Official Publication of The Grand Lodge of Ancient,. Free &. Accepted Masons of North Carolina
is
VOL. CXII - NO. 12
Oxford, North Carolina
December, 1988
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Grand Master’s Message
As we approach the end of the year 1988 it seems an appropriate time to reflect on the accomplishments of the
Masonic Fraternity this year. It is also an appropriate time to review those things we have not been able to accomplish.
But the important thing for us to remember is that we should always look with anticipation to a new year filled with
opportunities for greater achievements in behalf of humanity. The challenges of the future are much more attainable if
we approach them on the basis of lessons learned by past experience and with an awareness of the needs that exist in
The 70,000 Masons who are members of the 394
Subordinate Lodges within the Grand Jurisdiction of
North Carolina constitute one of the great influences for
good in our society. Perhaps we should examine some of
the programs our Fraternity is engaged in for the
betterment of mankind:
1. Oxford Orphanage was opened in 1873 as a home
for needy children operated by the Masons of North
Carolina. More than 6,000 children have made Oxford
Orphanage their home since the day it was opened. The
annual operating cost is approximately two and one-half
million dollars. The Masons of North Carolina have
always assumed responsibility for providing for indigent
and needy children at Oxford Orphanage. As we look to
1989, we should be challenged as individual Masons and
as Masonic Lodges to continue and increase our support
for this great facility.
2. The Masonic and Eastern Star Home in Greensboro
was opened three-quarters of a century ago at
Greensboro. On January 7, 1989, we will celebrate the
seventy-fifth anniversary in commemoration of this
milestone of our history.
Today, seventy-five years later, there is a waiting list of
over 100 of our older brothers and sisters who have been
L. R. Thomas, Jr., Grand Master
approved for admission to the Home; but unfortunately, there is no available space for them at this time. One of the
great challenges facing the Masons of North Carolina in 1989 is to raise funds for an expansion of the Care Center at
the Masonic and Eastern Star Home. This would provide more space and upon its completion, make it possible to
admit one-third of those on the current waiting list. The continued and increased support of the Masonic and Eastern
Star Home should merit the attention of every Mason in this Grand Jurisdiction.
3. The North Carolina Masonic Foundation exists to provide an Endowment Fund, the earnings of which are used
to supplement the operating expenses of Oxford Orphanage and the Masonic and Eastern Star Home. Out late
brother, Past Grand Master Nelson Banks, during his administration as Grand Master, established a goal of ten million
dollars for this Endowment Fund. The present fund balance is approximately half that amount. I am requesting the
newly elected Masters of the 394 Subordinate Lodges in North Carolina for the year 1989 to have your lodge conduct
at least one fund raising activity for the North Carolina Masonic Foundation during your administration. Only the
earnings of the North Carolina Masonic Foundation are spent. They are divided between Oxford Orphanage and the
Masonic and Eastern Star Home to aid in the ever increasing operating costs. Therefore, the fund itself is perpetual to
insure the future financial stability of those institutions.
I have outlined above a synopsis of the needs that exist in our three organized Masonic Charities — Oxford
Orphanage, the Masonic and Eastern Star Home and the North Carolina Masonic Foundation. As the year 1988 draws
to a close and the dawn of a new year approaches, let each of us as Master Masons resolve to expand our efforts in
behalf of these great institutions.
I wish for each of you and your families a Happy and Joyous Holiday Season and much Happiness and Prosperity
in the New Year.
Leadership Seminars Scheduled
for January/February
Aimed At Lodge Officers, But All Are Welcome
Diamond Jubilee at Home
Greensboro — The seventy-fifth anniversary
(DIAMOND JUBILEE) celebration of the founding of the
Masonic and Eastern Star Home will be held here
Saturday, January 7, 1989.
The gala occasion is being sponsored under the
auspices of the Grand Master of Masons of North
Carolina, L. R. Thomas, Jr., and the Grand Matron of
North Carolina Eastern Star, Viola Hardison.
Open house and guided tours of the Home will be held
Saturday between 1:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. to afford
visitors an opportunity to observe first hand the facilities
which provide excellent environmental and health care
for Masons and members of their families.
