On Tuesday, December 4, 2007, East Gate Lodge elected the following brothers to serve as officers for 2008: Jim Ullery as Worshipful Master, Emanuele Pepe as Senior Warden, John Dixon as Junior Warden, Artie Bayandrian as Treasurer and Chris Enger as Secretary. These brothers will be installed in a joint installation with Sutherland Lodge officers on Saturday, January 5, 2008 at 1:00 PM. This is a public event and family, friends and neighbors are invited.
UPCOMING MASONIC EVENTS
All masons from jurisdictions recognized by the Grand Lodge of Florida are invited to all Masonic events unless otherwise stated herein.
DECEMBER EVENTS
December 18, 2007 (7:30 PM) - Sutherland Lodge Stated Communication. Dinner will be served beginning at 6:30 PM. The main course is hot roast beef sandwiches. This Communication is election of officers for 2008. Please consult your Trestleboard (printed or online) to see the current officers and come and vote for your choice of leadership for your lodge. Also tonight is our annual Past Masters Appreciation Night. All Sutherland Lodge Past Masters are invited and will be thanked for their contributions to Sutherland Lodge. This may be an opportunity to renew old acquaintances with brothers you’ve not seen for a while and make some new ones.
December 19 (Wednesday), 2007 (7:30 PM) - Sutherland Lodge Called Communication for an Entered Apprentice Degree. We anticipate one candidate from East Gate Lodge, two candidates from Tampa Bay Lodge and one candidate from Sutherland Lodge, thus the possibility of four candidates for the EA Degree. Please plan to attend this Called Communication and support these men upon their entrance into Freemasonry.
JANUARY EVENTS
January 1, 2008 (7:30 PM) – East Gate Lodge is dark tonight (New Year’s Day). Their Stated Communication has been moved to the second Tuesday (next week). A Happy New Year to all.
January 5, 2008 (1:00 PM Saturday) - Sutherland Lodge and East Gate Lodge will hold a joint installation of officers at Sutherland Masonic Center. This is a public event and family, friends and neighbors are invited.
January 7 (Monday), 2008 (7:30 PM) - Sutherland Lodge’s officer meeting has been moved to Monday to facilitate East Gate moving their Stated Communication which fell on New Year’s Day. All Sutherland Lodge members are invited.
January 8, 2008 (7:30 PM) – East Gate Lodge Stated Communication (moved from January 1).
January 8, 2008 (11:30 AM) - North Pinellas Scottish Rite Club meeting. You do not have to be a member of Scottish Rite to attend. The guest speaker is Major Alexis M. Davis of the Pinellas County Sheriffs Department. Major Davis is the Bureau Commander of the Detention & Corrections Bureau (the jail). Call Kenneth R. James, Sr., 33º at 727.784.3858 for lunch menu & cost and to make reservations.
January 15, 2008 (7:30 PM) - Sutherland Lodge Stated Communication. Dinner will be served beginning at 6:30 PM.
January 21, 2008 – Sutherland Lodge is 99 years old. Next year, January 21, 2009, is our 100 year anniversary. Plans are underway for both a Lodge celebration (on January 21, 2009, Wednesday evening, members and invited special guests only) and a public celebration (on January 24, 2009, Saturday). Information will be continually be published in the eNews, on our website, and in our Trestleboard. In addition, it is discussed at almost every officer meeting and Stated Communication. Please contact the Worshipful Master or any officer with any suggestions you have for our 100 year anniversary.
PETITIONS & DEGREES
Anyone having any information they believe should be known by the lodge about any petitioner should contact the Worshipful Master or Secretary.
Petitions ready for balloting on December 18, 2007:
Joseph Roscoe Ballow, Palm Harbor, for the Degrees
When an initiate is first brought into the light in a Masonic Lodge, the radiance come from the Lesser Lights, which form a triangle about the Altar. It seems, at first, rather odd that so great and important a symbol should receive such scant attention in the ritualistic body of Freemasonry.
