| Los Altos Lodge No. 712: | Last Updated on August 23, 2002 |
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August, and the time of year for family vacation, is here.
July has been a very busy month.
With July 1, 2002 being a Monday our stated meeting caught a few people off guard. "Was it really already July?" Before the meeting began Wor. Dan McDaniel presented a Golden Veteran's Award (50 year pin) to Bro Harold Hughes. For various reasons, this presentation was way overdue. Look for another 50 year pin to be presented in September.
Also at our stated meeting we further discussed and decided on the design for our own "Los Altos Lodge 25 yr. pins". A Brother has graciously offered to donate the required funds (approximately $550 total). If anyone else would like to contribute half, their name could be added to the name of the fund. Please contact me or Bro Weyers with any questions.
The Los Altos Art & Wine Festival took place on July 13, 14. Once again the Lodge had a booth for Masonic information. The festival was moderately well attended.
Thanks to all of you who volunteered to man the booth, talk about Masonry and give tours of the lodge room. A very special thanks to Brother Lou Orozco who volunteered for the entire time on BOTH DAYS, truly service above and beyond the call of duty. Several people were interested in Freemasonry, a few in joining, and even a few prospective members for Los Altos Lodge No. 712.
On July 15th we conferred the 3rd degree on Brother Craig Schoonover. Congratulations Brother Craig, and welcome to the Lodge. If you haven't had the privilege of speaking with him, please introduce yourself.
My thanks go out to all those who took part in the degree as well as those who took time from their schedule to come fill the important role of sideliner. I expect to be voting on an application for membership in August. We will probably be conferring the 1st degree on August 19. Please come and show your support.
IMPORTANT!! We still need volunteers for the following events (please call me if you can help): Saturday, October 12, 9 AM. - 1 PM: Kids ID booth at the Oak school walkathon (6 people needed) September 17, tri-lodge US Constitutional Observance program: This is the second event this year we are sharing with our neighboring lodges of Palo Alto Roller, and Mt. View DeAnza. Hope to see you in August.
Fraternally,
Robert Lake
Master
June was a quiet month at Lodge. We've been preparing to confer the third degree on July 15th to Brother Craig Schoonover. We've also been assembling Brethren to man the Masonic information booth at the Los Altos Art & Wine festival, Saturday and Sunday July 13th & 14th. I hope you had a chance to attend one or both of these events.
At the end of June and extending into July, I had the fortunate opportunity to go camping in Northern California for 10 days. We set up our tent trailer, dug a pit toilet, and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves in the warm waters of the lake (It's a secret location) ;>). My wife's (Jill) uncle has a ranch near Elk Creek, CA. and it has been a family tradition as long as I've been around to go to the ranch and relax...sometimes work. We found a nice cool stream to swim, built a dam 2 feet high out of rocks, raised the water level an additional foot and sat in lawn chairs in the stream. We were very content.
We saw wild boar, deer, king snakes, turkey vultures, bald eagles, and a pack of coyotes yelped nearby in the early morning light, water skied, kayaked, rode 4-wheel ATVs, and swam, swam, swam. To top it all off, I caught a 10" bass, not a 'keeper' but still a catch! I was sent this little story by a friend. I hope you enjoy it.
Mother-Of-The-Bride
Jennifer's big formal wedding was fast approaching and she was delighted to hear that her Mom, Sheila, emerging from a nasty divorce, had finally found the perfect mother-of-the-bride dress.
Two days later, she was shocked to learn that her new young stepmother, Fawn, had purchased the same dress. She asked her stepmother to buy another dress since her Mom had already altered her purchase. Fawn refused.
After two more weeks of frustrating shopping, Sheila then found a dress that was not as nice as the first, but would serve.
When asked by a friend what she would do with her original dress, she grinned and replied, "I'm wearing it to the rehearsal dinner!"
