| Los Altos Lodge No. 712: | Last Updated on May 25, 2004 |
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Greetings from the east. April was truly a busy month. We initiated this years second Entered Apprentice on the nineteenth. Welcome Jeffery Altera! Jeff is a wonderful young fellow, working and completing his college education. He and I attended the Entered Apprentice Evening lecture sponsored by the Northern California Research Lodge at Sir Francis Drake Lodge No. 376 in South San Francisco. A very enjoyable and enlightening evening. Among the speakers was a representative from the Grand Lodge of Denmark and V. W. John L. Cooper III, PM, Grand Secretary of the GL of F&AM of California. Jeff was surprised at many of the things discussed and is eager to learn more of his new fraternity.
Very impressive is what I want to report about the Job’s Daughter Initiation I attended. On May first, the Mt. View Job’s Daughter Bethel had an initiation at the Palo Alto Lodge. It was interesting, energetic and very moving. Job’s Daughters are a wonderful organization, so if you know of any young lady between the ages of 11 and 19, please guide them towards this wonderful institution. I may try to have these young ladies have an Initiation at Los Altos before the year is out.
On April 27 we held the try-lodge Public School Presentation at the Mt. View Lodge. It was a splendid evening. There were representatives from the three school districts. The finger food provided was excellent and worthy of a full dinner. The speakers enlightened us with memorable moments in public school program. I presented Mary Ellen Lynch, the Los Altos School District teacher of the year with our award. Included in this TB is her thank you letter.
We have four officers that will attend the Lodge Management Certification Program at Oakland Scottish Rite Center on June 12. The tools and training provided by this program are essential for lodges in this modern era. The courses are designed for lodge officers, committee members, trustees and hall association directors. If any other brothers are interested, please contact me so that we can arrange for your attendance. The lodge voted to pay for qualifying members to attend.
At our May stated meeting we had the honor of presenting Ed Clark with his Golden Veterans Award. Wor. Robert Rowen, Assistant Grand Lecturer was on hand to make the presentation. Many friends spoke glowingly of the dedicated service Ed has performed for the Masonic Order and especially for his outstanding many years with the Order of DeMolay. Congratulations Ed. Sorry we were a couple of years late in giving you this honor, but many of us are happy for this delay, had the presentations been on time, we would not have been able to learn of the model, worthy of imitation that you have set for the craft.
Still on my calendar for things to do this year is a trip to our Masonic Home in Union City. I am hopeful that we can have this visit after September. As soon as we set a firm date we will be contacting all our local brothers and sweethearts to see if they are interested. If we have enough we may rent a 15 passenger van or two. The date will be settled by the July Trestleboard.
Our summer season is well on it’s way so mark your calendar for the picnic on July 31. It will be in Shoup Park in Los Altos. The lodge will provide refreshments and meat dishes, we will each bring a side dish. The festivities will be from 10 AM to 2 PM. Lets make this a truly Masonic family affair, and have a great turn out.
I know it is still early in the year but let us not forget that September is Constitutional Observance month. The brethren again voted to participate with the Constitutional Observance dinner and presentations to be held at the San Jose Masonic Center. The date has been tentatively set for September 3. It appears as if the dinner cost is to be $12 per person. Please join in on this wonderful evening of fellowship, relaxation, education, and entertainment. Make your reservation early. Let me or Dave Kimball take your reservation.
To the wives and sweethearts of the lodge. Please come in June for the Ladies program. I have a Registered Nurse, Jerrie Molteni who will speak on what is an ‘Advance Directive. This Directive’. This directive covers all the aspects of what a senior wants in case of a life threatening emergency. Jerrie will also attempt to answer any questions you have about senior care. See the center page for more details. Tell your friends and bring them along. If they wish to come for dinner, make a reservation (stuffed pork chops are good!).
To the brethren, at the June meeting we will be asking for your volunteering to man the booths at the Los Altos Craft and Wine Fair (July 10/11). Our stated meeting in July will be the Monday following the fair so we must get you signed up in June.
Fraternally,
Ernest Casilo
Master
Greetings from the West Brethren, as I mentioned last month, I was operated on at the Palo Alto VA Hospital on May 19th, and am now recovering from that adventure. While the pain is still quite noticeable, it is now tolerable, and I am informed I should be able to return to lodge next month.