We are instructed that they are called Lesser Lights, that they are placed in a triangle, that by their light we may see other objects, that they represent the Sun, Moon and Worshipful Master. Later on we learn, more by example than by precept, more by custom than by law, that Lesser Lights are always lit when a lodge is opened.
They are supposed to be lighted as soon as the lodge is opened, and then the Altar is arranged; to be extinguished after the Altar is disarranged, and the Great Lights displaced. But nowhere in our ritual are we told much of anything as to why all these things are so; how the Lesser Lights came to be; what their hidden, covered, secret, symbolic meaning is.
Immediately after the Lesser Lights are named, our attention is directed to the fact that they are in a triangle about the Altar. In some Jurisdictions they are closely about the Altar; in others, one is placed at each of the stations of the three principal officers. In some lodges the three Lesser Lights form a right, in others an equilateral; in others an isosceles triangle. What is uniform through out the Masonic World is the triangular formation about the Altar; what is different is the shape and size of the triangle. Of course, it is not possible to place three lights to form anything else but a triangle, or a straight line; they cannot be made to form a square or a star. Which brings us to the first place in which to sink our Masonic shovel; why are there three Lesser Lights, and not two or four?
Sutherland eNews is an “opt-in” mailing list for those interested in receiving news about Sutherland Lodge and Freemasonry in North Pinellas County. Members of Sutherland Lodge and East Gate Lodge are automatically subscribers (if we know your email address). Other distinguished masons are included on the mailing list from time to time and we encourage you to subscribe. You do not have to be a member of Sutherland Lodge to sign up for Sutherland eNews. If you have not already done so, we encourage you to subscribe.To subscribe to the Sutherland eNews, simply send an email to eNews@sutherlandlodge.org with the word “subscribe” (without the quotes) in the subject line. Please also include your lodge name and number (if one) in the body of the message. You must send this email using the email address to which you want the Sutherland eNews sent. This will confirm that you are subscribing and that someone is just not submitting your email address, perhaps without your knowledge or approval.
You will then receive notices of upcoming events (like reminders of Stated Communications as well as announcements of Called Communications including Degrees, ritual practice, Masonic education programs, Masonic social events, etc.). You will also receive notice when the Sutherland Lodge electronic trestleboard is posted on the website and ready for viewing or downloading.
To unsubscribe from Sutherland eNews, just send an email to eNews@sutherlandlodge.org with the word “unsubscribe” (without the quotes) in the subject line. As when you subscribed, you must send your unsubscribe email from the same email address you are unsubscribing. This will confirm that you are unsubscribing and that someone else is doing it without your knowledge or approval.
Both the current and recent Trestleboards can be found on the website. You may log on to the website and click on the Trestleboard link or go directly to the Trestleboard page at http://www.sutherlandlodge.org/pages/trestle.htm.
If you are a recipient of Sutherland Lodge’s printed trestleboard and have signed up for eNews, you may also request to NOT receive a printed Trestleboard. Receiving only the electronic version of the trestleboard will help the lodge with printing and postage costs. If you do elect to not receive a printed trestleboard, remember that if you unsubscribe from the eNews, to request to again be placed on the printed trestleboard list.
On November 27, 2007, Fellowcraft Brothers Donald Milo Lasell and Jason Richard Schultz were raised to the Degree of Master Mason.
Sutherland Lodge is a smoke-free building. At our Stated Communication of 11.20.2007, Sutherland Lodge members voted to make the Sutherland Masonic Center (Sutherland Lodge building) a smoke-free building. Most, if not all, lodge buildings in the district are smoke-free.
And for those of you who missed this meeting, you missed a really fine dinner of fried turkey, baked ham, green bean casserole, stuffing, gravy and home-made pecan pie for dessert.
THANKS
To our brother Bill Sumansky who provided and installed a fence and gate to the back and side lot of our lodge property.
SO LONG
To our brother Steve Pellicos who is transferring down to Dunedin Lodge. We wish him well and hope he visits us often.