[Continued from the July Westerly Wind]
In the higher symbolism of the lodge, the moon has always been particularly identified with the Senior Warden in the West, thus following the Egyptian tradition associating the moon with this direction. This reference also corresponds to the recitation of the Senior Warden's duties in the lodge (A t s i i t W a t c o t d...).
Some Masonic philosophers have found this to be a fitting parallel for as the light of the moon is a mere reflection of the greater light of the sun, so the Senior Warden, the officer associated with the Doric pillar of Strength, is intended to be a reflection of the "light" of the Worshipful Master who is associated with the Ionic pillar of Wisdom. It is thus particularly significant that the messenger of the Senior Warden within the lodge is the Junior Deacon who, as his jewel, wears the square and compasses enclosing the moon.
There is one other strong association of the moon with Masonry which in many ways is more meaningful than all of the above. In the early eighteen hundreds when Masonry in Vermont was still a new venture, the Green Mountain State was a wild and unsettled place. It is difficult for us to imagine the thoughts and feelings of a nineteenth century Vermont Mason stepping into the bitter cold of a winter night after a lodge meeting to pursue his travel homeward. For him, a trip of several miles at night after a lodge meeting was a major undertaking where even the task of finding one's way was formidable. For this reason, many of these early lodges in Vermont and other jurisdictions adopted the custom of holding their meetings during the week of the full moon. Hence, these lodges became referred to as "Moon Lodges."
Following the phases of the moon was no trouble at all for the agrarian folk of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and the brilliant "lesser light," provided a beacon that guided our elder brethren homeward along the dirt roads and beaten pathways of early Vermont. Thus, in 1817, 26 of the 40 lodges in Vermont were "moon Lodges," with the bulk of the others being located in areas of higher population and presumably better lighting.
But alas, as with so many customs of old the advent of modern society and its technology has slowly driven the Moon Lodge to the status of a quaint anachronism. The invention of the automobile and street lighting together with the general decline of agriculture made the setting of lodge meetings by the phases of the moon, rather than on a fixed day, a nuisance without purpose. Thus by 1979, of the 98 lodges working in the State of Vermont, only 8 still set their meetings by the phase of the moon.
Hopefully, the few Moon Lodges left in Vermont will not surrender this old custom to base convenience. They serve as a reminder to modern Masons travelling home by the light of the moon that they are in essence following in the footsteps of their elder brethren for whom the moon was a real as well as symbolic light. {Many years ago the MSA had a digest entitled "Moon Lodges." It is now out of print but we thought an excerpt from the minutes of a "Moon Lodge" might be of interest. The following excerpt is also amusing and we hope you enjoy it!} --Editor—
Walter H. Amende, Secretary of Cassia Lodge, No. 14, writes: Cassia Lodge, No. 14, U.D., held its first meeting at Albion, Idago Territory, November 25, 1882, and received its charter in September, 1883.
Albion is one of the oldest towns in Idaho and in early days was a way station on the stage route from Kelton, Utah, to Boise. At the time Cassia Lodge was organized, its jurisdiction covered a wide territory extending from 80 to 100 miles in all directions. The members having to come such long distances by horseback or wagon, was the reason for setting the meeting Saturday nights on or before the full moon.
One of the lodge's main social events each year in those early days was a dance or "Grand Ball." One such affair took place on February 14, 1887, and must have been quite an event, judging from the following Committees appointed: Arrangements, 3 members; Music, 3 members; Floor Committee, 4 members; Invitations, 6 members; Reception, 12 members. Entire families came to these dances. One time, as a joke, someone changed the coats and blankets on all the babies present. Most of the mothers picked up what they thought was their bundle and did not discover the mistake until they got home, possibly as far as 30 miles away. They all had to come back to Albion and find out whose youngster they had; quite a mix-up.
One time there was a candidate for the M.M. degree who did not have his F.C. proficiency. Rather than have him go to a long distance home and wait till the next meeting, the members voted to waive the test and give him his M.M. degree that evening.
