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OOe / NOveme 2011 m . g
https://www.freemason.org/index.htmhttps://www.freemason.org/index.htm8/3/2019 freemason20111011-dl
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Publication oard
rank Loui, grand master
llan L. Casalou, grand ecretary and
ditor-in-Chief
editorial Staff
Terry mendez, manain ditor
nel lvarez-mapp, Creative ditor
mean Brown, enior ditor
arah gilbert, ssistant Creative ditor
michelle ione, ssistant ditor
Photographyp. 3,2527: cott gilbert Photo
p. 11: Courtesy of the Henry W. Coil Libr
and museu of reeasonry
Illustration
Cover and feature Wayne Brezinka
p. 56, 8,13, 2021 Chen Desin ssocia
Dsign
Chen Desin ssociates
Officrs of th Grand Lodg
Grand Master rank Loui, California
o. 1, an rancisco o. 120
Deputy Grand Master John . Lowe,
Irvine Valley o. 671
Senior Grand Warden John L. Cooper
Culver City-oshay o. 467
Junior Grand Warden ussell . Charvo
Channel Islands o. 214Grand Treasurer m. Willia Holsiner, Pg
verreen o. 259
Grand Secretary llan L. Casalou,
calanes ellowship o. 480
Grand Lecturer Kenneth g. ael, Pg
Liberty o. 299
frason.org
CLII m
(UP 083-940) is published bionthly by the
Publishin Board and is the only official publication
of the grand Lode of ree and ccepted masons of
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rancisco, C 94108-2284.
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Publication Dates - Publication dates are the first da
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additional chare. thers are invited to subscribe fo
$2.00 a year or $2.75 outside of the United tates.
Perission to reprint Perission to reprint oriinal
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Phone: 800/831-8170 or
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Fee
The globes white spaces were lled in two generations ago, but theres
still plenty to learn about the world we live in. Modern-day explorer and
Caliornia Mason Jerome Nilmeier is lling in those gaps in knowledge by
charting new territory on a microscopic scale: Biophysics.
The World Within
14
2 XC U TIV m g
3 mmB PIL
4 I C L II
19 I C L II
5 OND e WOLDFrom Canadas ice-bound Northwest Passage to the sweltering
deserts o Arica, some o the greatest exploration o the past 300
years has been accomplished by Masons. Heres a roundup.
10 LODGe SPOLIGIn 1848, no Masonic charters existed in the then-Mexican
territory o Caliornia. This is the story o the arduous journeys
that brought the rst two charters to Caliornia.
12
mSONI eDION
At its core, Freemasonry is a journey that oten holds an
unknown destination or its many travelers. John Cooper
explores the timeless question, Whither are you traveling?
22 ISOAmerican explorers and Masons Meriwether Lewis and William
Clark opened the door not only to the nations western expansion,
but also to the growth o Freemasonry west o the Mississippi.
25 mSONI SSISNeSometimes, real lie seems ripped rom the pages o an adventure
novel. Read the incredible stories o three Homes residents.
5 10 2212
ONeNSvOLme 60 /// Nme 1 /// OOe/NOveme 2011
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Welcome to the start o a new Grand Lodge year, and
thank you or the honor and privilege o serving as
your Grand Master.
The theme this year is ConnectCommunicateCommit. Our
raternity was built on the idea o community, and it has thrived
through the power o connection o ellowship, and the bond
between people. Many members join because o our legacy o
community service.
With that in mind, I want us to get out o our lodge buildings
and connect with our communities. Lets not wait to introduce
ourselves to our neighbors and ask how we can help them. Letsmake a commitment to strengthen our communities.
One way well do this as a raternity is through my Grand
Masters Project, a partnership with Raising A Reader.
Raising A Readers red book bags have become a symbol or
early literacy throughout this country: The parent involvement
read aloud program provides a single amily with more than
100 high-quality childrens books a year, along with training
and support. The program has already instilled literacy skills
and a love o books in more than 800,000 children. We plan to
bring this program to Caliornia schools.
Its a well-documented, and rightening, act that many U.S.
states use third-grade reading skill levels to project how many
prisons theyre going to need 20 years down the line. To make
a dierence, we have to get involved early. Masons have al-
ways supported public education. Thats why our raternity
will raise unds to bring Raising A Reader to the most vulne
able and lowest-perorming elementary schools in our sta
Caliornia currently ranks near the bottom o the United Stat
in child literacy but we can change that. We can turn t
page or child literacy in Caliornia.
