Break-In and Arson at Pennsylvania Shrine Center

by Christopher Hodapp

A 72-year old man has been arrested for setting fire to a Shrine Center in Altoona, Pennsylvania, causing well over $130,000 in damages.

This site is sadly becoming a repository for stories of vandalism against the fraternity.

James Kaufman, 72

According to local TV station WTAJ, James Kaufman (photo) was said by local authorities to have been undergoing a 'mental health crisis" and believed his daughter was being held inside Altoona's enormous Jaffa Shrine Center against her will. Early Tuesday morning, he broke inside and began busting windows and destroying furniture. Neighbors heard the noise and called police. Kaufman had obviously come prepared and apparently spent some time in the building, as investigators found Shrine items in his car.  They discovered kerosene had been spread and set alight in the main arena and auditorium. 

Kaufman is charged with Risking a Catastrophe, Arson, Burglary and many associated charges. Thankfully, no one was injured in the incident.

This may very well just be an unfortunate man suffering from dementia or Alzheimer's. But it would be unwise to ignore the possibility of a deliberate anti-Masonic attack. The recent increase in these kinds of incidents - and worse - throughout North America over the last couple of years needs to be brought attention to local police. Local law enforcement may not always be aware that Masons and Shriners are on a growing number of hit lists of paranoids, Jew-haters, or zealous religious fanatics who think we're devil worshipers, and worse. If your Masonic hall or Shrine center is attacked, be sure to alert investigators as to the dangers of these nuts.

Arkansas GM Extends Olive Branch to the State's Shriners

Arkansas Grand Master Thomas Lampirez

 

byChristopher Hodapp

Ever since November 2012, the Grand Lodge of Arkansas F&AM has forbidden the Masons in its jurisdiction to be members of the Shrine. The Grand Master at that time, Robert L. Jackson, issued a letter that declared the Shrine "clandestine" in Arkansas, and all Masons in the state were immediately ordered to either quit their Shrine membership, or "self-expel" themselves from Masonry (i.e. Quit).

After fourteen years of separation, this year's Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Arkansas, MW Thomas Lampirez, has just issued an edict that restores Shriners International in that state to the status of an"affiliated organization." (Click the image below to enlarge.)

Edit No. 3 reads, in part:

"An affiliated organization, while still not fraternal, carries with it a significant increase in status and trust. An affiliated organization is more formally connected to the larger fraternal, governing body and signals that the shrine in Arkansas is no longer operating loosely on its own, but is more connected to the Masonic fraternity through its mission, values, and structure. While progress has been made, I also believe this shall be the last act of good faith given by the Grand Lodge of, Arkansas toward this shrine in Arkansas until ALL non-Mason Shriners's are Freemasons."

The situation came about in 2012 over an Arkansas Mason who held a dual membership in another state, along with belonging to an Arkansas Shrine. He was brought up on Masonic charges and expelled in Arkansas, but was not suspended by the Shrine at that time because his other state's Grand Lodge had not taken any action against him. The Shrine's position was that he was still legally a Freemason outside of Arkansas, and therefore was still entitled to remain a Shriner. MW PGM Jackson disagreed, ordered the Shrine to expel him, they refused, and so he issued his edict.

(If you don't understand about relationships between Masonic groups and why membership status affects them across the board, see the explanation below about why this is an issue in the first place.)

The result was an enormous drop in Masonic membership in Arkansas that far exceeded the comparative membership losses that any other Masonic jurisdiction has suffered in the U.S. The sheer number of expulsions in Arkansas between about 2013 and 2019 was staggering.

Jackson's order might have meant the end of the only two Shrines in Arkansas (Scimitar Shriners and Sahara Shriners). Because of the untenable situation in which they found themselves, Shriners International changed its bylaws and carved out a loophole only for Arkansas that permitted non-Masons to become Shriners there. That by-law change has been in place since 2013. 

Meanwhile, PGM Robert Jackson went on to become the Grand Secretary of Arkansas in 2016. Numerous Arkansas Masons reported that his office allegedly stopped issuing letters of good standing to fleeing Arkansas Masons who attempted to transfer their membership to jurisdictions in other states like Oklahoma, Texas, Kansas, and elsewhere in protest. The Grand Lodges of Oklahoma and Kansas both withdrew amity with Arkansas, partially over these issues.

Jackson was suspended in 2017 by then-GM Carl E. Nelson, along with Grand Treasurer, PGM Ronnie Hedge.

But a new wrinkle developed in 2019. The outgoing 2018-19 Grand Master Bradley Phillips issued a Grand Master's Recommendation at the 2019 Arkansas annual meeting that proposed a way to end to the needless impasse with the Shrine. It reclassified the Shrine in Arkansas from a clandestine organization to a civic one for the next three years; permitted non-Mason Arkansas Shriners to petition lodges and self-expelled Arkansas Masons to petition for reinstatement, along with all other Masons in the state who had previously been expelled by former Grand Masters or trial commissions over their Shrine memberships or activities. At the end of three years, if all members of Arkansas Shrines had become Masons in that state (or in another jurisdiction recognized by Arkansas) once again, the Shrine would be classified as a fully recognized fraternal organization under Arkansas Masonic code. All remaining Shriners in Arkansas who had NOT become Masons by the end of the three year period were to be suspended by the Shrine, and the non-Mason loophole created by this whole imbroglio by the Shrine would be ended. 

