Deep Thoughts

I have a few questions to ask each Brother here, they may have been asked but since the rise of members I thought I would ask again.

1. What do you plan to get out of Masonry? What makes your journey successfull.

2. What do you LOVE about your Lodge?

3. What do you dislike about your Lodge?

4. When you get down what "recharges" the batteries?

5. What would you like to contribute to your Lodge?

6. What roll does your Lodge have? Community Involvement, Family, Esoteric, etc.

7. What makes your Lodge different than anyother Lodge?

1. What do you plan to get out of Masonry? What makes your journey successfull.

--I do not have any specific plan. I enjoy Masonry very much, and I guess you would say, that I plan to continue enjoying the brotherhood, and the friendships.

2. What do you LOVE about your Lodge?

--I have not attended my lodge in many years. My mother lodge is in Bowling Green KY, and I work overseas, and I reside in Virginia. I love the fact that my father is a member there, and that he officiated at my raising.

3. What do you dislike about your Lodge?

--I dislike the fact, that my lodge has been so slow to take on the challenges of the 21st century. We do not have a web page. We do not have an answering machine on the telephone. We have no community outreach. Our membership base is declining every year, and the average age of the membership is increasing every year. We have many of the same problems that other lodges have.

4. When you get down what "recharges" the batteries?

--I love to visit lodges. I have visited lodges in 13 states, Washington DC, and five foreign countries.

5. What would you like to contribute to your Lodge?

--If they ever got permission to serve alcohol, I would purchase the first keg of beer.

6. What roll does your Lodge have? Community Involvement, Family, Esoteric, etc.

--Zippo, nothing, no role at all. Our lodge is not interested in getting involved in any such activity.

7. What makes your Lodge different than any other Lodge?

--My lodge is like many other lodges. Mired in tradition, afraid to try anything new. The problem is, we are no different from the problems that are taking Masonry down the short road to extinction.
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1. What do you plan to get out of Masonry? What makes your journey successful.
I guess on this I must say it is ongoing, when I think up cup is full it starts running over; WOW I love this great old fraternity.

2. What do you LOVE about your Lodge?
That’s easy, the brothers that make up Masonry.

3. What do you dislike about your Lodge?
That we are not having more young men coming into the fraternity.

4. When you get down what "recharges" the batteries?
To see a brother come up to the plate and take on a task he would not have done before.

5. What would you like to contribute to your Lodge?
More of myself.

6. What roll does your Lodge have? Community Involvement, Family, Esoteric, etc.
Family

7. What makes your Lodge different than another Lodge?
It's membership, each member is youneck unto himself.

1. What do you plan to get out of Masonry? What makes your journey successful.

* What I get is a philosophy for living that continues to teach me and make me a better man. This is what makes the journey and ongoing success. No matter what I know, there is more to learn and Freemasonry continues to speak to me.

2. What do you LOVE about your Lodge?
* I love that my Lodge doesn't take it's self to seriously but still shows reverence for the Mysteries.

3. What do you dislike about your Lodge?
* Hawaiian Shirts

4. When you get down what "recharges" the batteries?
*Talking with will informed Brethren. Pike helps to with a small amount of aid from Glenmorangie.


5. What would you like to contribute to your Lodge?
*More Light


6. What roll does your Lodge have? Community Involvement, Family, Esoteric, etc.
*We give about a grand to a local charity plus we're known for our work. Nothing fancy, but sure nice to call home.

7. What makes your Lodge different than any other Lodge?
* The sense of brotherhood and the shared path.

1. What do you plan to get out of Masonry? What makes your journey successfull.

Foremost, the result of what Masonry gets out of me. In a world-wide, ancient fraternity, my impact is minimal, but I intend to make it a maximal as I can. If that means ONE person, whether child, widow, or simply another Brother benefits from my Masonic membership, then I am pleased. However, it is my highest hopes that I can help to convince the world of it's good effect.

