Greetings My Brothers,
It’s hard to believe that we are approaching the end of our Masonic year. These last few weeks before our June 22nd Annual will be full of transition. The incoming officer line is already hard at work planning for the lodge’s annual communication and banquet, the steak fry to follow, and a very full upcoming year of Masonic activity. I'm mindful not to name our presumptive incoming Worshipful Master, Senior and Junior Wardens, as our elections are yet to occur. Yet, I am deeply encouraged that St Johns 1P will continue to benefit from our long-standing commitment to the progressive officer line.
The continuity of leadership from year to year is, to my mind, one of the most vital elements contributing to our Lodge's ongoing success. Despite our challenging year in this regard, I am heartened to know that those brothers who came to our lodge's aid in her moment of crisis will continue to serve in the best interest of the Craft for the coming years. Brethren, you should have high confidence that our lodge's current officer line is as strong as ever, and ready to continue in good service to the Craft.
As ever, we have been extremely busy. In April, we visited our Grand Master at his mother lodge, and traveled with our District Deputy Grand Master within the district. It was a tremendous honor to send off RW Stephan Saraidarian as he came to visit St Johns 1P for his final district visitation. We honor RW Stephan’s service to the districts on behalf of lodges throughout the jurisdiction, and wish him the very best as he ascends to the Grand Council at this month’s Grand Lodge Annual communication. The Grand Master and Grand Council were, as always, most welcome visitors to St Johns Lodge No 1 Providence, for this exceptional gathering of Masons.
Our annual visitation with Euclid Lodge No. 136 in Hasbrouck Heights, NJ was a great event, as ever. We traveled there to celebrate the 40th anniversary of this visitation. It was lovely to visit with our New Jersey brethren, and to hear stories about how this visitation was formed. May it continue to be a pillar of fraternal bonds between our lodges.
We held a delightful luncheon for our Special Ladies at the end of April, where we celebrated the lives of their departed husbands, our brothers, and listened to stories of Freemasonry from their perspectives. I was reminded, as always, just how valuable our spouses are to the work we do in the Craft. My wife Betsy will be first in line to remind anyone that she is the support structure behind everything I do in Freemasonry. It is right and good that we continue to support our Special Ladies after the passing of our brothers. The event was a pleasure, as
always.
In that vein, I wish to remind everyone about our big fundraising event, for which the flyer is included in this mailer. Kerrie Alexander, the widow of our Senior Deacon Scott Alexander, needs a great deal of support as she navigates life without Scott. One of the ways we can help her is to put on a fundraising event. I have solicited the help of our lodge officer spouses, namely my wife Betsy, Jaroen Gouge, and Jane Larrabee, who are driving this project. We will host a comedy show with dinner on May 30th at the Scottish Rite. There will be raffles, auctions, and sponsorship opportunities to raise money for Kerrie. Please plan to attend, and give generously towards this most worthy of causes!
Even as we plan this fundraiser and celebration of Scott’s life, we continue to process the deep grief which comes with the loss of our brother. Our winter plans were dramatically upended by his illness and passing, but as my JW likes to say, "semper gumby." By remaining in close contact and lovingly supporting each other's needs during this time, we were able to weather the initial storm, and successfully bring the lodge through to meeting its priorities. We are taking numerous steps to ensure Scott’s legacy will be enshrined as part of our lodge's ongoing story.
As inevitable as they are, the many transitions of this season continue to create anxiety for me. I mentioned this to W:. Bro Josh the other day, and he expressed curiosity at the thought. Very reasonably, should I not be excited to conclude this busy year, in lieu of all our successes and challenges? I am still working it out, but I think there’s comfort in believing you still have time to fix whatever needs fixing. When you know your time is short, and you can’t get to everything, well… that would make anyone anxious, right? That feels pretty human to me, and serves as a reminder that we should celebrate life every day, ever mindful that we do not know how or when our time will come to a close.
Fortunately, as I know that my time as Master is nearing its end, I will continue to give everything I have to St John's 1P, to make good with the time left to me. I will have more to say on this as we conclude our year, but let me start by expressing my deepest, most sincere gratitude. Serving my small part in the greater work of this lodge has been a privilege and an honor. Thank you for the opportunity. I’ll see you soon.
W∴Charles Jason Shealy
Worshipful Master, St Johns No 1 Providence