In response, Shriners International passed a resolution during its 2019 Imperial Session, again requiring that all new initiates for Shrine membership in Arkansas must be Master Masons in good standing.

But apparently, the problem of existing non-Masonic Arkansas Shriners was never sufficiently solved, and the Shrine remained classified as a civic organization with no connection to Freemasonry at all.

Fast-forward to today. Private informal meetings have been held in recent months between leaders to attempt to find a solution that would finally bring the Shrine back into Arkansas' Masonic fold while addressing the problem of these new non-Masonic Shriners. Lampirez' last sentence makes it clear, however, that this is as far as the Grand Lodge will extend the olive branch until the Shriners can figure out how to make all of the non-Masons who joined the Shrine over the last fourteen years join a Masonic Lodge. Hopefully, they haven't built a box they can't escape from, and I suspect Tampa will get involved now that this edict has been issued.

For readers who do not understand the connection between the two groups, it needs to be explained that all those guys wearing red fezzes in Shriners Hospitals ads, or marching and puttering around in little race cars in parades are all members of a local Shriners organization AS WELL AS a Freemason’s lodge. Everywhere else in the world outside of Arkansas,  Shriners International requires men to first join a local Masonic lodge and undergo the three initiation degree ceremonies before they are allowed to then petition the Shriners for membership. Further, almost all regular, recognized grand lodges have rules that say if a man is dropped from Masonic membership for any reason - voluntarily or otherwise - he must also resign from all Masonically related, appendant or concordant organizations. If he doesn’t, that group’s administration is supposed to suspend or expel him to comply with Masonic regulations (informally referred to as the "suspended in one, suspended in all" doctrine).

Unlike state-wide grand lodges we have throughout the US, Canada and Mexico, the Shriners don't have state administrations. Local Shrine clubs and Shrine centers must answer to their national leadership in Tampa, Florida, which is also responsible for the 22 children's hospitals located in North America.

The Late President Jimmy Carter & Masonic Membership

President Carter with Imperial Sir Gary Bergenske and Anne Bergenske,
was an honorary ambassador of Hasan Shriners. (Photo: Shriners)

by Christopher Hodapp

UPDATED Tuesday, 12/31/2024, 3:30PM - This story has been updated to include more information concerning the Carter's involvement with Shriners Hospitals)

(Thanks to Chris Ruli, author of The White House and the Freemasons for originally posting a story about this on Facebook.)

Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter passed away over the weekend at the amazing age of 100. Almost immediately upon the announcement early Sunday morning of Carter’s death, several social media posts made the erroneous claim that he had been both a Freemason and a member of the Shriners.  

Whatever your political opinions or historical estimations may have been of President Carter, there can be no denying his dedication to service and philanthropy, and his lifetime of living by the tenets of his faith. His single term of office in the White House between 1977-81 was merely the beginning of another four and a half decades of serving countless causes and missions, all over the world.

He took on one such cause in 2016. That year, Shriners Hospitals named Jimmy Carter as an honorary Shriner and an Ambassador for their program that operates 22 hospitals in North America for treating disabled children. In the photograph above, you can see Carter wearing the signature headgear of the Shriners, the red fez. But you can also see that the normally black tassel dangling from the fez of the Shriner on his right differs from Carter’s yellow/gold tassel, signifying his Honorary Ambassador position.

That same year, he appeared in a TV commercial for Shriners Hospitals, and continued to be an enthusiastic supporter for the rest of his lifetime (the press release can be seen below). 

But Carter's association with the Shriners did not involve him being initiated, passed and raised as a Mason, nor was he ever made a Noble in the Shrine. Somewhere, someone made the claim online that he had been a member of our fraternity. And then A.I. algorithms immediately grabbed it and went to work. 

Several A.I.-generated posts circulated the misinformation, and even went so far as to embellish the story. 'Poe,' the A.I. assistant on the Quora site, stated that Carter had become a member of “Tatum Lodge 333 in Plains, Georgia" in 1946; that Freemasonry had been "part of his public persona throughout his presidency"; and that “Carter is one of the few U.S. presidents known to have been a Freemason.” (See image below.)

There's a reason the Poe app is free. ALL of these statements are false. 

Jimmy Carter was neither a Freemason nor a Shriner; there is no “Tatum Lodge 333” in the state of Georgia, or anywhere else, for that matter*; and he is not among the 14 U.S. Presidents known to have been a member of the Masonic fraternity. His father, James Earl Carter Sr., was a Georgia Mason, but not his son Jimmy.

