Grand High Priest 11th District

Tonight was the Columbus reception for the  Grand High Priest Keith O'Dell. There was a great turnout of Grand Officers including PGHP Don Losasso, GM2V Rod Carr, GM3V Dan Smith and GCOH Keith Green. There were several awards presented and then a few words from our Grand High Priest. It was nice that it was over early so Rod, Keith and I had a few minutes to talk after the event.

 

70 year Lodge award presentation

While tonight was the service awards presentation for the Lodge, all the recipients said the main person of the evening was Merlyn Meridith who had made an impact on them as a Mason. Lion Heart-Heights Lodge in Lyndhurst near Cleveland was where the event was held. The dignitaries present were just too many to mention. It seems as though it was evident with a packed room and almost ever Grand Lodge Officer present, the reach of Dad Meredith is hard to measure. There is a reason he is a member of the DeMolay Hall of Fame in Ohio. I only hope if by some miracle I could make it seventy years that I would have a fraction of the number of persons present who felt like most of us felt tonight....that we were present for honoring of one of the greatest Masonic legends ever. 

Miami Valley KYCH Meeting

Tonight was our bi-annual KYCH meeting at TJ Chummps in Fairborn. We had a nice meal, good presentation on the Ohio Masonic Home by RWB Dan Shirk and a short meeting. Unfortunately, the turnout was a little light due to the viewing for MIC Richard Harless. I had planned to stop by the funeral home prior to our KYCH meeting but ended up getting out of work late.

Khana Shahar Grotto Meeting

Tonight I stopped in Springfield on my way home from to attend the stated Grotto meeting in Springfield. My home Grotto works very closely with them and tonight was an open night so I decided to attend their meeting. They had a good turnout including some non-officers. District Deputy Tom Bevington was also in attendance. They discussed several events including the possibility of doing a local Special Olympics events next year.

Greeters Meeting

Tonight was the stated monthly Greeters Meeting at the Shrine. Despite a Tornado touchdown just a few miles away and some torrential rain, the weather held off long enough to travel to and back home. We covered our normal business and discussed upcoming parades while leaving a little time for fellowship. It was nice that at least in our area the weather stayed nice after the meeting though I heard others around the state were not so lucky.

Memorial Day Weekend

Happy Memorial Day Weekend!

I'm planning on spending some time with the family as the activities I had planned to attend were all cancelled!

Ormus Grotto

Tonight was the stated meeting at our Grotto and the District Deputy visit. We discussed several items of business, one of them being some special events our Monarch Keith Newton wants to try to increase membership. We also discussed how we could increase participation and many of the ideas were "out-of-the-box" ideas. I'm hoping a few of the ideas will come to fruition as I think they will increase participation.

Trinity Chapter Stated

Tonight was the stated meeting for my home Chapter, Trinity, which is located in Miamisburg.  We had 14 present which I thought wasn't bad when it was only a stated meeting and a couple of officers were out of town.

Shrine Cabiri Dinner

Tonight around 30 Past Potentates and their wives met for dinner and a quick meeting at the Chop House. Everyone had a great time and despite it being a little "more expensive" location we had a good turnout. It goes to show when people know they are getting a little better food they are willing to pay for it. I also thought it was nice to get out of the boring stated meeting habit and try something different.

Wilmington Awaards Appreciation Night

Tonight the High Priest and Illustrious Master of Wilmington Chapter held a personal Awards Appreciation night to say thank you to those who supported him throughout the year. It was great event (with a fantastic dinner) and I think helped to inspire all in attendance to strive to work harder to keep all Masonic bodies going strong. James Taylor is a young and enthusiastic member of 3 years who definitely inspires many.

 

Miamisburg Shrine Parade

This morning was the Miamisburg Shrine parade and despite some rain before and after the parade, we had none during the parade. As this is my  hometown parade I try to make this every year. We always have a great turnout for this parade and this year was no different. The Mayor of Miamisburg is Dick Church who is a Past Potentate and member of my Lodge along with being a 33rd. They also have a great festival in conjunction with the parade which I went to last night and saw many members of our Lodge actively participating in the activities.

Work ... a four letter word

Well this week is crazy at work and they are even hinting I may need to head back to Dallas for a week or two next month. Luckily this time it is just lots of things going on and items to manage but not so stressful. Hopefully later this week I'll be back in the travel swing.....