UPCOMING MASONIC EVENTS
DECEMBER EVENTS
December 4, 2007 (7:30 PM) – East Gate Lodge Stated Communication. Special notice to East Gate members. This meeting is election of officers for 2008. Installation of officers will be on January 5, 2008 at 1:00 PM. Please plan to attend both of these important events. Also note that our January meeting will be moved to the second Tuesday, January 8, 2008, because of New Years Day. Dinner will be served at 6:45 PM and the meeting will be at 7:30 PM.
December 11, 2007 (11:30 AM) - North Pinellas Scottish Rite Club meeting. All masons and their guests are welcome. You do not have to be a member of Scottish Rite to attend. Among the items of business will be the election of officers for 2008. The guest speaker is LTJG Kimberly Hess, USCG Air Station Clearwater, who will describe the general mission of the Air Station. LTJG Hess is a HH-60 Jayhawk helicopter pilot and is also Public Affairs Officer at the Air Station. Call Kenneth R. James, Sr., 33º at 727.784.3858 for lunch menu & cost and to make reservations.
December 11, 2007 (7:30 PM) – Sutherland Lodge officer meeting. All members are invited.
December 18, 2007 (7:30 PM) - Sutherland Lodge Stated Communication. Dinner will be served beginning at 6:30 PM. The main course is hot roast beef sandwiches. This Communication is also election of officers for 2008. Please consult your Trestleboard (printed or online, or view the officers listed on the website) to see who the current officers are and come and vote for your choice of leadership for your lodge. Also tonight is our annual Past Masters Appreciation Night. All Sutherland Lodge Past Masters are invited and will be thanked for their contributions to Sutherland Lodge. This is an opportunity to renew old acquaintances with brothers you’ve not seen for a while and make some new ones.
JANUARY EVENTS
January 1, 2008 (7:30 PM) – East Gate’s Stated Communication will be on the second Tuesday (January 8, 2008) because of New Years Day.
January 5, 2008 (1:00 PM, Saturday) - Sutherland Lodge and East Gate Lodge will hold a joint installation of officers at Sutherland Masonic Center. Please note we erred in our last eNews and had an incorrect date. The correct date is Saturday, January 5, 2008.
January 7, 2008 (7:30 PM, Monday) - Sutherland Lodge officer meeting is moved up one day to allow East Gate Lodge to move their Stated Communication from the first Tuesday (New Years Day) to the second Tuesday. As is customary, all members are invited to the officer meeting.
January 8, 2008 (11:30 AM) - North Pinellas Scottish Rite Club meeting. All Scottish Rite masons and their guests welcome. You do not have to be a member of Scottish Rite to attend. The guest speaker is Major Alexis M. Davis of the Pinellas County Sheriffs Department. Major Davis is the Bureau Commander of the Detention & Corrections Bureau (the jail). Call Kenneth R. James, Sr., 33º at 727.784.3858 for lunch menu & cost and to make reservations.
January 8, 2008 (7:30 PM) - East Gate Lodge Stated Communication.
January 15, 2008 (7:30 PM) - Sutherland Lodge Stated Communication. Dinner will be served beginning at 6:30 PM.
MASONIC LINKS
Grand Lodge of Florida http://www.glflamason.org/
Valley of Tampa Scottish Rite http://www.srtampa.org/
Clearwater York Rite http://yorkriteclw.org/
Ask a Freemason (Grand Lodge of Massachusetts) http://www.askafreemason.org/
DID YOU KNOW?
We all know of the 22 Crippled Children’s and Burns Hospitals of the Shrine, but did you know the Scottish Rite, SJ, has two Children’s Hospitals, one in Atlanta, Georgia and one in Dallas, Texas. For more on the hospitals visit http://www.choa.org (Georgia) and http://www.tsrhc.org (Texas).
G. I. CARE PACKAGES
We are still collecting items for the G.I. Care Packages we are sending to Iraq & Afghanistan. Batteries (AA 4 packs especially), hand wipes, small sealed food items are most appreciated. Also donations to the postage fund for the G.I. Care Packages is appreciated. This is an ongoing Sutherland Lodge project we have been doing for several years. One of our lodge members is stationed in Iraq (Army).