(For the non-Masons in the crowd, a man must first be elected into a local Masonic lodge and complete the three degrees of Entered Apprentice, Fellow Craft, and Master Mason before he can proceed to join the Shriners. There is no known record that Carter did any of this.)

By Sunday afternoon, numerous Masons were forwarding this incorrect story around social media, and A.I. – being a sophisticated, computerized plagiarist – went right on repeating it, “verifying” the story with its very own A.I.-generated story as its source.

To clarify, Jimmy Carter did meet with groups of state grand lodges and Prince Hall Masons during his presidency, just as all presidents meet officially or unofficially with hundreds of groups throughout out their terms in the Oval Office. But none of those groups of Masons ever claimed him as a member, nor did any grand lodge make him a Mason "at sight" (a controversial shortcut used by some jurisdictions to confer the lodge degrees on candidates – frequently celebrities).

None of this detracts from Jimmy Carter's lifetime of accomplishments, and as Masons we should both respect his devotion to his fellow men, and honor his memory. But it's important to keep the record straight when it comes to the true history of our fraternity. Gerald R. Ford, Carter's predecessor, is the last U.S. president at this time to have been a Freemason (and also a Shriner). Please don't rely on Artificial Intelligence to research factual information.

 

*Just to be as thorough as possible, there is a Tatum Lodge 1386 in the town of Tatum, Texas, not Georgia, and Jimmy Carter never joined it. Georgia has a lodge numbered 333 — Winder Lodge 333, located in the town of the same name. There’s no record of Carter joining it, either.

UPDATE

Despite many Masons attempting to correct Quora's Poe AI assistant, it continues to stubbornly allege that Carter was a Mason as of today, December 31 at 5:00PM EST, though it grudgingly admits the facts are disputed. Nobody seems to dispute it besides the AI bots.

Below are excerpts from a pair of long posts on the Shriners website that appeared yesterday. President Carter and his wife, Rosalynn, were both enthusiastic supporters of Shriners Hospitals and its mission of providing life-changing medical care for disabled children. The original posts can be seen HERE:

In 2016 the Carters appeared in a Valentine’s-themed public service announcement for the healthcare system, saying our greatest legacy is “what we can do to help the next generation” and encouraging viewers to refer children who could benefit from Shriners Children’s care. President Carter said then, “We have been following the philanthropic efforts of Shriners Hospitals for many years, and we look forward to helping people understand they are a resource available when seeking medical care for their children."

Gary Bergenske, former head of the fraternity and former CEO of Shriners Children’s, recalled that President Carter made the PSA because of his passionate belief in the mission. “He donated his time and image to do this for Shriners Children’s out of the goodness of his heart,” Bergenske said. “He did that because he wanted to help the children we take care of.”

Later the same year, members of the Carter Center traveled with a Shriners Children’s medical team for an outreach clinic at St. Boniface hospital in Haiti. The Carter Center helped organize the medical mission, working directly with the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Disabilities of the Government of Haiti for approval.

President Carter began working with Shriners Children’s to expand access to medical care for children around the world, and he was named Honorary Ambassador of Hasan Shriners at a ceremony in Albany, Georgia, in 2014. The honor was particularly meaningful, President Carter said, because his father (James Earl Carter, Sr.) was a Mason and a Shriner.

In 2018, President Carter and the Carter Center assisted Shriners Children’s in transporting children who were critically injured in a volcanic eruption in Guatemala, helping to arrange military transport – the U.S. Air Force’s C-17 Globemaster III aircraft – and military medical teams to help transfer the children to our Galveston hospital.

Both the healthcare system and the fraternity honored President Carter in 2018. Shriners Children’s bestowed the Humanitarian Award in recognition of his service on behalf of our mission and patients. The award was presented by that year’s Imperial Potentate, Imperial Sir Bergenske, who also presented President Carter with one of the fraternity’s most special honors, the Imperial Potentate’s Medallion.

President Carter once said, “I have one life and one chance to make it count for something... My faith demands that I do whatever I can, wherever I am, whenever I can, for as long as I can with whatever I have to try to make a difference.”

Shriners Children’s and Shriners International are proud to have been singled out and supported by President Carter, and deeply appreciate his efforts to help the world’s children have access to the life-changing care that Shriners Children’s provides.

Former Imperial Potentate Shares Fond Memories of the Carters

Imperial Sir Gary Bergenske, who served as Imperial Potentate 2017-2018, was privileged to meet and work with President Jimmy Carter and his wife, Rosalynn, an association that he treasures.

Bergenske said he first met the Carters in 2014, when the former president supported the philanthropy by making a Valentine’s-themed public service announcement. Bergenske said he was struck by President Carter’s commitment to Shriners Children’s. “He did that out of the kindness of his heart, and he said we could use it anytime we wanted,” Bergenske recalled.