Literacy is an appropriate topic or this issue o Caliorn
Freemason magazine, which is dedicated to Masonic explore
past and present. When we talk about exploration today, w
dont necessarily mean nding the ruins o Machu Picchu discovering the source o the Nile; we mean expanding our
sion o the world. When we talk about the spirit o exploratio
we mean being open to new challenges.
We explore to make sense o the world around us, and
make sense o ourselves. As Masons, thats a quest near and de
to our hearts. For a young child, books are oten the rst step
cultivating that spirit o exploration.
Books can take us to ar-o places and teach us wonder
and surprising things. They spark our curiosity and help
dream bigger. The knowledge they hold shapes our understan
ing o the world, and our role in it. Early literacy not only givyoungsters the educational skills they need, but a sense o a
venture about learning.
We have a big year ahead o us. Lets approach it with a spi
o exploration: Lets push ourselves outside the comort zone
our lodge buildings and into our communities. And, throu
the power o books, lets expand the horizons o thousands
children in Caliornia. We can make a proound dierence
child literacy.
Frank Loui, Grand Master
The NextGreatAdventure
eXeIve meSSGe
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When Nicholas Wisniewski observes the world around him, he
sees things we dont. He sees the interplay o matter and energy;
gravity and quantum mechanics; geometric principles and el-
egant mathematical solutions.
As a physicist, Wisniewski is exploring something that may
trump all previous eats o exploration: Hes searching or a new
understanding o our existence.
When hes not at his job (by day, he researches high-level
methods o analysis or MRIs), he is developing a theory to
connect physics with neuroscience. One o physics principal
pursuits is nding a Theory o Everything a theory that linkstogether everything in the natural world. So Wisniewskis ideas
could change how we think about, well, everything.
As an academic, Wisniewski eels connected to the nomadic
liestyle o early operative Freemasons, and the philosophical
roots o the raternity. He is honoring the latter by developing
a new Masonic education program or his lodge, Liberal Arts
Lodge No. 677 in Los Angeles. The program eatures presen-
tations by local UCLA experts, on liberal arts themes such as
global civil society. So while Wisniewski is working on his
theory to connect Everything with the study o consciousness,
hes also enriching the consciousness o his lodge.
In his own words:
What dreW him to masonry:
Both my grandather and uncle were Masons, so it was in the
amily. I was eeling a sense o isolation, even within my circle
o colleagues. Thats why I joined Masonry.
In Masonry you get to interact with people
who have dierent ideas, but who share the
same general outlook on lie.
What motivates him at Work:
The mathematics itsel is extremely beau-
tiul. In all academia, you have to be able
to nd beauty in your work, or you will
quickly lose interest. But what drives me is
this: Everyone is contributing towards a col-
lective understanding. I want to contribute
towards that collective consciousness, too.
OctOber NOvember 2011 3
FeS OF mSON
Meet Nicholas WisNieWski,
Physicist, MasoN siNce 2009
by Laura Normand
meme POFILe
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Last spring, NASA received some unex-
pected news: middle school students rom
Cottonwood, Cali., had discovered a rare
cave opening on Mars.
The 16 students had been working extra
hours beore and ater school, during re-
cess and even over vacation on the Mars
Student Imaging Program (MSIP).
Across the nation, about 50,000 students
have participated in the program since
2004. The 2010 Evergreen Middle Schoolteam was the rst to make a discovery with
national impact.
Extraterrestrial credit
MSIP is run out o the Mars Space Flight
Facility at Arizona State University. It gives
seventh and eighth grade school students
access to NASA images, cameras, and even
science teams.
Each student team develops a yearlong
research project ocusing on geologic ea-
tures on Mars. They present their research
proposals and ndings remotely, via web
conerences with a NASA team.
The Evergreen students were investigat-
ing lava tubes, a common eature on both
the red planet and Earth, when they made
their discovery. Ater scouring some 200 NASA images o t
Mars landscape, they saw something unusual: a black dot ne
Mars Pavonis Mons volcano.
Support from Vesper Lodge
MSIP is only possible through unding by the school and co
munity. Vesper Lodge, located in nearby Red Blu, has becom
an important partner or Evergreen Middle Schools youspace explorers.
The partnership began when the lodge made a donation
the Caliornia Police Activities League. One o the league
daughters was in the MSIP program, and Vesper Lodge invit
the students to give a presentation at the lodge. According
Master Andrew Rieland, the brothers were blown away.