2. What do you LOVE about your Lodge?
Our heritage is something about which I'm proud. Three Texas Governors, several senators, and a variety of other successful men met upon the level at Waco 92. Charles Goodnight's mentor, Clairborne Varner, was our first Worshipful Master and our Lodge is the oldest continuous organization in Waco. Our main lobby is surrounded by photos including every single one of our Past Masters and as you walk along that pedigree, you find dozens of names that you'll easy find on street signs, medical centers, sports complexes, and many more places around Waco.

3. What do you dislike about your Lodge?
The lack of involvement from the majority of our members is concerning but in all honesty, I wouldn't say I "dislike" a single thing about my Lodge. Every week, I find myself earnestly looking forward to Thursday nights. It doesn't matter if it is the stated meeting, a called meeting, or just a practice night, I THOROUGHLY enjoy every moment spent in that stupendous edifice.

4. When you get down what "recharges" the batteries?
A quick recollection of where I am, who I'm with, and what we're there for.


5. What would you like to contribute to your Lodge?
Decades of positive influence. I'm the newest addition to the "lineup" and I truly look forward to every year I spend in a chair, but half a century from now, when a Brother looks up at that aforementioned line of Past Masters and sees my face, I hope he thinks not of my time as Worshipful Master, but of at least onne way that I directly impacted his happiness and the prosperity of the Lodge as well as my eagerness to receive more light regardless of whether I was the Senior Warden, Worshipful Master, or any other position in Masonry that often comes with great honor.

6. What roll does your Lodge have? Community Involvement, Family, Esoteric, etc.
Esoterically, most of our active members strive to execute the work and degrees with the greatest amount of accuracy. Family- Our monthly Fish Fry and occasional open Lodge events allow excellent opportunities to spend quality time with our own familiese as well as mingling with those of our Brothers; we do our best to take care of our widows and in fact, many of them take care of us in the form of delicious desserts at our meetings. Our community involvement isn't as hands-on or direct as I would like it to be, but we are moving in the right direction. We regularly donate to various causes around the community. Once again, our Fish Fry's open the Lodge up to the community and allows for a safe night of fun for anyone who cares to join us and the impact on the community from our individual Brothers, both past and present, is actually quite immense.

7. What makes your Lodge different than anyother Lodge?
In the early part of 20th Century, Waco 92 gained quite a bit of fame in the Texas Masonic world when it became the first Lodge to incorporate musical degree ceremonies. The musical degrees were so pleasantly received that our work was published and offered to many Lodges around Texas and it was reported that every musical degree at Waco 92 filled the room with spectators. Many other neat tales and aspects of our Lodge make it quite unique and can be found here: Home Page of Waco Masonic Lodge #92, Waco, TX

Alright, couple of stout drinks in me, so here we go...

1. What do you plan to get out of Masonry? What makes your journey successfull.

Good friends, insight into life's mysteries, a little bit of maturity, etc.

2. What do you LOVE about your Lodge?

#148: Big, beautiful building, oldest charter in Tarrant County, hard headed old men that have taught me a lot.

#942: Awesome guys that aren't so hard headed, open minds, have their own building.

3. What do you dislike about your Lodge?

#148: Said beautiful building is shared with quite a few other lodges/bodies, restricting time we can spend there, getting kicked out at 9 pm, internal issues older than I am.

#942: Nothing yet.

4. When you get down what "recharges" the batteries?

Sleep, drink, hanging out with the guys, going to see a degree somewhere else.

5. What would you like to contribute to your Lodge?

You mean I have to contribute more?

6. What roll does your Lodge have? Community Involvement, Family, Esoteric, etc.

#148: Gets to do some cool historic stuff, thanks to one of our Past Masters, other than that, not much.

#942: Getting that stuff going now.

7. What makes your Lodge different than anyother Lodge?

Me.

1. What do you plan to get out of Masonry? What makes your journey successful.
Most of the mason that interacted in my life before I became a mason were upstanding respectable, honorable men. I hope that some day I can be as positive of an influence as some of the men I have meet over the years. I personally think that masonry goes hand in hand with my faith and is also strengthening my spiritual walk with the God up above.