President Carter asked what he could do for Shriners Children’s, “and I gave him a whole wish list,” Bergenske said. The commercial was just the start of the association between the former president and the Shriners organizations. President Carter went on to fulfill nearly every item on Bergenske’s list, supporting an outreach clinic in Haiti, helping arrange military transport for volcano victims in Guatemala and more.

The only thing he was never able to do was accept an invitation to attend Imperial Session. So in 2018, Imperial Sir Bergenske went to the Carter home in Plains, Georgia, to present him with the Imperial Potentate’s Medallion and the Humanitarian Award from the philanthropy.

Bergenske and his wife, Lady Anne, visited with the Carters several times. “What an experience, to just sit and have dinner with them as friends,” Bergenske said. “It was our joint love of helping others that drew us together.”

Bergenske said that although the two men were very different, they had an important thing in common. “He wanted to help Shriners Children’s, and we wanted to help him and the Carter Center too. We were both working together to help kids. It was a really great relationship.”

Bergenske said he looked to President Carter as a mentor and an example. “He set the bar high, but he was very humble in what he did.”

Shriners Closing Tampa Hospital - Transitioning to Outpatient Services

by Christopher Hodapp

Shriners Children officially announced the closing of the Shriners Hospital in Tampa, Florida last week. Shriners has operated its Tampa hospital on the campus of the University of South Florida since opening in 1985, and in fact, the headquarters of both Shriners International (the fraternal origination) and its non-profit, recently-renamed medical philanthropy, Shriners Children, are located in Tampa. Unfortunately, stories in the Tampa Bay News caused lots of heated accusations in its wake from the rank and file Nobles on social media.

Since first opening, the Tampa hospital has treated more than 50,000 children. The original 60-bed, acute care, inpatient hospital at that location was already transformed into an outpatient clinic back in 2019, with fewer than 100 employees. The facility has been treating children with scoliosis, muscular dystrophy and brittle bone disease (osteogenesis imperfecta). It also provides radiology and pediatric rehabilitation services, along with braces, artificial limbs and corrective orthopedic shoe inserts. But in the almost 40 years that the Tampa location has been open, the medical universe has undergone enormous evolution. 

A wide variety of forces contributed to that change, including: a shrinking domestic birth rate; the major reduction of birth defects in recent decades; advances in technology and care procedures that no longer demand expensive, overnight (or longer) stays; and the dramatic increase in the cost of staffing and maintaining a full-service, full-size hospital with little-used facilities. And don't forget the massive intrusion of government in the wake of the Affordable Care Act that redefined what a "hospital" can and cannot do without running afoul of Medicaid and various insurance regulations. Before 2011, Shriners prided itself in providing care to children at no cost, often saying, "Our hospitals have everything other hospitals have, except a billing office." The ACA changed all of that and ultimately forced them to accept insurance payments and the regulatory nightmares that went with it. However, they still treat uninsured patients free of charge.

In April, Shriners will announce a new partnership with local providers in the Tampa area that will permit their pediatric and orthopedic specialists to treat more patients at more locations, and perform many in-home services. Tampa is not alone. It is actually one of five locations in the Shriners system transforming from hospitals into out-patient service providers. Complex cases requiring surgeries and longer-term, inpatient treatment will be transported to the Shriners acute-care hospitals in Shreveport, Louisiana or Greenville, South Carolina. In addition to orthopedic cases, Shriners continue to provide world-renowned care for children with severe burns, clubbed feet and other debilitating injuries throughout their 23 North American locations.

The Shrine opened its first children's hospital a century ago in 1922, and has served more than 1.5 million patients since then. Shriners Hospitals for Children are supported by individual donations from the public, but primarily by the members of Shriners International, a Masonic fraternity open to men with nearly 200 chapters in the U.S. and other countries. Most Americans are unaware that in order to be a Shriner, a man must first become a Freemason and join a local Masonic lodge.

Shriners Statue in Connecticut Vandalized

by Christopher Hodapp

The Sphinx Shrine temple in Connecticut is the latest victim of statue vandalism this week.

Twice before in recent months, area malcontents attempted to unbolt and topple the iconic 'Editorial Without Words' sculpture in front of the Shriners' temple in Newington, but their prior efforts apparently failed to generate satisfactory attention. So, sometime before last Saturday, they returned and beheaded the statue. This time, the New Britain Herald picked up the story and interviewed Potentate Richard White, Past Potentate John Taylor, and Past First Lady Lisbeth Mindera Herbert about the incident.

According to the headline, the damage is 'irreparable.'

The statue is a common decoration seen in front of Shrine temples throughout North America. It is a widely recognized representation of Shriners International's ongoing mission of providing orthopedic and burn care to children in their 22 hospitals. 