We are saddened by the deaths of two members of our fraternity.
R:.W:. Billy Rhoades, who served Freemasonry and the Grand Lodge of Florida as Grand Treasurer for many years, passed away on November 6, 2007.
Brother John Harrell passed away on November 8, 2007 in Dade City, Florida. Brother Harrell was a 41 year member of Sutherland Lodge.
SPECIAL NOTICE
At our November 20, 2007 Stated Communication, Sutherland Lodge will vote on a proposal to make the lodge building smoke-free. All members of Sutherland Lodge are encouraged to participate in the discussion and vote. Please note below that our November meeting will be held in the dining room on the ground floor of the lodge building.
UPCOMING MASONIC EVENTS
NOVEMBER EVENTS
November 20, 2007 (7:30 PM) - Sutherland Lodge Stated Communication. Dinner will be served beginning at 6:30 PM. The main course is fried chicken and mashed potatoes. Note: This meeting will be held on the ground floor in the dining room. For our brothers who have difficulty navigating the stairs up to the Lodgeroom, we send a special invitation to attend this meeting. If you need a ride to lodge, please call Worshipful Ken Warner at 727.742.2678. Also, if you know of a brother who hasn’t attended lodge for a while, please call him, tell him we’re meeting on the ground floor and invite him to lodge. After the meal, the dining room will be set up as a lodgeroom and tyled accordingly.
November 27, 2007 (7:30 PM) – Sutherland Lodge Master Mason Degree. A Called Communication for the purpose of raising FC Brothers Donald Milo Lasell and Jason R. Schultz. Refreshments will be served between the first and second section.
DECEMBER EVENTS
December 4, 2007 (7:30 PM) – East Gate Lodge Stated Communication.
December 11, 2007 (11:30 AM) - North Pinellas Scottish Rite Club meeting. All Scottish Rite masons and their guests welcome. You do not have to be a member of Scottish Rite to attend. Among the items of business will be the election of officers for 2008. The guest speaker is LTJG Kimberly Hess, USCG Air Station Clearwater, who will describe the general mission of the Air Station. LTJG Hess is a HH-60 Jayhawk (USCG version of the Air Force Pave Hawk Combat Search and Rescue) helicopter pilot and is Public Affairs Officer at the Air Station. Call Kenneth R. James, Sr., 33º at 727.784.3858 for lunch menu & cost and to make reservations.
December 11, 2007 (7:30 PM) – Sutherland Lodge officer meeting. All members are invited.
December 18, 2007 (7:30 PM) - Sutherland Lodge Stated Communication. Dinner will be served beginning at 6:30 PM. The main course is hot roast beef sandwiches. This Communication is election of officers for 2008. Please consult your Trestleboard (printed or online) to see the current officers and come and vote for your choice of leadership for your lodge. Also tonight is our annual Past Masters Appreciation Night. All Sutherland Lodge Past Masters will receive an invitation and will be thanked for their contributions to Sutherland Lodge. This is also an opportunity to renew old acquaintances with brothers you’ve not seen for a while and make some new ones.
INSTALLATION OF OFFICERS
January 6, 2008 (1:00 PM) – Sutherland Lodge and East Gate Lodge will hold a joint installation of officers at Sutherland Masonic Center (Sutherland Lodge Building) on Saturday, January 6, 2008. This event will be updated in the next several eNews bulletins.
MASONIC LINKS
Grand Lodge of Florida http://www.glflamason.org/
Valley of Tampa Scottish Rite http://www.srtampa.org/
Clearwater York Rite http://yorkriteclw.org/
Ask a Freemason (Grand Lodge of Massachusetts) http://www.askafreemason.org/
DID YOU KNOW?
Mackey’s list of Masonic landmarks (numbering 25) was written in October, 1858.