Thank you one and all for the many wonderful cards, letters and phone calls, they arrived just when they were needed most. I am overwhelmed by the attention and support I have received during my illness, Brother Larry Fagan and his wife Joan, Brother Maurice Dunbar, Worshipful Master Ernie Castillo, and Brother David Kimball, all saw to it that my wife Jeanna was able to get to work and back home while I was laid up. Jeanna does not drive, and with out their help we would have had real problems.
Brother Larry Fagan visited me during my recovery, and always arrived with good cheer and a pun for me to ponder. Brother David was always there at my side when I needed him. He came over to my house every day, and sat at my bedside while I could not get out of bed. When I had finally recovered enough to begin walking a few steps he was there to help me once again. He served as my memory in taking my pain pills on a regular basis and seeing to it that I ate on time. In short, he was ever cheerful and a real friend indeed. I do not know what I would have done without him, and I am sure when I say he represented our Lodge in the best traditions of Brotherly Love, Relief, and Truth. Thank you Brother David.
(Brother Sloat)
You will recall that last month we ended our dissertation explaining Brother Sloat’s return to the east after his great adventure in California. However Brother Sloat was not alone in his great adventures. At his side he could call upon another contributing Master Mason, his Ship's Purser, Brother Rodman M. Price.
Brother Price was not only the Purser but also stood as good consul for the Commodore on many occasions. Joseph Henry Jackson, of the San Francisco Chronicle, in his introductory notes to a Rodman M. Price letter addressed to Thomas O. Larkin in 1848, and later published by the Book Club of California, throws some new light on the California career of Price and is, in part, as follows:
"Rodman M. Price was born in New Jersey in 1816. He was educated at Lawrenceville, and Princeton in that State. He came to California in 1846 as Purser on the V. S. Cyane, under Commodore Sloat. According to his statement he had confidential instructions from President Polk, and Secretary of Navy Bancroft. (I am further informed that both Polk and Bancroft were active members of "The Craft.") The precise nature of these instructions he never divulged, saying that when Sloat, fearful of exceeding his authority, hesitated about taking Monterey, it was he who persuaded the Commodore to proceed post haste.
It seems that after successfully entering the harbor, Commodore Sloat hesitated 5 days before actually landing. As Price told the story, he routed Sloat out of bed, and talked to him in his cabin until long after midnight by which hour his superior officer, tired pacing up, and down in his nightgown, finally exclaimed, "Mr. Price, you have convinced me, I will hesitate no longer!"
The next morning, July 7th, Sloat sent Price and a contingent of 250 fully armed officers, seamen, and marines ashore, and at 10:20 am Rodman Price read the proclamation announcing that henceforward The California Territories would be a portion of the United States, Ten minutes later the American Flag was raised before the Customhouse to a chorus of 'Cheers afloat and ashore' and a salute of 21-guns from the Savannah and the Cyane."
~ From Alcalde To Congress And On into History ~
Price was made Alcalde, thus becoming the first American to exercise the judicial function in California under the occupation. Later he carried dispatches to President Polk, who asked him to draw up a report on California. Price was then sent back to California as Special Naval Agent.
Later in 1849, at the age of thirty, Price served as a member of the San Francisco Ayuntamiento (town council). He was also elected a delegate to the State Constitutional Convention at Monterey from the San Francisco district. From this, he apparently developed a yen for politics, but his California political ambitions were cut short by his defeat in running for Congress during the 1849 elections.
In 1850, however, he returned to his native state, New Jersey, and lost no time in entering the political arena. He served in the United States Congress from 1851 to 1853, and was elected Governor of that state from 1854 to 1857, and in 1861 he was a delegate to the Peace Congress.
Price was at all times a staunch friend of public education, and was instrumental in the establishment of a state normal school in New Jersey, and also was very much interested in the development of a state military school in that state.
The early beginnings of the Masonic life of Price are clothed in uncertainty. It is not known where he became a Mason, though on December 13, 1853, he affiliated with Union Lodge No. 11 of Orange, New Jersey. Levi Stowel, while trying to organize California Lodge No. 1, wrote of holding a preliminary meeting in Price's house. Sherman says that Price's name appears as a member of a committee soliciting subscriptions to a joint stock company for the purpose of erecting in San Francisco a building to be occupied as a Masonic Lodge room. This notice, on August 23, 1849, was the first Masonic notice printed in California.