The sculpture is modeled after a famous 1970 photograph of Shriner Al Hortman taken in Evansville, Indiana at a Shrine picnic. Local photographer Randy Dieter had been on assignment covering Hadi Temple’s annual outing for handicapped children. Hortman stopped to pick up a disabled girl named Bobbi Jo Wright and her crutches when Dieter spotted them almost by accident and snapped the photo. The older girl in the photo is Hortman’s daughter, Laura, who was a patient at the Shriners Hospital in St. Louis. It was after Laura began receiving treatments at the Shriners Hospitals for Children that Al Hortman had joined Hadi Shrine.

Since then, the image has been reproduced countless times, as a logo, in advertising, on jewelry, and as a sculpture, which was first created to stand in front of the Shriners International headquarters in Tampa. It's referred to by the unusual title 'Editorial Without Words' because the image immediately and wordlessly portrays the Shriners and their principal charity.

Shriners Hospitals for Children provide specialized pediatric care in orthopaedics, spinal cord injury, cleft palate and other conditions. Over 1.4 million children have received treatment since 1922. Shriners Hospitals provide all care without financial obligation to patients or their families.

While all Shriners are Freemasons, not all Masons choose to become Shriners. In addition to the Shriners meeting at the Sphinx Temple, it is also home to the Scottish Rite Valley of Hartford.

By the way, the Sphinx Shriners have the distinction of being home to the oldest established Shrine band in the country, originally formed in 1899.

I'm told by several Shriners in other states that this attack on the Connecticut Shriners' statue has not been the only one this year. In the statue-toppling frenzy of the past several months, it seems that petty miscreants have damaged several of these around the country. It's not as though the statue of a Shriner in a fez carrying a handicapped child is any sort of symbol of 'oppression' or worthy of some sort of historical revisionist scorn. But perhaps these have been tied to the latest Internet fantasies of Masonic conspiracies and assorted Qanon chatter about Satanic child traffickers. Or perhaps tied to beheadings of Christian and Western statuary (and people) in Europe by Islamic extremists in the last few weeks. Or maybe just basement-dwelling pseudo-insurrectionaries excited by the execrable Popular Mechanics' 'How To Topple A Statue' article over the summer that contributed to rampant damage nationwide.

Or more likely, just bored, ignorant teenagers with too much time on their hands during the national shut downs. I suppose we'll never know. But in the ongoing mania to tear down people, institutions, beliefs and nobility, it sure would be a pleasant switch if some of these cretinous delinquents tried building something admirable in their place.

Silly me.    

Shriners Hospitals Rebranding As 'Shriners Children's'

by Christopher Hodapp

Bill Hosler over on the On The Square blog is reporting today that 'Shriners Hospitals for Children' has just announced that they are uniformly rebranding their network of 22 hospitals as 'Shriners Children's.' The name change is intended to unify and do away with a handful of different facility and corporate entity names of several Shriners children's hospitals and programs throughout North America.

The rebranding does away with different facility
names in the Shriners Hospital system

An email today signed by Imperial Potentate Jeff Sowder and Jeffery Gant, Chairman of the Board of Trustees, explains that the new name better reflects the present and future for of the organization. It reads, in part:

For nearly 100 years, Shriners Hospitals for Children has expanded, changed and adapted to meet the needs of children and families. As we have changed, we have added different terms to describe our locations, which is, quite honestly, a confusing distraction. We have grown so much, and do so much – “Shriners Hospitals for Children”– no longer adequately tells the public who we are. We are all part of Shriners and our concern is children, but we are more than hospitals.

As we look forward to a new century of caring for kids, the world is a far different place than it was in 1922, when we opened our first hospital. And Shriners Hospitals for Children is equally different.

We have become far more than a collection, or even a system, of hospitals. We have become leaders in care, research and medical education. We are known for innovation, expertise, compassion, generosity and a strength and determination to improve lives, no matter the complexity, that is stunning and respected throughout the world. We give our patients and families so much more than medical care. We help them build confidence and self-esteem. We provide as many resources as we have available – from custom prosthetics to adaptive sports opportunities, to assistive devices that encourage personal independence.

We are so much more than hospitals – and we need to share that fact – shout that message – clearly – to help us be recognized for all we are, live our mission and reach more children and families who need us.

The announcement hasn't gone wide yet - there are no press releases or news articles available about the rebranding. I suspect Tampa wanted to alert the membership and donors first.  

However, a video is available online HERE that announces and explains the name change. 

The over-aching name of the parent fraternal organization itself is NOT changing, and will remain Shriners International. In the 140+ years since its official formation, the Shriners have had a couple of official corporate names. The Shriners were established in 1878 with the appropriately bilious name of the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, and if you rearranged its initials AAONMS, it quite deliberately spelled 'A MASON.' Sometime after the mid-20th century, they rebranded themselves as 'Shriners North America, ' after expanding into Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico and elsewhere in the hemisphere. But as they opened more Shrine Clubs and Shrine Oases in other parts of the world, it was decided that the name should reflect its more global reach. The name officially changed again in 2010 to Shriners International.