The main event of the celebration will be a banquet to
be held at 6:30 p.m. in the banquet hall of Holiday Inn,
Four Seasons, located on 1-40 at High Point Road,
Greensboro. Tickets for the banquet are $16.00 per
person and can be obtained by sending a check (payable
I plan to attend the banquet on January 7, 1989 and I am enclosing my check in the
amount of $for tickets at $16.00 each.
Name
Address
My Lodge (or Charter)
Make check payable to: Hilda S. Halliburton and mail to her at: P. 0. Box 286,
Connely Springs, NC 28612. Enclose a self-addressed, stamped envelope.
Something Borrowed...
From The Trestle Board of Gastonia Lodge 369:
We are not interested in keeping Masonry alive as an
organization, just for the sake of keeping it alive. We are
not interested in trying to justify our right to live today
because of something that happened a hundred years
ago, or a thousand years ago. Rather are we interested in
making the present so vital that it will give both meaning
and worth to all that the Masons of yesterday have done
to make the present possible. (Editor’s Note: The
author’s name was not given.)
To Be Observed January 7
to Hilda S. Halliburton, P.G.M.) together with a self-
addressed stamped envelope to Mrs. Hilda S.
Halliburton, P.G.M., P. O. Box 286, Connelly Springs,
North Carolina 28612.
Overnight accommodations are available at Holiday
Inn, Four Seasons and may be arranged by calling 1-800-
465-4329. A block of rooms have been reserved for
Masons and members of Eastern Star.
Round trip shuttle transportation will be provided from
Holiday Inn, Four Seasons to the Home on the hour
between 1:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. Saturday afternoon for
those who are staying at Holiday Inn and desire
transportation for the open house visitation.
The Grand Master and the Grand Matron strongly
urge and encourage all members to join in celebrating this
significant milestone in the history of our Masonic and
Eastern Star Home.
William C. Hilton, Past Grand Patron
From the Bulletin of Phoenix Lodge 8:
Secretary’s Dream
I fell asleep the other night
And while I had my snooze,
I dreamed each member stepped right up
And promptly paid his dues.
And when I found ’twas but a dream
I nearly threw a fit
It’s up to you to make it true . . .
Beginning the third Saturday in 1989, January 21, the
leadership seminars promised by Grand Master L. R.
Thomas, Jr. will commence. Although those presenting
the programs in the several regions will, of necessity, be
different Masons in each instance, the same format and
topics will be followed at each location and effort will be
made to ensure that each Mason attending these
seminars will hear the same message.
The initial series of seminars will utilize a total of twelve
locations on four Saturdays. On each of those Saturdays,
there will be a seminar in the western area of the state,
one in central North Carolina, and one in the east. This
setup provides a variety of choices for each Mason
needing or wishing to attend. The schedule of seminars
follows:
January 21 — Waynesville, Charlotte, Rocky Mount
February 4 — Boone, Asheboro, Washington
February 11 — Winston-Salem, Raleigh, Ahoskie
February 8 — Morganton, Fayetteville, Jacksonville
Each seminar will commence at 9:30 a.m. Following
registration, there will be a half-hour presentation on
‘’Preparing to be Master,” a half-hour presentation on
“THE CODE,” then a fifteen minute break at 10:45. At
11:00 the subject will be “Masonic Protocol and
Etiquette,” followed by “Public Relations” at 11:30.
Participants should go prepared to make notes of
questions that may occur to them during the several
presentations, as a half-hour question and answer
session will be provided at noon. Adjournment follows.
The seminars are designed specifically to assist lodge
William A. Hooks
Past Grand Master
Smithfield — William Arthur Hooks, one hundred-
twelfth Grand Master of Masons in North Carolina, died
November 2, just eleven days short of his seventy-ninth
birthday.
A native of Smithfield, “Bill” Hooks received his
education in the local public schools, at Oak Ridge
Military Institute, and at the University of North Carolina
at Chapel Hill. His first business experience was with a
saw mill in Virginia. Returning to Smithfield, he was
employed with Holt Oil Company, then began work with
Wright Aeronautical Corporation in New Jersey. Again
returning to Smithfield, he formed a partnership with his
brother-in-law, Clyde Layne, to purchase Holt Oil. They
later also established Hooks and Layne Tire Company.
He was also a real estate broker.
A member of Centenary United Methodist Church, he
served on the Board of Stewards and taught Sunday
School.
