JJones
Moderator
Let me start off by saying that I believe Masonic charity should start at the lodge. It well and good to donate a ton of money to charity but it seems to me that something is wrong if we can't help our own when they come into hard times.
We have two brethren at my lodge, a FC and an EA. One of them found out he lost his job today and the other has a kid on the way and is unsure how they're going to be able to get by. So my question is this: how can a lodge go about helping out it's brethren financially if it comes down to it? I've read where some lodges pass the hat around and ask for donations during stating meetings but I don't know if that's legal here in Texas and I'm not sure how effective it'd be anyhow. It could be brought up and voted on during stated meeting however I'd like to be able to avoid naming names and I'd also hate for the brethren to feel awkward about it as they sit and listen to the discussion.
I guess I'm just looking for thoughts and advise on the matter if anyone has two cents or more to toss in.
We have two brethren at my lodge, a FC and an EA. One of them found out he lost his job today and the other has a kid on the way and is unsure how they're going to be able to get by. So my question is this: how can a lodge go about helping out it's brethren financially if it comes down to it? I've read where some lodges pass the hat around and ask for donations during stating meetings but I don't know if that's legal here in Texas and I'm not sure how effective it'd be anyhow. It could be brought up and voted on during stated meeting however I'd like to be able to avoid naming names and I'd also hate for the brethren to feel awkward about it as they sit and listen to the discussion.
I guess I'm just looking for thoughts and advise on the matter if anyone has two cents or more to toss in.