Honoring Senior Members

How does your lodge honor those that have 25,30,40,50,60 plus years in the lodge? How do you recognize the work and sweat in which they have put in for the many years? For example plaques, pins, benefit dinners etc.

In our lodge we have a ceremony to present various pins and these get mentioned in the monthly news letter from the Grand Lodge. I am a new MM and there may be additional benefits that I am not aware of.

At our Lodge the GM will, and has, driven four hours each way to present the kind of awards you are asking about.

More than one of my lodges present 25 year pins at the annual awards dinner. You have to show up to get yours. There's a stack in the secretary's desk if any show up at a stated meeting and ask for it.

Many GLs have a written presentation for the 50 year pin. I've seen them presented at Stated meetings, family dinners, district meetings and had the pedestal officers drive to the brother's home to present them.

Driving around the state presenting 60 and 75 year pins is something MWGMs do.

In our last stated meeting we had a Brother receive his 50 pin. His wife and family made a delicious, large meal for everyone before the meeting. At the meeting we opened and then immediately went from Labor to Refreshments so the family could come in and join the Brother. The WM presented him with his pin and framed certificate and then read the written presentation sent by the Grand Lodge. After that the Secretary discussed his Masonic history and talked about some highlight dates from throughout his 50 years. It was a really nice presentation. His family was able to take some pictures and then left and we went from Refreshments to Labor and finished out the meeting.

Thank you all of the insight as I plan to set something up for the senior members. One of the two oldest has taken me under his wing which I am forever grateful and plan to show my level of gratitude. The things in which I wanted to do are inline with everyone else and I was wondering how I needed to reach out to the grand lodge officials to get written letters and so forth but now I have a good idea. Please keep the comments coming and when it is complete I will come back and upload pictures as well.

It sounds like you mean honoring active members more than senior members. I've been to 50 year pin presentations for brothers who had not attended any lodge event before that in more than 20 years. Living Masonry out there in the public is real activity but it doesn't seem to be what you mean in this case.

GLs tend to have awards for activity. Mason of the Year, Lodge Builder, Community Builder, Hiram Award, Silver Trowel are some of the names I'vc seen for recognizing brothers who render service above and beyond the average.

The Grand Lodge of Maine does indeed have things in place to give awards to long-time Masons. Some of them have been active, and others not so much. Because I'm a line officer in my Blue Lodge and active in Scottish Rite and Chapter and a Dad Advisor for DeMolay, the Masons I tend to come in contact with are "active". In fact I just got a call from the President of our Trustees (and former W.M.) this morning to discuss Lodge business. Lodge is like everything else, especially like a parish church: 10 percent of the members do 90 percent of the work.

That being said, my father has not been a particularly active Mason though he holds the 32nd degree in the NMJ, but has always BEEN a Mason, and always behaved like one. I won't begrudge him his 50 year pin just because I'm active and he's less active. Heck, he comes to visit my lodge more than he goes to his own, and we are Massachusetts Consitory together.