Hello brothers,
I have returned home from two days at the 208th Annual Grand Lodge Communications at the Dayton Masonic Center. We had a great time during the proceedings and I really enjoyed touring this incredible building. If you have not had the opportunity to see the Masonic Center, you can get a glimpse of it online and a brief history here: http://daytonmasonicfoundation.org/
Proposed legislation was minimal this year, with only three items up for consideration. The first being 2017-1, asking to reinstate the phrasing in Section 11.05 which was a previous ban on all gambling, raffles, etc,. This was overwhelming voted down. Proposed legislation 2017-A, asking to make changes the wording for Honorary and Plural Memberships in Sec 29.03 and 29.04 was held over until 2018 after a vote was cast to remove the request for immediate consideration. Proposed legislation 2017-B, changing chapter 34.02 on the use of alcohol in the building, was held over until 2018 as the request for immediate consideration encountered 25 "no" votes. I will bring a copy of the published proceedings to Lodge during our November meeting if anyone cares to review the committee reports. I expect that the Grand Lodge of Ohio will make them available online as well.
Your new Grand Lodge Officers for 2018 are:
Eric R. Schau / Grand Master
Jess N. Raines / Deputy Grand Master
Keith W. Newton / Senior Grand Warden
Richard A. Dickerscheid / Junior Grand Warden
Steven E. Cokonougher / Grand Treasurer
C. Michael Watson / Grand Secretary
Robert D. Stands / Grand Chaplain
Timothy S. Wheeland / Grand Orator
Steven M. Grindle / Grand Marshal
Paul A. Weglage / Senior Grand Deacon
William M. (Bill) Carter III / Junior Grand Deacon
Ronald L. Runion / Grand Tyler
Closer to home, your Grand Lodge appointed district officers for 2018 are:
Paul Kelly (Bryan) / D.D.G.M.
Robert "Joe" Stotler, Jr (Hicksville) / D.D.G.M.
Dan Hall (Omega) / D.E.O.
Marty Lawrence (Sycamore) / D.E.O.
Matt Gloor (Liberty Center) / District Adviser
The next Grand Lodge Communications date is set for October 12-13, 2018, at Kalahari Resort in Sandusky.
On a fun note, there was an art exhibit that just opened at the Dayton Art Institute, which is located right next to the Masonic Center. It features the works of Alphonse Mucha, a popular name in Art Nouveau in the early 1900's. He was also the Grand Master of Freemasons in Czechoslovakia and had Masonic influences in some of his work. The irony is that everyone I talked to at Grand Lodge seemed to have no knowledge it was going on right next door. My wife and I really enjoyed the exhibit though. More information on the artist can be found here:
Best Regards, and I hope to see you at our November stated meeting for Officer elections.