Masonic Birthdays this Month
Henry Thibodaux P.M. 4/16/1964 41 yrs.
James Miller 4/13/1966 39 yrs.
Troy Tomlinson 4/14/1993 12 yrs.
Charles Bopp 4/12/1995 10 yrs.
Leon Bradford 4/24/1996 09 yrs.
Louis Robinson 4/23/1997 08 yrs.
Jerry Embree 4/26/2000 05 yrs.
LODGE NEWS
Last month was about as busy at it gets, Four new EA’s two new Master Masons, a new plural member and one district lodge hosted! Thanks to everyone who showed their support for our lodge and new members. We welcome Brothers Jeff Alloway and Wilson Revelle who were raised to the sublime degree of a Master Mason at a special communication on March 16. Bro. Wilson was recently initiated and almost immediately learned his catechism, showed up at all the meetings he could participate in and voluntarily started replacing the matting and glass on all the old Past Masters pictures with UV glass and acid free paper. He has also been at every function we’ve had since he was initiated! Bro. Jeff Alloway has been a big supporter of Germanfest since he was initiated and looks forward to learning our mysteries. We heartily welcome both to our lodge and encourage them to participate as much as possible. It looks like Bro. Wilson won’t need too much of that encouragement!
Around 1995 there were three brothers from Denver Lodge #5 that were so impressed by our degree work that they decided they wanted to become plural members of our lodge. Through a miss communication with our Grand Lodge, after their petitions had been received, they were disallowed to become members because of state boundaries. Now that our Grand Lodge has wisely removed that barrier two of them are now members! W. Bobby Barth moved here a few years back and became eligible to join and now Bro, William “Bill” Schotts is also a member. He was born in New Orleans and holds Germania dear to his heart and is extremely happy that he was able to finally become a member. He even traveled from Denver to attend our installation banquet! Although he won’t be able to make many meetings he will be always be here in heart. Welcome Bro. Bill; it’s been an unusual journey to your plural membership but perseverance always pays off in the end!
One of our duties as Master Masons is to fraternize with the brethren wherever you find yourselves around the world. This was my recently duty (pleasure) while visiting my cousin, Commander Lynne Kueck, in Okinawa Japan . I visited Okinawa Lodge #118, chartered by the Grand Lodge of the Philippines . Our W.M. was very interested in the state of Masonry in Okinawa because he was stationed there for three separate tours back in the 50’s through 70’s and a lodge member. I report that all is well and I was lucky enough to witness the 2 nd degree and be treated like visiting royalty. There are only two lodges left from the six that were there at time he was stationed there. One is chartered by the Grand Lodge of Japan and the other the Philipines. Both speak English and cater to military personnel although there are many Japanese Okinawans and others that are members. The lodge building that W.M. Holmes attended is gone. It was on land given back to the Japanese’s and they have demolished all building in that area.
~K.Kueck
Perpetual Membership
We are well on our way to filling out the new perpetual membership plaque. Three names have been added to it! Bro Tom Mason, Adam Schexnayder and Jacob Schexnayder have all applied for perpetual membership. If you are interested give me a call. The cost is $1,000 cash or five annual installments of $226. It’s based on the price of dues and is sure to increase over time so the time to buy is now. The cost for a memorial perpetual membership is $240. This gives us 29 perpetual memberships and one memorial.
TRESTLE BOARD
Wednesday, April 13 – 7:00 official visit by Grand Master
Wednesday, April 27 – 7:00 p.m. regular meeting FC degree
Saturday, May 7 – Crawfish Boil – 4:00 p.m. - $10 per person (please RSVP so we can order the correct amount of crawfish)
Wednesday, May 11 – 7:00 p.m. PAST MASTERS NIGHT – Degree Night
Wednesday, May 25 – 7:00 p.m. regular meeting EA degree
Wednesday, September 28 – 7:00 official visit Worthy Grand Matron
Sat. Nov. 12 - Germanfest
MESSAGE FROM THE EAST
Brothers:
Our crawfish boil will be on the Saturday before Mothers day, May 7th. The cost will be $10.00 per person and will start at 4PM (16:00hrs.)
I want to have a Past Master night on the 11th of May (our 161st birthday is the 4th) BUT I also want you Past Masters who can come join us, I would like to put a degree on that night filling the chairs with all of you.
LET EITHER MYSELF OR THE SECRETARY KNOW IF YOU CAN COME.
WM Reed Holmes, PM Secretary Joe Kueck
(504) 454-6666 (504)737-6767
The house committee is meeting monthly to decide our next major renovation project to tackle.
When the grand Master (MW Harold Ballard) visits us the 13th of April it will be an open meeting and I would like to see as many widows and EA's come to the lodge that night. It will be especially interesting for the new brothers who have never witnessed the reception of the Grand Master.