~Before God and Our Country ~
Masonry has always taught of duty, honor and country, of import of service, and of brotherly love among mankind. So also was it with Brother Sloat. On the morning of his most historic action, he still remained true to his Masonic obligations. His orders of the day steadfastly spoke of the quiet dignity of mankind, of humility in leadership and of a conqueror's duty, and service to those of lesser fortune.
In his General Order for the day he wrote in part as follows:
"We are now about to land on the territory of Mexico, with whome we are at war. To strike their flag and hoist our own in place of it is our duty .....not only to take California, but to preserve it afterwards..... at all hazards. To accomplish this, it is of the first importance to cultivate the good opinions of the inhabitants whom we must reconcile. I scarcely consider it necessary for me to caution American seamen and marines against the detestable crimes of plundering and maltreating un-offending inhabitants. Finally let me entrust you one and all not to tarnish our hope of bright success by any act that shall be ashamed to acknowledge before God and our Country."
And so on these great and honorable words, Brother Sloat took possession of this new land for his country, and doing so with honor stepped firmly into the pages of history, and the hopes of our hearts forever. Today of course we are well aware of the consequences of that significant event. Without question it has influenced changes throughout the world even until this very day.
The above enumerated dates and events have intricately woven together to produce the fascinating textured fabric of both California and Masonic History.
It was at High Noon on January 10, 1847 when General John Charles Fremont accepted the surrender of the Armed Forces of Mexico from Andres Pico at a small Cahuenga Pass ranch house. The Mexican American War was over as far as the people living in the area which is today called California was concerned. However in other areas the fighting raged on, and the outcome would not be determined for more than a year. When at last the war was finally brought to a formal close, it happened in a small, almost totally unknown, remote Mexican village named Villa La Guadalupe Hidalgo.
The treaty which was signed there, and which would henceforth become world famous, was known as "The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo." Its chief American negotiator was one Nicholas P. Trist, and the date and time of the event was High Noon on February 2, 1848.
These historical facts are even more interesting when we notice that both the Cahuenga and the Hidalgo events are said to have taken place at High Noon, and that in both cases the Americans in charge are said to have been Freemasons. Nickolas P. Trist was the chief negotiator of that famous treaty, and was assigned there as a direct representative of President James K. Polk, himself a prominent Freemason of his day.
This intriguing chain of events was concluded with the above mentioned treaty roughly establishing the present day boundary between our country and that of Mexico, and added 600,000 square miles of territory to the United States. (See map below) The new territory, while referenced in its entirety by Mexico as "The Territory of Alta (Northern) California," was in fact as mentioned above, in addition to our present day California, an area which included all of Nevada, Utah, Arizona, and New Mexico, most of present day Colorado and Texas, and small parts of Oklahoma and Kansas.
Fraternally,
Brother Luis J. Orozco, II
Senior Warden
My Brothers,
It is with great sadness that I must inform you that my son, James lost his girlfriend, Nancy Leat, on May 6th. It had been 3 1⁄2 years since she was diagnosed with viral cardio myopathy, an infection that causes the heart to swell and which adversely affects the heart valves. When diagnosed, she was living on only a 15% heart function and it was unknown whether she would live or not. With constant medical care and medication she was improving and had achieved a heart function efficiency rate closer to 30% at her last check-up. However, on May 5th, she collapsed while in a Geography class at SJSU and passed at around 7AM the following morning in the San Jose Medical Center ICU. My heart goes out to my son and to Nancy’s family. She was only 22 years old.
In keeping with my editorials, I will undoubtedly arouse some members when I say that Freemasonry must look deep within itself if we are to survive fraternity. With the current format now required for operating our lodges, I believe we will continue to struggle for new membership and thus continue to experience declining overall membership due to attrition.
In my opinion, the areas that need to be addressed are as follows:
1.Individual time constraints:
2.Overwhelming requirements;
3.Disharmony within our lodges;
4.Dilution of active Masonic membership by the existence of too many concurrent bodies; and
5.A lack of public presence and recognition.
As I talk with our brethren, especially our younger members, it is clear that the requirements for active participation are so extreme, that members are reluctant to attend lodge at all. The effects are clearly evident. Some of the symptoms are:
So for this article, lets look at the first area of ‘Individual Time Constraints’ and I’ll make a few suggestions on how I think we can correct its effects.