Our lodge was overwhelmingly in avor o supporting t
program, says Rieland. Part o it was the Strategic Plans oc
on supporting public schools. But it was also the concept. The
are basic, required courses or science but there is a step mi
ing: to build excitement. This is exciting stu.Vesper Lodge asked the program director how they cou
help, and received a wish list o equipment. The lodge donat
nearly $9,000 to provide that equipment.
Our criteria to spend lodge unds is always, Is this goi
to make a dierence? Rieland says. Few school districts c
und programs like these. Were lucky that ours can, and w
want to keep it going.
New era in exploration
The 2010 Evergreen students had discovered a rare skylig
cave, an area where the roo o a cave has collapsed. The site
now being considered or additional imaging by NASA.
Why is it signicant? The caves mild temperatures mean
can contain water, and water can mean lie on Mars. NASA
bots may someday explore the site.
These students are literally reaching out to another plane
Rieland says. This is exploration at a whole other level.
4
mIDDLe SOOLeSON mS
With helP froM VesPer
lodge, studeNts exPlore
the red PlaNet
by Laura Normand
IN LIFONI
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Maybe its the natural extension o Masonrys quest or knowl-
edge. Maybe its the raternitys draw towards something bigger,
something that shapes mankinds experience o the world.
Whatever the reasons, some o the greatest exploration dur-
ing the past 300 years has been accomplished by Masons.
Here, we prole several international Freemason explor-
ers whose stories o adventure and survival seem to border
on the impossible. (For their American counterparts, see this
storys sidebar.)
Shipwrecked off the African coast
James Bruce, a Scotsman raised in Edinburghs Canongate
Kilwinning Lodge, is a amed explorer o North Arica and
Ethiopia. Like many adventurers beore and ater him, Bruce
initially set out to discover the source o the
Nile. Although he never ound it, he spent
more than a dozen years in North Arica
and Ethiopia tracing the origins o the Blue
Nile, one o the rivers tributaries. His travel
tales were so extraordinary that most o his
contemporaries dismissed him as a raud.
However, subsequent investigations seem
to have conrmed that Bruces stories, al-though incredible, were true.
Among them: Bruce was shipwrecked
o the coast o North Arica. He was held
hostage or two months by the ruler o
Massawa, a Red Sea port city. He spent
a year in Gondar, the imperial capital o
Ethiopa (then called Abyssinia), where he
was invited to command one o the kings
cavalry troops and, allegedly, used his
knowledge o medicine to cure the queen o
smallpox. He spent two years traversing themountains and deserts o Sudan.
Continued next page
OctOber NOvember 2011 5
freeMasoNs Who risked life
aNd liMb to MaP our World
by Laura Normand
ONqeOS OFe NkNOWN
OND e WOLD
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Perhaps his most amous exploration was a joint expediti
with John Hanning Speke to east central Aricas great lakes,
the hope o discovering the source o the Nile. The explorers
came the rst Europeans to reach Aricas Lake Tanganyika, b
ell short o their ultimate goal. Upon their return, their divergi
theories on how to nd the Niles source ueled a bitter pu
lic dispute, which mounted when a later expedition by Spe
claimed to have discovered it, and Burton loudly dismissed t
claim. The dispute ended in controversy: Speke was declar
dead by suicide just days beore a public debate with Burton.
Some speculate that Bruces adventures
may have been ueled by more than his
public goal to trace the source o the Nile:
He was also rumored to be searching or the
Ark o the Covenant, described in the Book
o Exodus as containing the original stone
tablets bearing the Ten Commandments.
Sourcing the Nile
Sir Richard Francis Burtons many titles
include geographer, writer, soldier, spy,
poet, and diplomat. This British Mason led
explorations through Arica, India, Arabia,
and the midwestern United States, lled
with adventures that seem lited rom the
pages o The Arabian Nights which,
incidentally, he published an English trans-
lation o in 1885.
Burton, who was a captain in the armyo the East India Company, was initiated
into Masonry in a British lodge in Scinde,
India. He rst gained renown as an explorer
in 1853 when, with the backing o the Royal
Geographical Society, he disguised himsel
as an Aghan to embark on the risky pil-
grimage to Mecca, in western Saudi Arabia.
6
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Merciless terrain
From icebound passages and barren terrain to a harsh, unorgiv-
ing climate, the Arctic remains one o Earths most remote and
inaccessible regions. Sir Albert Markham, a British Freemason,
explorer, author, and ocer in the Royal Navy, braved it long
beore modern gear and adventure tourism paved the way.
