The Official Publication of the Audubon Park Lodge #272

 

September 2006
Volume 8, Number 7

From the East ...

Another summer has passed, and the Darkness is over! Hopefully a little coolness will follow for our Stated, 7 p.m. September the 13th. Hmmmm Wednesday the 13th has to mean good luck! There have been several changes / repairs made in the Lodge, the grass is getting greener, and we get to reacquaint ourselves with the Brethren we missed during the summer. 

This will also be step-up night, so come and see what is happening! We will be looking for a new Senior Deacon, Tyler and Chaplain. If you would like to volunteer, let me know, so it will cut down on the time and pleading on bended knee! As promised, the Junior Deacon (Rob Queen) will stay in his present place, as requested. If there is ANY position you would be interested in, please let me know. By becoming involved in the Lodge, you add to the life and spark of it. 

Unfortunately, we have lost 2 Master Masons, Sam and Ray, who have traveled to New York to continue their schooling. This summer we had 2 raisings, and 1 initiation for our Lodge. Be sure to say hello, and welcome with a Masonic handshake Brother Gary Syme (pronounced Simm). He works at the VA Hospital on Assembly, where we did the cornerstone dedication last year! 

We have in our midst the new District Deputy, VWB Chuck Young, and this will be his official visit. Hope I can remember what to call him at the correct time. Hopefully I will be able to do it, thanks to a year of prodding from RWB Doug Tucker when he was District Deputy and I was Senior Deacon! See you all in Lodge, and remember to invite a Shriner to Lodge!

Bill Wilson
Worshipful Master

 

From the West...

Hello again, already??  The age old question, where did the summer go?? My gutters are still not up, still have half cut up trees in my front yard, have not seen all the friends that we were to visit this summer and did not catch enough fish!!  Now the fall season is approaching us with new activities and I haven't finished the summer ones!!  

This past month I visited Manito Park Lodge, they put on a 1st degree, and then Oriental Lodge last week that was to put on a 3rd degree that turned into a practice as the candidate was unavailable.  This worked out okay as we all took this time to practice.  It was interesting to practice with another Lodge to observe their approach to the works.  

I hope this coming year that more members from Audubon Park Lodge will be able to visit other Lodges and either help protem or just be "side line" cheerleaders.  I know it was appreciated to have visitors at both of these degrees, their thanks was freely given.  I want to make a pledge to myself and to our Lodge that I will do more visitations this coming year and hopefully gain more Masonic Knowledge and Light.  

As we approach the fall season, I hope each one of us had the time this summer to go down that "unpaved road" and hopefully made a new friend or two and were able to absorb and enjoy some of the beauty that lies around us every day.

"Remember to share your smiles as you never know who might need one".

Bill Queen
Senior Warden

From the South...

The Lodge recognized WB Dean Whittier and his wife Vivian on their 50^th anniversary.  RWB Douglas Tucker presented greetings from the Grand Master and talked about events coming up.  The newly appointed Deputy to the Grand Master for district 27, VWB Chuck Young gave a report and shared information with the Lodge.  

This month’s family night is our annual Steak Feed.  Come; join us September 27, 2006 at 6:30 p.m. .. Get reacquainted with friends and lodge brothers that you have not seen since before summer.  Steaks will be provided by the lodge, bring a salad, side dish, or desert to share with all.   Hope to see everyone there.

In Other News...

From the Secretary's Desk ...

The long hot summer days are giving way to shorter cooler days.  On Labor Day we returned to Spokane from a R.V. Trip and it was 93, so maybe warmer days will be with us for a while.   

Within the walls of our Lodge we will pick up the Masters words and resume our Labors.    Please join us for our Stated Meeting 7pm on Sept. 13.  In a few months we will hold our elections and later our installation of Officers.  There are a number of positions we would like to fill.  Please let W.M. Bill Wil son know if you have an interest.  

In a few weeks Grand Lodge will send the dues for the coming year and I will be mailing these out.  Our updating of records has been completed.   Between Grand Lodge, Treasurer, Floyd Morse, and me as Secretary, we believe they are accurate.  However, we are unable to locate Brothers Clary and La Turner.  If any brother has any information they could share with us re these two brothers I would greatly appreciate it.   

Entertainment Books 2007 are in.  They provide great savings at many places.  They sell for $30.00 and we keep $6.00 for our fund.  If interested please let me know.

Fraternally Yours:

W.Br. Eric E. Berman

Audubon Park Masonic Building Association

Brothers, it has been a very short summer, but the members of your Temple Board have been relatively busy keeping up with projects around the Lodge.  Although we had hoped to have at least one work party other obligations on the part of the members kept that from becoming a reality.  On the bright side - WB Chet Echelbarger and Brother Bill Queen completed the task of putting a cork tack strip up all around the Dining Room. This new strip looks very nice and will allow renters to decorate without putting additional holes in the plaster or taping decorations.  

There have been a number of rentals where decorations were put up using the existing hooks and the new tack strip and the room looked very nice.  Weed control was a major task and twice the weeds along the curb on "A" Street were sprayed and cleaned up.  At the same time many cigarette butts and other trash was picked up. 