U.S. Grand Lodges that have adopted landmarks, have adopted anywhere from 3 to 54, and of course, all have adopted different landmarks. At the same time, almost all jurisdictions refer to landmarks as things that define what Freemasonry is, and that they are unchangeable; so, by implication, there should be universal agreement about what the landmarks are, and how many there are, but in practice this is obviously not true. Perhaps, as some Masonic writers have said, it is up to each Freemason to individually determine for himself what Freemasonry is, and what its meaning, ideals, and principles are.
The Grand Lodge of Florida Constitution Article 13, Sec. 2, lists 10 landmarks, and then says, “The recognition of the above as Landmarks shall not be construed to mean or imply that this Grand Lodge is in any wise prohibited from recognizing, from time to time, hereafter, by appropriate amendment hereto, other principles, precepts, practices or tenets of Freemasonry as being Landmarks, nor is this Grand Lodge prohibited from reconsidering and, if deemed proper, withdrawing, this recognition of any of the above.”
For more information on the Landmarks of Freemasonry, please visit http://bessel.org/landmark.htm. This, of course, is only one source on the Landmarks of Freemasonry.
September 25, 2007 - A joint Fellowcraft Degree (Sutherland Lodge & Tampa Bay Lodge was held at Sutherland Lodge. Brothers Donald Milo Lasell and Jason Richard Schultz (son-in-law of Don Scofield), and Brother Justin James Clark from Tampa Bay Lodge were passed to the Fellowcraft Degree and are beginning their catechism in anticipation of becoming Master Masons soon. Masons from five Grand Jurisdictions (other than Florida) were present that evening.
October 6, 2007 - Gulf Beach Lodge and Sutherland Lodge combined to host a Masonic Bowling Challenge. Flyers were distributed at the Suncoast Masters and Wardens inviting all from Districts 20 + 21. Approximately twenty five brothers, wives, and kids shared in the food, fun and fellowship. One of the teams from Gulf Beach took home the Winning Team trophy.
UPCOMING MASONIC EVENTS
OCTOBER EVENTS
October 13 (Saturday), 2007 (10:00) – Entered Apprentice Degree at Sutherland Lodge. A joint Entered Apprentice Degree will be held at Sutherland Lodge. Mr. Randall Scott Marcum (of Sutherland Lodge) and Messrs. Peter William Copp, David Wayne Perrego and Brian Allen Stover (of Tampa Bay Lodge) will be initiated into the fraternity.
October 13 (Saturday), 2007 (1:00 – 5:00 PM) - BBQ Fundraiser at Sutherland Masonic Center. Ken James, Sr.’s famous BBQ.
October 16, 2007 (7:30 PM) – Sutherland Lodge Stated Communication. A succulent, gourmet dinner of Fried Chicken, Mashed Potatoes and Beans will be served starting at 6:30 PM. An important topic of discussion will be our Centennial Celebration in 2009. The core components of this celebration have been proposed. You are encouraged to attend and provide your input to this important milestone of our lodge.
October 30, 2007 (7:30 PM) – Annual Shrine Master Mason Night with the Past Masters Unit from Egypt Shrine to be held at Clearwater Lodge. A Fellowcraft from Tampa Bay 252 (R. James Rocha, PM of 252 is Potentate of Egypt Shrine) and perhaps one or more Fellowcrafts from other North Pinellas lodges are to be raised.
NOVEMBER EVENTS
November 6, 2007 (7:30 PM) – East Gate Lodge Stated Communication.
November 13, 2007 (11:30 AM) - North Pinellas Scottish Rite Club meeting. All Scottish Rite masons and their guests welcome. You do not have to be a member of Scottish Rite to attend. The guest speaker will be Dr. Heyward Mathews of St. Petersburg College, Natural Sciences Department will speak on marine reefs, both natural and artificial, and their affect on the environment. Call Kenneth R. James, Sr., 33º at 727.784.3858 for lunch menu & cost and to make reservations.
November 13, 2007 (7:30 PM) – Sutherland Lodge officer meeting. All members are invited.
November 20, 2007 (7:30 PM) - Sutherland Lodge Stated Communication. Dinner will be served beginning at 6:30 PM. The menu will be announced in our next eNews.
One of Detroit, Michigan’s most captivating and beautifully designed buildings sits at the corner of Second and Temple.