2. What do you LOVE about your Lodge? Friendship, relaxed atmosphere, brothers who go out of there way for you.

3. What do you dislike about your Lodge? I know I should have something to put down here but off the top of my head I can't think of anything.

4. When you get down what "recharges" the batteries? Relatively new to masonry and have not had this issue yet.

5. What would you like to contribute to your Lodge?
Relief to the brothers who are constantly doing the degree work, Growth, increased activities outside of practice, degrees, stated meetings (I think this is lacking),

6. What roll does your Lodge have? Community Involvement, Family, Esoteric, etc.
Masonic Santa, Food tubs during the holidays for needy families, Scholarships,

7. What makes your Lodge different than any other Lodge? I haven't visited any other lodges so I can not properly answer this question.

1. What do you plan to get out of Masonry? What makes your journey successfull.
It is a secrect if I told you, you would not "get it" anyway!!

2. What do you LOVE about your Lodge?
it is so quiet now!!

3. What do you dislike about your Lodge?
not much, Secretary is a rookie but a quck learner.

4. When you get down what "recharges" the batteries?
Putting on the Crown for the Masters degree nothing like letting Scott have it for his crappy job at JD in the degree!! LOL

5. What would you like to contribute to your Lodge?
Peace and harmony

6. What roll does your Lodge have? Community Involvement, Family, Esoteric, etc.
We all like degree work although Tom may only like the FC he still helps out in the others auctioneer style!

7. What makes your Lodge different than anyother Lodge?
We are the Mother Lodge of Tarrant county.

1. What do you plan to get out of Masonry? What makes your journey successfull.
Understanding, contributing and receiving being a better man

2. What do you LOVE about your Lodge?
1183 - Most of the members - the dedication to working they show and the desire to be 100% accurate in ritual work and degree presentation

1162 - The heritage - Steve Cooke was the vision behind the Ft Worth Temple the lodge is named for him and another PGM WW Peavy

3. What do you dislike about your Lodge?

1183 - The bad rap it gets from those less informed who have never been there, worked there, seen there but seem to know all about there.

1162 - The lack of active members (maybe that isn't all bad either)

4. When you get down what "recharges" the batteries?

Degree work, debating issues with my brothers

5. What would you like to contribute to your Lodge?

1183 - Education - management expertise - I enjoy the Educational job the WM has given me and I like to work on the opertional and organizational issues that make the lodge and lodge communication unwieldly.

1162 - Direction, it is rebuilding time, it needs to be promoted, visible and recruiting hard all the time.

6. What roll does your Lodge have? Community Involvement, Family, Esoteric, etc.
1183 - Raising Master Masons - contributing to the appendent bodies - we operate our degree presentations; floor schools and proficiency training with the goal of making Mason - well qualified Masons ready to contribute.

1162 - Contributing to the DeMolay and Rainbow

7. What makes your Lodge different than anyother Lodge?
1183 - The members, the passion, the lack of stodgy "Know it alls"; the attitude to "try this"

1162 - The location combined with the opportunity to grow this Lodge at a time when Masonry in TX is making a comeback allows us to concentrate on the Lodge growth without the temporal concerns.

1. What do you plan to get out of Masonry? What makes your journey successfull.

To make a difference and be part of something that brings people together.

2. What do you LOVE about your Lodge?

The history, friendship and support.

3. What do you dislike about your Lodge?

Lack of participation

4. When you get down what "recharges" the batteries?

This forum.

5. What would you like to contribute to your Lodge?

To bring back a sense of purpose. I want to bring MASONRY back. This included practice nights, conferring degrees, etc.

6. What roll does your Lodge have? Community Involvement, Family, Esoteric, etc.

Community builders award, scholarships, reading for bikes, etc

7. What makes your Lodge different than anyother Lodge?

Gonzales No. 30 has provided more Grand Masters of Texas than any other Lodge! (5) Also, the citizens of Gonzales were the only ones who answered Stephen F. Austin's call during the siege of the Alamo.

"Lack of participation" seems to be a recurring theme.