3rd Arch Council Degree

As part of our area cooperation among the York Rite in our area we had the Royal and Select Master degree in Lebanon Ohio. (Two weeks ago the 3rd and 4th District each put on the Royal Arch degrees) Representatives from the 4th District included REC Ron Hart Grand Master 1st Veil. There were several Grand Council persons in attendance including 3rd Arch Inspector Mike Smith and Grand Illustrious Master Lynn Alexander. In general, the initial cast was mainly from Dayton and Middletown while the second cast was mainly from Wilmington. All who participated in bringing 8 new members into Council did a good job today. The best part is we were on the road headed out before noon.

13th District GHP Reception

Tonight was the Grand High Priest Reception in the 13th Capitular District held in Athens. The Grand Conductor of Council Matt Schlitter present in addition to several Grand Chapter persons. REC Ray Sharitts Grand Chaplain Emeritus, REC Rod Carr Grand Master 2nd Veil, EC Richard Smith Grand Aide and of course our Grand High Priest MEC Keith O'Dell. We had a nice meal fixed by the OES and then after dinner awards were presented and we then heard comments from the Grand High Priest. I was really nice that I was able to start on the trip back home prior to it being dark.

Shrine PM Club Meeting

Tonight I attended our Past Masters Club meeting at the Shrine. We covered several topics but one thing I ask was for them to consider if next year when we do the Chapter all degree day if they might like to do the PM degree. I reminded them that all would need to be members of Chapter. I see where it could end up as a win-win situation for both the Shrine and our Royal Arch District.

33rd Recognition Dinner

Tonight was the annual dinner before heading to Supreme Council to discuss the plans and to recognize those who are to receive their 33rd. This year the Supreme Council session will be close (in Indianapolis) but unfortunately I won't be able to attend as I don't have enough vacation time (especially since all my vacation days are already used for Masonic activities).  It is, however, nice to attend these dinners as often you see folks you haven't seen for a while. Tonight was no exception and we had several in attendance who had been under the weather lately along with many of the leaders from the York Rite who I see quite regularly. It was also nice to have a night where it is more social than anything else and is being held with the wives in attendance.

Past District Deputy Grand Master Meeting

Every quarter the Past District Deputies in the 2nd Masonic District get together and discuss what they can do to help out the district along with making sure they are aware of upcoming events. It is also a good time for the PDDGM's learn about changes in the way things are being done at a Grand Lodge level. Tonight was that dinner meeting and as always it was beneficial to have the current DDGMs present so they could share updates going on in the District. We also discussed Lodges who might be in trouble and what the PDDGMs might do to help out those Lodges. We are doing the same thing in our Chapter District only with PDGHPs and hoping to use it to help out the Chapters as well.

Grand Family Meeting

Today the Grand officers got together along with the Past Grand High Priests for some future planning in Delaware Ohio. While the meeting may have been relatively quick, I think it is good for the officers to get together to plan as often the regular meetings are focused on current issues and progress. 

Ohio Grotto Meeting and 9th District Grand High Priest Reception

Today started out a little later than I had planned as originally I was going to Mansfield first to hear our Grand King's program again and then head over to the Ohio Grotto Association Meeting. Since I left late I had to head  straight over to the Grotto Meeting in Mansfield. The meeting moved along at its normal pace as we heard from Bernie Mitchell Past Grand Monarch and Grand Line member from Ohio Mark McCombs. Our President Bruce Seaburn ran a nice meeting. After leaving the meeting in Mansfield I headed up to Norwalk for the Grand High Priest Reception. They had a nice crowd and REC Jeff Addis Grand Scribe and REC Robert Blankenhorn Grnd King were also present in addition to out Grand High Priest MEC Keith O'Dell. After a good dinner, we headed to the Lodge room for awards and a nice talk by our Grand High Priest. I was nice to be leaving before the sun went down but I knew we wouldn't make it home until long after it went down.

3rd District Annual Meeting

Tonight was the 3rd Capitular District Annual meeting and dinner. We had a nice dinner after which we headed up stairs to cover the necessary business of the District and to elect new officers. We had a full slate of officers elected and it was good to see MEC Jerry Crawford present who had been having some health issue lately.  After conducting the business of the evening we all headed home from West Carrolton and Friendship Chapter.