In 1875 Markham commanded a British Arctic expedition
that set out or the North Pole, exploring Smith Sound and
the coasts o Greenland along the way. Despite suering romscurvy and lacking in supplies, Markham led the nal leg o
the journey by oot; he and his men hauled heavy sleds over
the sea ice without the help o sled dogs. The party didnt
reach the North Pole, but they came closer than anyone beore,
reaching the highest latitude ever attained at the time. Their
record stood or 20 years.
In the years that ollowed, Markham returned to the Arctic
numerous times to study its animals, plants, and geology.
Markham distinguished himsel within the raternity, too. He
and a handul o British Masons led the ormation o Londons
Navy Lodge No. 2612, which prides itsel on being the premiernaval lodge in the world. The lodges membership roll in-
cludes our monarchs, as well as ellow polar explorers Ernest
Shackleton and Robert Falcon Scott.
Last of the Vikings
Roald Amundsen was the rst man to reach both the North and
South Poles, and the rst to successully lead a ship through
Canadas treacherous Northwest Passage, an ice-bound route wind-
ing between the northern Canada mainland and Arctic islands. He
made the Northwest Passage journey, which began in 1903, with a
70-oot shipping boat. It took three years; he and his crew had to re-
peatedly wait or the rozen sea to thaw beore they could continue.
Henry Larsen, also a Mason, would trace Amundsens jour-
ney in the 1940s, becoming the second man to captain a ship
through the Northwest Passage. Larsen was also the rst to sail
the Passage both ways in the same season.
Marked by Masons
many faous Frason xplorrs ha occupid high
offics in th fratrnity and proudly displayd thir
fratrnal tis. fw too thir allgianc n furthr,
laing masonic arrs in so of th ost rot
aras of earth and byond.
Polar xplorr and pionr aiator RichaRd ByRd
and his pilot, BeRnt Balchen, ar said to ha
droppd masonic flags on both Pols; during a 1930s
flight or th South Pol, alchn allgdly addd
his Shrin fz.
Whn astronaut leRoy GoRdon coopeR JR.
faously orbitd th earth 22 tis, h carrid a blu
masonic flag and a masonic coin with hi. latr
prsntd th flag to his lodg in olorado.
edwin euGene Buzz aldRin supposdly brought
a masonic flag to th oon in 1969. ldrin, a br
of lar La Lodg No. 1417 in xas, is n ruordto ha carrid a spcial dputation fro th xas
grand astr claiing th oon as a trritorial
jurisdiction of th Grand Lodg of xas.
nd according to an articl in montana: h magazin
of Wstrn istory, MeRiwetheR lewis lft idnc
of his masonic affiliation in montanas watrways. h
stats odrn-day ig ol ir, uby ir, and
Willow r wr originally nad th Wisdo,
Philanthropy, and Philosophy nas bstowd by
Lwis, in all lilihood th first mason to st foot in
th rgion, alluding to masonic ritual.
Continued on page 9
OctOber NOvember 2011 7
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stormy seas, the crew miraculously reached
the west coast o South Georgia only to trek
36 hours over glacier-clad mountains beore
reaching civilization.
Nearly two years ater the Endurance
set sail, Shackleton returned to Elephant
Island to rescue his remaining crew. All 28
men survived.
In 1910, ater hearing news o Freemason explorer Ernest
Shackletons ailed attempt to reach the South Pole, Amundsen
set out on a secret expedition to claim the title. With a careully
selected team o sled dogs aectionately reerred to as our chil-
dren, Amundsen and his crew became the rst men to reach
the South Pole in December 1911.
Amundsen, who proclaimed himsel the last o the Vikings,
set out on subsequent polar adventures, including another rst
or mankind: fying over the North Pole in a dirigible, or blimp,in 1926. He was killed on a rescue mission in 1928 when his
plane crashed into the Arctic Ocean.
A test ofEndurance
Ernest Shackleton, initiated into the prestigious Navy Lodge No.
2612, rst ventured into Antarctica under the leadership o his
lodge brother, Captain Robert Falcon Scott. Scotts expedition,
which aimed to be the rst to reach the South Pole, ailed when
scurvy, rostbite, and a shortage o supplies orced their return.
In 1907 Shackleton returned to Antarctica or a second at-tempt, this time as the leader o his own expedition. His party
reached urther south than anyone beore them, but in a deci-
sion that has drawn admiration rom generations o explorers,
Shackleton decided to turn back within 97 miles o the Pole
rather than risk his mens lives. He amously wrote to his wie,
I thought youd rather have a live donkey than a dead lion.