The principal philanthropy of the Shrine - its now 22 children's hospitals - began life in 1922 as Shriners Hospital for Crippled Children in Shreveport, Louisiana, and was established to treat orthopedic injuries and conditions, diseases, burns, spinal cord injuries, plus birth defects, such as cleft lip and palate, in children. By the time the Depression hit in 1929, they had constructed a total of 13 hospitals, and provided care at no charge to patients and their families. Their mission has expanded from there and continues to this day.

All Masons are not Shriners, but all Shriners are Masons. Shriners International is an appendant organization of American Freemasonry. To become a Shriner, a man must join a Masonic lodge first.  Some 200 local Shrine Temples and their members support the network of 22 Shriners' pediatric burn and orthopedic hospitals in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

To donate to Shriners Children's, visit their website HERE.

Fire Destroys Hejaz Shrine in South Carolina

by Christopher Hodapp

A devastating fire on Tuesday morning has destroyed the Hejaz Shrine Temple in Mauldin, South Carolina, near Greenville. According to multiple news reports, the entire facility that included the Shrine and the Legacy Pines Golf Club clubhouse is a total loss. The golf club leased its facility from the Shrine.

Investigators say the fire started just after midnight near the kitchen in the rear of the building. Fortunately, no one was in the building at the time, and no firefighters were injured battling the blaze. No word yet on cause.

Hejaz Shrine is extremely popular and home to about 4,000 Shriners. Their temple sits in the middle of the Legacy Pines golf course and boasted a 250-seat capacity banquet hall and Old English style pub.The Hejaz Shrine is a popular local venue for banquets and is well known in the community. The present Temple and golf clubhouse were built in 1984.

From better days

Hejaz Shrine has been celebrating its 100th anniversary during this insane COVID shutdown year, which postponed or canceled so many activities. Doubly heartbreaking, aside from the loss of their facility, is the incalculable loss of artifacts inside from Hejaz' full century of life that are now destroyed. This is a helluva way to mark the passing of such an auspicious anniversary.

Deepest condolences to Potentate Wayne Bragg and all of the fellow Nobles of Hejaz Shrine, with the hope that they will rise again soon from the ashes.

All Masons are not Shriners, but all Shriners are Masons. Shriners International is an appendant organization of American Freemasonry. To become a Shriner, a man must join a Masonic lodge first.  Some 200 local Shrine Temples and their members support the network of 22 Shriners' pediatric burn and orthopedic hospitals in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

Including the Masons

It's gratifying to know that Shriner Masons count when touting diversity and inclusiveness in Derby City.

Spotted by attendees at the Conference of Grand Masters at the Louisville airport this week was this signage celebrating the city's 'inclusiveness' as its biggest strength. That's a parade unit from Kosair Shrine on the left of the poster.

It does a community good to remind them every once in a while just how important Freemasons are to our civic life and have been for a long time. It used to be that "everybody knew" who and what the local Masons did in their area, who they were, and why it was worthwhile to actually join a lodge and take an active role in keeping up the good work. As our membership shrinks and fewer extended family relatives or neighbors have that tradition to pass on, too many of our fellow citizens don't know anymore. 

Today, Kosair Charities is the largest charity for children in the history of the region known as Kentuckiana. Louisville's Masons who make up the Shriners, via Kosair Charities, have been improving children's lives in Kentucky and Southern Indiana ever since 1923 when they opened the Kosair Crippled Children Hospital, which later consolidated into Louisville's Children's Hospital in 1982 (since renamed Norton Children's Hospital). 

After the consolidation, Kosair began providing grants to support pediatric programs such as The Kosair Charities Pediatric Convalescent Center at the Home of the Innocents. 

Kosair Charities provides individual help to children outside hospitals through the Kosair Kids program, which arranges for medical referrals, financial assistance and transportation. The former Kosair Crippled Children Hospital property is now the campus for the Sam Swope Kosair Charities Center, and in 2013, they opened the Kids Center for Pediatric Therapy and Bluegrass Center for Autism. Today, through an extensive grant program, Kosair Charities is able to support numerous agencies around the state that provide crucial medical care to children. 

An old friend has always told me "All Freemasonry is local," and our neighbors need occasional reminding that we're still alive and we still want good men to join us. 

Including them.

Tip o' the fez to Mark Tabbert.

New 'Be A Freemason' Website Rolled Out

Over the last two years, the Scottish Rite Northern Masonic Jurisdiction's comprehensive "Not Just A Man. A Mason." advertising campaign for Craft Freemasonry has been enthusiastically adopted all across the U.S. and elsewhere by grateful grand lodges and individual lodges alike. Not content to rest on their laurels, the campaign has just rolled out an entire website dedicated to explaining just who and what Freemasons are, what we stand for, and how to join in your state or community. 

It was just debuted at the annual Conference of Grand Masters of Masons in North America (COGMNA) held in Louisville this week.