This is an Invitation to our older brothers who haven’t been out in a long time to pay us a visit.
~Reed Holmes, PM/WM
WHAT IS WRONG WITH ONE DAY ALL THE WAY?
What is right with our traditional methods?
(Copied from a Masonic Internet Site)
♦The harder we have to struggle for something, the more precious it becomes. Somehow, in sacrificing, we prove to ourselves that what we're seeking is valuable. This holds true when we're pursuing membership.
♦Sacrifice locks commitment. As people strive to make it through rigorous selection standards, and work to prove their worthiness, they persuade themselves that being a part of the group matters.
♦Initiation rites - like high walls and narrow gates of entry - build commitment to the group through making acceptance hard to come by. Being allowed to join becomes something special. An achievement. A privilege. And it creates a sense of exclusiveness.
♦Belonging doesn't count much if almost anybody can drift in or drift out of your group at will. If it's easy to join up, then leave and return, only to leave again, commitment can be hard to find.
Initiation rites also create a common bond of experience that unites all who make it through the ordeal. A strong sense of "we-ness" comes from having gone through a common struggle. This identification with the group feeds commitment.
♦Finally, stiff criteria for admission cause the weak-hearted to deselect themselves. They opt out after weighing the costs. For them, the rights of membership aren't worth going through the rites of Initiation. The benefit? People with low commitment never get inside.
♦The greater the personal investment in getting accepted, the more one builds a stake in the organization. This means you should make membership a big deal. Let people pay a price to join. That guarantees commitment at the outset, and also makes it easier to build commitment later on.
♦Make membership hard to come by, and commitment comes naturally.
If there is any disagreement with this article please send in reply for publication .
MORE ON DOGS Sent in by Bro. John Markley
A man and his dog were walking along a road. The man was enjoying the scenery, when it suddenly occurred to him that he was dead. He remembered dying, and that the dog walking beside him had been dead for years. He wondered where the road was leading them. After a while, they came to a high, white stone wall along one side of the road. It looked like fine marble. At the top of a long hill it was broken by a tall arch that glowed in the sunlight. When he was standing before it he saw a magnificent gate in the arch that looked like Mother of Pearl , and the street that led to the gate looked like pure gold. He and the dog walked toward the gate, and as he got closer, he saw a man at a desk to one side. When he was close enough, he called out, "Excuse me, where are we?" "This is Heaven, sir," the man answered. "Wow! Would you happen to have some water?" the man asked. Of course, sir. Come right in, and I'll have some ice water brought right up." The man gestured, and the gate began to open. "Can my friend," gesturing toward his dog, "come in, too?" the traveler asked. "I'm sorry, sir, but we don't accept pets." The man thought a moment and then turned back toward the road and continued the way he had been going with his dog.
After another long walk, and at the top of another long hill, he came to a dirt road which led through a farm gate that looked as if it had never been closed. There was no fence. As he approached the gate, he saw a man inside, leaning against a tree and reading a book. "Excuse me!" he called to the reader. "Do you have any water?" "Yeah, sure, there's a pump over there". The man pointed to a place that couldn't be seen from outside the gate. "Come on in." "How about my friend here?" the traveler gestured to the dog. "There should be a bowl by the pump." They went through the gate, and sure enough, there was an old fashioned hand pump with a bowl beside it. The traveler filled the bowl and took a long drink himself, then he gave some to the dog. When they were full, he and the dog walked back toward the man who was standing by the tree waiting for them. "What do you call this place?" the traveler asked. "This is Heaven," he answered. "Well, that's confusing," the traveler said. "The man down the road said that was Heaven, too." "Oh, you mean the place with the gold street and pearly gates? Nope. That's Hell." "Doesn't it make you mad for them to use your name like that?" "No. I can see how you might think so, but we're just happy that they screen out the folks who'll leave their best friends behind."
Want to join the New Orleans Scottish Rite?
If you're not already a Scottish Rite Mason, now is the time to consider becoming one. The one-day Spring Reunion where new Scottish Rite candidates receive the 4th through 32nd Degrees will be held on Saturday, May 14, 2005 , so you have a bit of time to get your petition filled out and money arranged. The New Orleans Valley of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite (Southern Jurisdiction) is the oldest active Scottish Rite body in the United States . For more information on becoming a 32nd Degree Mason, contact me, Klaus “Joe” Kueck P.M. Secretary.
Want to join the fun branch of Masonry?
The shrine spring ceremonial will be held April 23. The shrine is the largest philanthropy in the world and supports 12 hospitals for burn and orthopedic patients under 18 years of age. None of these hospitals have a billing department an all services are provided free. They also have the best equipment and doctor’s money can obtain. Shriners have also been known to have a good party once in a while.
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