Past Grand Master Hooks saw service as a town
councilman and as president of the Chamber of
Commerce, being named “Distinguished Citizen of the
Year” in 1972 by the latter body. He was a former
president of East Carolina Oil Heat Council and in 1962
was named the person most responsible for the
advancement of the heating oil industry during 1961. He
was a member of the board of directors and the executive
committee of the National Oil Fuel Institute during
1962-64.
(Continued on Page Two)
officers in preparing themselves for advancement, and
each officer expecting and hoping to progress through
the chairs is urged to attend one or more of the seminars.
The 1989 Masters should attend also, as they will still
have the bulk of their terms before them and can profit
greatly from the knowledge and information gained
during a seminar.
All Masons, of whatever rank, are cordially invited to
attend. Even if you never wish or expect to hold lodge
office, the benefits of attending a seminar will aid in
rounding out your Masonic life.
Additional information concerning the seminars will be
contained in letters that will be mailed to each lodge. The
January issue of this paper will also carry the foregoing
information and any new information that may then be
available.
This schedule of seminars culminates months of
planning and preparation by the Grand Master’s
Committee on Masonic Research and Development, and
it is the most ambitious project yet undertaken by the
committee. The experience gained and the results
obtained from these initial twelve seminars will certainly
influence future planning and direction. The committee
was first appointed in 1987 by then Grand Master Eddie
P. Stiles, who met with it and largely guided its efforts
during his year. Grand Master Thomas continued the
committee and has also met with it during his term, being
particularly involved in the arrangements for the
upcoming seminars. A proposal to give the committee
permanent status will be voted upon during the Grand
Lodge Annual Communication in 1989.
The Amazing Grace
This issue of the paper marks the fourth consecutive
time we have carried an article concerning North
Carolina Masons that are also Eagle Scouts. (We use the
present tense because we are informed that “Once an
Eagle, always an Eagle,” and we readily accept that
statement.)
The information in those four articles is, we believe,
interesting and informative. Young men attaining the
rank of Eagle in the Boy Scout movement certainly
deserve our respect and admiration, and their high
standing is further enhanced when they become good
and loyal Masons. Thus it is interesting and informative to
other Masons to learn who are the Eagle/Masons in our
midst. The articles are providing exposure for men who
deserve exposure.
This whole business was kicked off by Brother
Kenneth H. Grace, out in California, and we began to
wonder just who was this Mason that is going to the
considerable trouble and expense of compiling a list of
Eagle Scout Masons in the United States. So we
consulted a good and trusted friend, Lieutenant General
and Brother Herman Nickerson, Jr. (USMC-Ret.), who
knows Brother Grace. Brother Nickerson had told us
some time ago that Brother Grace is known among his
friends as “The Amazing Grace,” and we wished to learn
why. Here’s why:
Ken Grace is a native of Canada and became a Scout
there in 1937, soon becoming a “King” Scout (Canadian
equivalent to our Eagle Scout). He served as Cubmaster
and as Scoutmaster in Canada, and was quickly drafted
for additional Scouting duties when he moved to Los
Angeles in 1956 to accept employment in the Aerospace
field.
He was given secret clearance even before he became
an American citizen in 1961, working on the F4 air data
computer, A3J, CF104 and F104, etc. (whatever all that
is). Anyway, he’s the guy that designed the castings, the
guts and other military hardware into those black boxes,
as well as the blood pressure measuring unit for the
astronauts’ flight testing. He retired with “Q” clearance
after twenty-nine and one-half years of service.
Brother Grace became a Mason in Inglewood-James
Kew Lodge No. 421 in El Segundo in 1958 and was its
Master in 1967, during which year he was also serving as
Scoutmaster and as Roundtable Chairman, all the while
carrying on with his considerable professional activities.
He also served the Grand Lodge of California as
Inspector (D.D.G.M.) for five years.
There is not space here to list all his Scouting, Masonic
and professional activities, but the foregoing gives some
idea as to why he is known as “The Amazing Grace.”
Anyway, the latest information General Nickerson had at
hand was five months old, and there is just no telling what
Brother Grace may have been doing since June.
One thing that Brother Nickerson neglected to tell us:
he is himself an Eagle Scout with Bronze Palm, which is
just part of the many qualifications that go into making
him a truly great American.