The new website www.beafreemason.org is co-sponsored by the Northern and Southern Jurisdictions of the Scottish Rite, as well as Shriners International, and it builds off of the Not Just A Man, A Mason campaign. The new site is tasteful, well written, well conceived, and beautifully executed. It is deliberately generic enough so that any grand lodge jurisdiction, local lodge, or even appendant body can confidently direct the public to it to effectively explain and promote the fraternity, and provide a way to seek more information about joining a lodge

Quite literally any Masonic organization can link directly to it, and it is an entirely standalone website designed not to conflict with any jurisdiction's existing internet or advertising material. It includes a form that will forward new member inquiries to each U.S. grand lodge jurisdiction based on the potential applicant's home address.  

Like the entire Not Just A Man campaign, this is a huge boon to the entire fraternity and is provided by the Scottish Rite NMJ free of charge. I can't stress what an excellent tool and gift they have provided to us all.

Just remember: a campaign like this – at best – can only nudge a man to give the fraternity a look, and possibly take the step of petitioning. Grand lodges can send those men to our lodges, and when the stars are aligned, they can occasionally send them in large numbers. It is, however, only the local lodges and the Masons in them who do or do not live up to our own past reputation and expectations. When new members fail to return, that's on you and I because we failed to do our part to truly make them Masons and to help them become part of our worldwide Brotherhood.

Because we're all in this together, Brethren.

Visit the Be A Freemason website HERE.

For more about customizing or using the other material in the campaign, visit the Not Just A Man website HERE.

Meet Alec from Shriners Hospitals

This being "Giving Tuesday" today, here is the perfect story to highlight.

Last Sunday, the CBS program Sunday Morning did a special and lengthy profile of Shriners Hospitals' TV spokes-kid, 17-year old Alec Cabacungan. It seems like most Americans recognize Alec from the last five years' worth of commercials he's appeared in, which is no mean feat in the fractured media age in which we find ourselves. Onscreen, he's outgoing, personable, totally genuine, and absolutely memorable. 

The commercials have almost always shown him in his wheelchair, but most people have never known why he's in it. This touching segment about Alec explains his disability and physical challenges, which is why he came to Shriners in the first place before becoming a nationally known celebrity at 12. Alec is extremely fragile - in his first 17 years of life, he's already broken 60 bones. He has a rare genetic disorder called Osteogenesis Imperfecta, otherwise known as brittle bone disease. But as you will see in the video, it doesn't stop him.

The end of the CBS piece says it best:

"In this season of giving, we all can receive a little something from Alec Cabacungan – a lesson in what grace really looks like."

Amen.

WATCH IT HERE

• More about Shriners Hospitals for Children
• Follow Alec Cabacungan on Twitter and Instagram

• Alec is a font of sports trivia and hosts a YouTube sports program from his bedroom studio, called Smart Alec on Sports.

To donate to Shriners Hospitals, visit www.lovetotherescue.org

In 1922, the Shriners dedicated themselves to providing specialized medical care for children regardless of the families’ ability to pay. Today, that philanthropic effort helps support Shriners Hospitals for Children, a health care system with 22 hospitals in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. Children up to age 18 (and in some cases, up to age 21) with orthopaedic conditions, burns, spinal cord injuries, and cleft lip and palate are eligible for care. 

Until 2012, Shriners did not accept payment from patients for services. Since then, due to the massive changes in health care insurance requirements and regulations, the hospitals now bill patients' insurance companies if available, but still provide free care to children without insurance and waive all out of pocket costs insurance does not cover.

If you are interested in joining the Shrine and becoming part of the supporting organization that created this tremendous philanthropy, you should know that all Shriners are first Freemasons and part of our worldwide fraternity. 

Today, there are more than 300,000 Shriners who belong to 196 temples in the U.S., Canada, Brazil, Bolivia, Mexico, Panama, the Philippines, Puerto Rico, Europe, and Australia.

All Shriners are Masons, but not all Masons are Shriners. 

For more information visit www.beashrinernow.com.

Man Busted In Georgia For Impersonating a Shriner

Sometimes there are just those run of the mill freelance freeloaders who do stupidly despicable things at the lowest possible level that leave rational people speechless. 

Meet Mr. Tommy Walker, (alleged) panhandler and moron. Walker was busted last week in Cleveland, Georgia by the local constabulary for plopping a fez on his head and claiming he was raising money for the Shriners Hospitals on a street corner.

Really.

This reptile is currently residing in the local calaboose for his caddish attempt to defraud unsuspecting passersby and motorists alike from their spare change by slithering under the fraternity and quite literally robbing from crippled children. 

That's pathetically the sort of thing that can happen when a non-Mason can so easily get hold of Masonic-related regalia these days. You'll note in his mug shot above that his sunburned chrome dome clearly betrays his guilt all over the pate with a definite fez line. 

From the AccessWDUN website:

A Baldwin [Georgia] man has been arrested after impersonating a Shriner and collecting money on the street, according to authorities in White County [Georgia].