Another time, in the long ago, a member joined under an assumed name and after a regular Masonic trial, it was voted by the lodge that he must take all of the degrees over again under his right name.
It did not state in the minutes of that meeting if he had to pay the fees again.
Fraternally,
Richard G. Weyers
Senior Warden
Monday July 15, 2002 was a true red letter day at Los Altos Lodge. It was the day brother Craig E. Schoonover had looked forward to, and worked toward throughout the time of his first and second Masonic degrees.
Finally it was happening, and as he arrived at the lodge that night, one could sense the anticipation in the air. Not only for him, but also for the officers who had so looked forward to the event.
Brother Craig was born on May 7th, 1961 in Pekin Illinois.
Brother Craig attended Wilson Grade School, and Washington Junior High where he graduated in 1979. Continuing his education he attended Pekin Community High School and graduated there from in 1979. After graduation he joined the U. S. Army Reserve. During this time of service as an Army reservist, he continued his education by attending Illinois Central College. Then in August of 1982 he joined the U.S. Navy and was assigned duty as an Aviation Electrician's Mate 2nd class at VP-9 Moffett Field, California. It was during this period of service that he once again had a chance to complete his education, and he did so be attending De Anza College in Cupertino where he earned his AA degree.
After being honorably discharged from the service in August of 1986 he found employment as an instrumentation technician at U.T.C. C.S.D, and Spacesystems Loral where he also worked as a plant equipment mechanic and then followed that up as a facilities mechanic at a Corporation where he presently continues to be employed.
He is a long time resident of Sunnyvale where he enjoys family life with his lady Tess Lantoria, and their buetyful little two year old daughter Veronica, who was born on March 22, 2000.
Welcome to Los Altos Lodge Brother Craig! We look forward to sitting in lodge with you soon.
This month our Stated Meeting falls on the 5th, and many of us come to lodge after a very busy day in the business world. It seems we are not alone. August 5th has been a busy day throughout history. Just look at some of the things that took place on this day in history.
In 1583 Gilbert claimed Newfoundland, and established the 1st English colony in North America. Then on this day in 1749, Brother Thomas Lynch, famed Masonic signer of the Declaration of Independence was born. In 1846 the Oregon country was divided between the US & Britain at the 49th parallel, and in 1858, Cyrus W Field completed laying the 1st transatlantic telegraph cable on this day. The US levied its 1st income tax on this day in 1861. It was a giant 3% of all incomes over $800.
1884 saw the cornerstone for the Statue of Liberty being laid on Bedloe’s Island in New York harbor, and we also find a world famous movie director named John Huston (A Master Mason) was born in Nevada Missouri in 1906. His many great works included "The African Queen," and “Chinatown.”
1923 was a red-letter year for America, when a young man named Henry Sullivan became the 1st American in history to swim the English Channel. Many of us will also remember those wonderful Sunday newspaper comic strips of our youth, and in 1924 Harold Gray brought us his fantastically successful comic strip called “Little Orphan Annie,”
Many other exciting things happened on this day. For example, it was on this day in 1926 that the famed Houdini remained in a coffin under water for over an hour. The world was thrilled, and he was a new national hero. This is also the day when moon walker, and Brother Mason, Neil Armstrong was born in 1930.
In 1936 at the Nazi sponsored Berlin Olympics, another American surprised the world when Jesse Owens won his 3rd Olympic medal. It was also on this day back in 1945 that America dropped the Atom Bomb on Hiroshima assuring an end to WWII, and saving millions of American lives.
Finally, in 1957 we all danced and swayed to the music of “The American Bandstand,” as we watched it for the first time on nationwide network TV (ABC).
Yes, today has been a real busy day, and with all that work accomplished, is it any wonder that this year Monday August 5th is the first day of the National Smile Week? – Editor
Brother Jack L. Shoenhair passed to membership in the Eternal Grand Lodge above on July 19, 2002.
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