I first joined Masonry in 1979 at the age of 25. Unlike many new young members, I was not a DeMolay, but joined to be nearer my father who had become re-active after my mother’s death. At 25, I had many plans on what I needed to do with my future, all requiring extensive time allotments. But as a mason, I also wished to experience Masonry to its fullest What I got, and as many new masons also experience, were requests for more than a young member is prepared to give. In the lodge’s zealousness to gain my presence as an active member, I was overwhelmed with requests for my time. Coaching, taking an office, degree work, serving on one or more of our numerous commitees, helping out at the dinners, and while we’re at it, how about a seat on the Board of Directors? Sure, we can all say ‘No’ to any request, but when apologizing at each meeting for not accepting additional duties becomes a way of life, the fun quickly leaves. When the fun dissapates, so does the desire to attend. And that causes decreased attendance. The answer is clear. We must BACK OFF and allow each member to be active at their own level, without pressure or constant requests. We must, each one of us, realize that we all joined Freemasonry for different and very personal reasons. As such, we must honor each member’s desires. Only then can the fun be put back into the lodge for all members, and the activity level we all desire be achieved.
But how can we maintain the lodge and see that all the requirements for proper operation are met you might ask? Well, that is getting into the Overwhelming Requirements part which I’ll address next month. So stay tuned.
Have a great June.
Fraternally,
Jim Gable,
Junior Warden
This year’s recipient for our $1000.00 College Scholarship Award was Negin Yazdani. She is an excellent student who did her senior project on teaching. The Award was presented on the evening of May 19th at Eagle Theater in the Los Altos High School.
April 27, 2004
Dear Ernest,
I would like to thank you and the other members of the Los Altos Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons for honoring me this evening. I was delighted to be a part of your program to support public schools. I feel fortunate and proud to have been a parent - and for the last 20 years - a teacher, in the Los Altos School District. I feel our district is committed to educating the “whole child” in a stimulating and nurturing environment.
Thank you very much for the generous monetary award which I will put to use to enhance my classroom for my students.
Sincerely,
Mary Ellen Lynch
Our June Ladies Program will be on Health issues for the elderly. Learn about writing a Advance Directive. Our presenter will be Mrs. Jerri Molteni, RN, Director of Nursing Practices at Kaiser Permanente. She will speak on ‘What is an Advance Directive’; What an Advance Directive does; When is an Advance Directive crucial; Preparing an Advance Directive and more.
Also covered will be Emergency Medical Services, pre hospital ‘Do not Resuscitate Form’; the California Power of Attorney for Health Care and other topics important to seniors. Jerri has been an RN for over 25 years, working in all aspects of nursing. After the presentation she will be open for questions and answers.
Remember May is Masonic Home Endowment Month. Please be gernerous in your donations to the Masonic Home.
You now send your donations directly to:
OFFICE OF PHILANTHROPY
1111 California Street
San Francisco CA. 94108
Annual Barbeque by the Paradise Park Men's Club
Event:
Wed. June 23
Annual Barbeque
Hosted By:
Paradise Park Men's Club
Location:
Men's Club (Picnic Grounds) 84 Paradise Park Santa Cruz, CA 95060
Time: 11:30 AM
Cost: $10.00 per person
Agenda:
11:30 AM Social
12:00 PM Lunch
Invited:
Masons (Entered Apprentices, Fellow Crafts, Master Masons), their ladies, families and friends.
Dress: Casual
Contact:
J. R. Reynolds 117 Paradise Park Santa Cruz, CA 95060
(831) 423-9583 (H)
The following events are scheduled for this year. Some of the dates are tentative others are in place.
Firm dates:
July 31. - Los Altos/ Valley Star OES annual Picnic 10 AM to 2 PM at Shoup Park in Los Altos. The picnic coordinator is David Anderson. As usual it will be a pot luck with the Lodge providing drinks and meat dishes and Valley Star providing accessories and set up.
August 28 - Hold a third degree in Paradise Park in the moring followed by free BBQ lunch at the park.
September 3 - Constitutional Observance Event in SJMC.
Tentative:
Roll Call night on Sept. 20.
Visit to Masonic Home.
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