Capt. Rick Kelley with the White County Sheriff’s Office said deputies received a call Wednesday, August 28 about a man collecting money at the intersection of Highway 254 and Duncan Bridge Road. Callers said they suspected the man was posing as a Shriner.

In an email statement, Kelley said he and deputies responded to the location and found the suspect, identified as Tommy Walker, 48, wearing a Fez and collecting money in a bucket. According to Kelley, Walker was unable to produce a dues card from the Yaarab Shrine Temple.

"I contacted the Temple and they confirmed that Tommy Walker was not Shriner," Kelley said.

Walker was arrested and charged with theft by deception.

Kelley said Walker had collected just over $62 in his bucket. The money will be turned over to the Alpine Shrine Club in Cleveland.

For those who REALLY want to donate to support the fine work and facilities of Shriners Hospitals, you can do so online HERE. 

And for Georgia men interested in the local Yaarab Shriners, read about them HERE.


THIS STORY HAS BEEN UPDATED. AN EARLIER VERSION MIS-IDENTIFIED WALKER AND THESE EVENTS AS OCCURRING IN OHIO INSTEAD OF GEORGIA.

Imperial Potentate Issues Update on Shrine in Arkansas

Recent efforts to restore the Shrine's Masonic connections in Arkansas are yielding some new developments this week (See GL of Arkansas and Shriners International May Be Burying the Hatchet At Last). 

Since November 2012, the Grand Lodge of Arkansas has forbidden the Masons in its jurisdiction to be members of the Shrine, and expelled numerous Masons over it.

On Tuesday, the Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Arkansas, Jesse D. Sexton, issued an edict recognizing Shriners International as a “civic organization.” The result of this decision permits Arkansas Masons to again be members of Shriners International for the first time since 2013.

Yesterday, the Imperial Potentate for Shriners International, Jeffrey L. Sowder, circulated a letter to all Arkansas Shriners to announce the new changes.

"In response to significant positive steps taken by the Grand Lodge of Arkansas at its February 2019 Grand Communication, Shriners International passed a resolution during its 2019 Imperial Session, that as of July 16, 2019, all new initiates for Shrine membership in Arkansas must be Master Masons in good standing.

"The resolution has no current impact on Arkansas Shriners who are not currently Masons. However, Arkansas Masons are now immediately permitted to petition for membership in our two Arkansas Shrine Temples, Scimitar Shriners and Sahara Shriners."

Click to enlarge

As reported last week, the recommendation first proposed by PGM Bradley Phillips (now Grand Secretary) and accepted by the members of the Grand Lodge lays out a transition period of three years so that proper steps can be taken to return the Shrine to its former status as a "fraternal organization that predicates its membership on Masonic membership." If all goes well, at the end of three years all Arkansas Shriners should be Freemasons again, or they will be suspended by the Shrine at that time.

Arkansas Masons wishing to enquire about the current status of the Shrine should contact Grand Secretary Phillips in Arkansas directly. Arkansas Shriners who were previously Masons or now seek to more information should contact Brian Van Norman, Chief Membership Officer for Shriners International in Tampa.

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UPDATE 7/18/2019 3:00PM

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Arkansas Masons Can Become Shriners

The Grand Master of Arkansas, Jesse D. Sexton, issued an edict on Tuesday, July 16, 2019 that recognizes Shriners International as a “Civic Organization”. The result of this decision permits Arkansas Masons, for the first time in more than five years, to be members of Shriners International.

Arkansas Masons are now permitted to immediately begin petitioning for membership in the Shrine following the decision of the Grand Master of Arkansas. In response to significant positive steps taken by the Grand Lodge of Arkansas at its 2019 February Communication, Shriners International passed a resolution during its 2019 Imperial Session. As result of this resolution and resulting action taken by the Grand Lodge, as of July 16, 2019, all new initiates for Shrine membership in Arkansas must be Master Masons in good standing. The resolution has no current impact on Arkansas Shriners who are not currently Masons.

The 145th Imperial Session of Shriners International adjourned on July 4, 2019. In addition to the historic action taken by the Representatives related to requiring a masonic prerequisite in Arkansas, Imperial Sir Jeff Sowder was elected Imperial Potentate for the 2019-2020 year. Imperial Sir Sowder is the first Past Grand Master ever to serve as the Imperial Potentate of Shriners International. “We welcome our brothers from the Grand Lodge of Arkansas to take advantage of the opportunity that now exists to become a Shriner”, said Imperial Potentate Jeff Sowder.

As a Past Grand Master and as a long-time Shrine Membership leader, Imperial Sir Jeff Sowder is extraordinarily well equipped to lead the Shrine through this period of productive transition. Both organizations are strengthened by the continuing collaborative efforts that have established a pathway for mutual success.

About Shriners InternationalShriners International is a fraternity based on fun, fellowship and the Masonic principles of brotherly love, relief and truth with nearly 200 temples (chapters) in several countries, and thousands of clubs around the world. For more information, please visitshrinersinternational.org.