Brother Bill and WB Chet also removed the old storage cabinet from the downstairs store room.  It opens up the room quite a bit and they were able to put the cleaning supplies in the new cabinets installed earlier in the year. 

You will also note when you visit Lodge how nice and clean the downstairs windows are.  Our two housekeepers, Bev and Sheila spent a couple days thoroughly cleaning the windows inside and out.  You can actually see out the windows. 

We cancelled two Temple Board meetings due to lack of a quorum but still got the necessary business done.  One of the major items of unresolved business is scheduling a work party this fall.  There are still some cleaning necessary as well as other minor projects to be done.  Check future Pillars for the date of the next work party.  If you can help we can sure use your help!!

 

Fraternally, VWB Chuck Young

Temple Board Secretary

Audubon Park Masonic Foundation.

Remember watching "Westerns" and a herd of buffalo were spooked and stampeded.  A few in front lead the herd.  Wild eyed, those in the middle struggled to get a head of the one in front of it.  At times the spooking was an over reaction.   My observation: The safest position for any one member of the herd may have been towards the rear of the pack! 

Lead investors, at times, are spooked and those who follow the pack likewise overreact, and a stampede begins. Many things can cause this stampede. How or why do these pertain to Audubon Park Masonic Foundation, Temple Bldg. or Lodge; and to us as investors and consumers?  

Simply stated; they do.  The investors, the herd, react to good news, bad news and no news.    The leaders are out in front of the pack, which is afraid of being left behind.  We stayed in the rear of the pack hoping to pick up investments at bargain prices:  Remember the old investor’s motto: "Buy Low, Sell High". 

Audubon Park Lodge, Temple Bldg. and Foundation have a portion of the assets invested in various vehicles. The market values and income may vary as account balances and rates of return change.  We maintained our course, believing our investment policies are sound since Audubon Park Masonic Foundation is a long term investor. 

The purpose of the foundation remains the same: Raise an asset base of $250,000, manage the asset base for long term growth, and use a portion of the income for our Temple Bldg , Lodge, Youth Groups, and other charitable needs.  The foundation asset base, market value, has slightly declined as has its current rate of return.  The "long term strategy" of the foundation remains the same, "long term investing, and taking advantage of down cycles."   The Board of Directors will consider investing contributions received, very carefully, in quality technology issues.   

I will be forwarding my check to the foundation by the time you read this article. Your contribution would be greatly appreciated as well. 

Fraternally Yours:
WB Eric E. Berman, Sec-Treas. APMF
Email: eeberman@hotmail.co

The Pillars
Do you find them interesting? Are they relevant? Is there too little or too much information? Would you like to see something different? Should they be sent less often? Is email an option for you? Would just a post card listing the upcoming activities be adequate?

For many years the Lodge officers have struggled with the question of how we keep our Brothers informed in relation to the expense incurred doing so. Reviewing the budget and bring expenses in line with projected revenue, one of the items being discussed is the expense of printing and mailing the Pillars. W.M. Bill Wilson has taken under consideration several proposals. He may choose to change nothing or he may make minor or major changes. The Pillars are prepared and bulk mailed to some 200 addresses 10 times a year at a cost of about $141.00 an issue. The expense is approx one-fifth of the budget. The Lodge officers are very sensitive to the fact that many of our Brothers live miles from us. It may have been years since a Brother has had the opportunity to visit his Lodge, and the Pillars is the only contact he may have with us in Spokane. We want to make sure everyone still feels welcome and connected to our Lodge. Please take a moment and give us your opinion.

Famous Masons' Corner
Louis B. Mayer, (1885-1957), motion picture producer.  He was born in Russia and became a citizen of the U.S. in 1912.  He was a member of St. Cecile Lodge No. 568, N.Y. and a Shriner.

Masonic Quiz

Q:  What are the five orders of architecture?

A:  Doric, Ionic, Corinthian, Tuscan, and Composite.

 

Q:  What general symbol is used by Freemasonry?

A:  See the October issue of the Pillars for the answer.

Who do I talk to?
If you want something put into the Pillars or to contact the Lodge secretary:
Audubon Park Masonic Lodge #272
POB 9575
Spokane, WA 99209-9575

Secretary: W.Br. Eric E. Berman 509-328-2910 email: eeberman@hotmail.com
Pillars Editor: Br. Barry Rettkowski 509-928-0075 email: brettkow@mindspring.com

 

Officers 2005-2006

Worshipful Master     WB Bill Wilson

Senior Warden           B Bill Queen

Junior Warden           B Allan Jones

Treasure                    WB Floyd Morse

Secretary                   WB Eric Berman

Chaplain                    WB Chuck Young

Marshal                      B Robert McVicker

Senior Deacon            B Barry Rettkowski

Junior Deacon            B Rob Queen

Senior Steward -------

Junior Steward -------

Tyler                           B Bob Shives
Senior Grand Warden   RWB Douglas Tucker

 

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