and old members back. This will be coupled with the Friends of Hiram when needed, and we will even be taking the 4th degree on the road. My hope is we may also get a few of the retired degrees out to lodge also. We need to get a better presence in the lodges and to do everything we can to support their membership activities as their success will lead to our success. We will be working to try to attend each Blue Lightning in the Valley to identify potential candidates, and with luck, potentially take the 4th Degree on the road to get these new members started on their Scottish Rite journey also. You will start to see more announcements about the Rite activities and work in the Blue Lodge, with announcements of significant events being sent there via this newsletter and via regular lodge contacts. We are even discussing inviting non- Rite members to some of our club activities to expose them to our Rite. As you see non-rite members at these events I would encourage you to make them feel welcome and encourage them to get involved. Lastly, remember that every one of us joined the Rite, because someone asked. Like many, I didn't say yes the first time I was asked. Take the time to personally invite someone to our Rite, even if they have said no before. They just might surprise you and say yes. Remember membership is the name of the game. If you are concerned about the lack of candidates at our reunions, then do something about it - sign a petition and turn it in. Council Family Fun Day Saturday, July 21st, 2007 2:00 5:00 p.m. Grady s Family Fun Park, Bloomington Pizza Go Karts Video Games Batting Cages Carnival Rides Miniature Golf http:www.gradysfunpark.com NO reservations necessary, just c mon down! ebarringer@br18.k12.il.us for more information VOLUME LXIX:6 Page 5
Bloomington Lodge of Perfection K. Randall Wilson, Thrice Potent Master Randy became a Mason in 1999. That same year he joined the Scottish Rite. He was soon asked to become the Tyler of the Lodge of Perfection, which he did so in the Spring of 2000. Randy is very active in the Scottish Rite and the Mohammad Shrine. He is a member of Bloomington Lodge # 43. Officers of Bloomington Lodge of Perfection Thrice Potent Master K. Randall Wilson Deputy Master Theron F. Noth Senior Warden John D. Dorner Junior Warden Adam E. Young Treasurer Earnest G. Vittitoe, MSA Secretary David E. Young, 33 Orator Jeffery J. Fox Master of Ceremonies Patrick E. Schlehuber Hospitaler Jeffrey A. Henry Guard Eugene J. Long Tyler Michael R. Matherly Trustee Steven L. Barr Zerrubabel Council Princes of Jerusalem John R. Barringer, Sovereign Prince. John joined the Scottish Rite in the Fall of 1998. Within a few months he was recruited to join the Zerrubabel Council line. John is a member of DeWitt Lodge # 84 in Clinton, IL and has been active in Masonry for many years. He lives in Lane, IL and his profession is Certified Public Accountant. Officers of Zerrubabel Council, Princes of Jerusalem Sovereign Prince John R. Barringer High Priest J. Eric Barringer Senior Warden Jerald H. Starks Junior Warden Bernard M. North Treasurer Earnest G. Vittitoe, MSA Secretary David E. Young, 33 Master of Ceremonies Richard L. Twedell Hospitaler Master of Entrance Tyler Trustee Richard M. Erickson Team who conducted the ILCHIP program April 28th at Laborer s Hall. The Rainbow Girls also joined this group to assist. From left to right: Bill Tanner, Lars LaBounty, Andy Bender, Norm Meade, Bernie Maharg, Bryan Darnall, Paul Dillow, Peoria visitor & Jackie Tanner Page 6 CATHEDRAL NEWS
Mt. Calvary Chapter of Rose Croix Dale F. Arbour, Most Wise Master Dale was raised at Wade Barney Lodge # 512 in 2002. He joined the Scottish Rite during the Fall Reunion in 2002. Later Dale also joined the York Rite and this past year he joined the Mohammad Shrine. Dale enjoys masonry and participates in many of their functions, including the Scottish Rite Reunions. He is a plural member of Bloomington Lodge #43 and an honorary member of Normal Lodge #673. Dale is a past master of Wade Barney Lodge #512. His wife Linda is the daughter of our treasurer, Ernie Vittitoe, so she is used to a life of Masonry. Ernie introduced Dale to Masonry and Dale is glad he did. Dale is employed in Creative Services at State Farm Insurance Cos. Officers of Mt. Calvary Chapter of Rose Croix Most Wise Master Dale F. Arbour Senior Warden Paul J. Dillow Junior Warden A. Scott Fortney Treasurer Earnest G. Vittitoe, MSA Secretary David E. Young, 33 Orator Andrew S. Bender Master of Ceremonies Bernard E. Maharg Hospitaler Bryan M. Darnall Master of Entrance Thomas K.; Rockwell Tyler Robert S. Cunningham Trustee Bill E. Tanner George F. Perkins, Director of Work Three generations in Freemasonry. From left to right: Father- Richard M. Erickson, Son- Andrew R. Erickson and Grandfather- Billy E. Erickson Rainbow volunteers for ILCHIP-A huge thank you from the Chapter line Jim L. Grimm, 33 & Dennis D. Garrigus, new Director of VOLUME LXIX:6 Page 7
Bloomington Consistory Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite PO Box 3695 Bloomington, IL 61702-3695 ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED We re on the Web www.aasrbloomington.org Vol. LXIX:6 June 2007 Non-Profit Organization US Postage Paid Bloomington, IL Permit No. 37 Helping Seniors With Lunch The Mt. Calvary Chapter of Rose Croix is continuing to assist the Peace Meal Senior Nutrition Program with Home Delivered Meals on the first Monday of each month. The route that we deliver covers the Phoenix Tower, the Downtowner and the Lincoln Tower. Two Scottish Rite brothers meet and take one car to the kitchen in west Bloomington, near Farm and Fleet. There is a hot meal and a cold sack lunch for each senior on the delivery list. Meals are packed to be delivered from the top floor down, that way the stairs can be used if the elevators are busy. We usually arrive at the kitchen by 10:45 a.m., help pack the lunches according to the list and head off to the Towers. We usually finish by 12:30 p.m., after dropping the hot and cold bags back at the kitchen. Volunteers are needed for some of the upcoming months. It has been working best to volunteer to deliver two months in a row. That way someone who delivered the previous month can show a new person the process we follow, then the new person can show another new brother the next month, and so forth. We will have the sign-up sheet at the September meeting for those who can volunteer. It only takes a couple of hours of time two Mondays per year. The senior recipients are grateful to receive their food. This is a valuable service that the Valley of Bloomington Scottish Rite Masons can help with in our community. Winford L. McElroy, 33, Kenneth W. Smith, 33 and Steven C. Nickelson, 33 F. Sherwood Smith James O. Sharp, MSA Robert H. Wright, 33 A very Special Thanks to the Valley of Danville cast who performed the 26th Degree. Set during the Civil War, the degree was very moving, portraying the conflict and agony that come when longtime military friends and Masons find themselves on opposing sides in the Battle of Gettysburg.