It is The Masonic of Detroit (that’s its name), 14 stories tall and eye-catching with its Gothic Revival architecture.
Some interesting tidbits include:
The building’s original design was in the shape of a hammer (gavel).
The cornerstone was laid in Sept. 18, 1922 using the same trowel George Washington used when he laid the cornerstone at the nation’s capitol in Washington D.C.
The building is about 600,000 square feet of usable floor space in 1,037 rooms.
At 12 million cubic feet, it is the largest and most complete building of its kind in the world (at the time of its construction). The concrete foundations go nearly three stories below ground level and vary from 6 to 34 feet by 6 feet in depth.
The sixth floor is home to a painting of George Washington, originally done in 1856 by the same artist who did the famous painting of Washington crossing the Delaware.
The Ritualistic Building, or fourteen story tower, provides a home for twenty-six Blue Lodges, the Consistory, two Commanderies, five Chapters and the Council.
There are lodges in the building that have been meeting (somewhere) since 1764.
For more information visit http://www.themasonic.com.
G. I. CARE PACKAGES
We are still collecting items for the G.I. Care Packages we are sending to Iraq & Afghanistan. Batteries (AA 4 packs especially), hand wipes, small sealed food items are most appreciated. Also donations to the postage fund for the G.I. Care Packages is appreciated. This is an ongoing Sutherland Lodge project we have been doing for several years. One of our lodge members is stationed in Iraq (Army).
JOIN SUTHERLAND eNEWS
Sutherland eNews is an “opt-in” mailing list for those interested in receiving news about Sutherland Lodge and Freemasonry in North Pinellas County. Members of Sutherland Lodge are automatically subscribers. Other distinguished masons are included on the mailing list from time to time and we encourage you to subscribe. You do not have to be a member of Sutherland Lodge to sign up for Sutherland eNews. If you have not already done so, we encourage you to subscribe.
To subscribe to the Sutherland eNews, simply send an email to eNews@sutherlandlodge.org with the word “subscribe” (without the quotes) in the subject line. Please also include your lodge name and number (if one) in the body of the message. You must send this email using the email address to which you want the Sutherland eNews sent. This will confirm that you are subscribing and that someone is just not submitting your email address, perhaps without your knowledge or approval.
You will then receive notices of upcoming events (like reminders of Stated Communications as well as announcements of Called Communications including Degrees, ritual practice, Masonic education programs, Masonic social events, etc.). You will also receive notice when the Sutherland Lodge electronic trestleboard is posted on the website and ready for viewing or downloading.
To unsubscribe from Sutherland eNews, just send an email to eNews@sutherlandlodge.org with the word “unsubscribe” (without the quotes) in the subject line. As when you subscribed, you must send your unsubscribe email from the same email address you are unsubscribing. This will confirm that you are unsubscribing and that someone else is doing it without your knowledge or approval.
Both the current and recent Trestleboards can be found on the website. You may log on to the website and click on the Trestleboard link or go directly to the Trestleboard page at http://www.sutherlandlodge.org/pages/trestle.htm.
If you are a recipient of Sutherland Lodge’s printed trestleboard and have signed up for eNews, you may also request to NOT receive a printed Trestleboard. Receiving only the electronic version of the trestleboard will help the lodge with printing and postage costs. If you do elect to not receive a printed trestleboard, remember that if you unsubscribe from the eNews, to request to again be placed on the printed trestleboard list.
EDITOR’S NOTE
Sutherland eNews is generally published twice monthly. Its mission is to publish events relevant to Sutherland Lodge and, as information is submitted to us, Craft Masonry in Palm Harbor including the Grand Lodge of Florida events, Masonic events of a public nature in North Pinellas County, and community events in Palm Harbor. We also publish a link to Allied and Appendant Masonic Body websites.
Anyone having comments or suggestions about Sutherland eNews, or the Sutherland Lodge website, may email the eNews Editor at eNews@sutherlandlodge.org, or the webmaster at webmaster@sutherlandlodge.org.