In 1914 Shackleton set his sights on the rst transcontinental
crossing o Antarctica. What ensued has been hailed as one o
the greatest survival stories o all time.
Shackletons ship, the Endurance, became rozen in pack ice
and sank, stranding its crew o 28 men in the Weddell Sea o
Antarctica. The crew set up camp on an ice foe or ve months
beore they were orced onto lieboats. Ater seven grueling days
at sea, they reached the ice-covered Elephant Island.
Shackleton and his ve strongest sailors set sail once more;
this time, or help. They embarked on an improbable 800-mile
journey aboard a 22-oot open lieboat. Ater navigating 17 days in
Early AmericanMasonic Explorers
hiRaM BinGhaM (1875-1956)
Discord machu Picchu ruins
RichaRd ByRd (1888-1957)
Polar xplorr and pionr aiator
MeRiwetheR lewis (1774-1809)
explorr of th Louisiana Purchas
elisha Kent Kane (1820-1857)
early rctic xplorr
John KendRicK (1740-1794)
explord th northwst coast of rica
RoBeRt peaRy (1856-1920)
Discorr of th North Pol
To learn more about the historic accomplishments
of these American Masonic explorers, view the
digital edition ofCaliornia Freemason, available
online atfreemason.orgunder News & Events.
eB extRa
OctOber NOvember 2011 9
http://freemason.org/http://www.freemason.org/newsEvents/article.htm?id=10346http://www.freemason.org/newsEvents/article.htm?id=10346http://freemason.org/8/3/2019 freemason20111011-dl
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The history o Freemasonry in Caliornia
begins with two charters. One, olded over
and over again and pressed against the
boot o a Presbyterian minister. The other,
careully stowed away rom the damp heat
o equatorial jungles. Both made the slow,
perilous journey rom their home lodges to
new, alien territory. And with them, came
the birth o Freemasonry in Caliornia.
Its very special, spectacular, really, to be
part o the oldest lodge in Caliornia, saysHugh Shufeton, a past master and uno-
cial historian and archivist or Western Star
Lodge No. 2 in Shasta. Its a point o pride
that we survived this long.
At the dawning o 1848, there were
no charters in the Mexican territory o
Caliornia. By 1850, the state boasted six
lodges. This is the story o the arduous
journeys that brought the rst two charters
to the state.
Western Star Lodge No. 2
The birth o Masonry in Caliornia begins
in Carrolltown, Missouri, a small town
northeast o Kansas City. It was there to
which homesteader Peter Lassen returned
as he attempted to bring a wagon train
back to his rancho in whats now known as Tehama Coun
Shufeton describes Lassen as prospecting and adventurin
He was a Mason and he wanted to bring a lodge back with hi
when he returned to his adopted home.
Enter Kentucky native Saschel Woods, a Presbyterian m
ister and past master o Wakanada Lodge No. 52. Together, t
pair made an application to the grand master o Missouri o
charter, which was issued in May 1848.
That charter was handwritten on a large piece o parchmeand declared, to all and every our worthy and well belov
Brethren, send greeting. Woods and Lassen set out on the slo
wagon train to Caliornia, accompanied by several others,
tent on creating a new town out o Lassens Rancho Bosque
Woods, as the only member o the wagon train who was a Mast
Mason, was entrusted with the charter.
How long the journey, whether they were set upon by Indi
warriors, and what illness and challenges they aced are lost
history. What we do know is that the charter, by all accoun
made the trip in the Woods boot, olded and reolded ro
its 11-by-17 size to letter size or easier travel. The charter stbears the old marks, says Shufeton.
Actually, we went to have it restored and the archivist w
talked to said, I wouldnt do that because these marks are t
story o this document, he says. Now the charter is stored
a glass case in the lodges museum room.
California Lodge No. 1
Caliornia Lodge No. 1s charter made its journey in quite
dierent way. Far rom the dusty and dry months Woods an
Lassen spent in their overland journey, the San Francis
lodges charter spent its nearly year-long trip in the damp
ocean and jungle.
But lets start at the beginning. In this case, the charter start
its lie in another seat o power: Washington, D.C. At the tim
Mason James K. Polk, then president o the United States, a
proved a charter or Brother William Van Voorhies and Broth
Samuel Yorke At Lee to bring a new lodge to Caliornia. T
10
e FO FIS
the treacherous jourNeys of
califorNias earliest charters
by Heather Boerner
LODGe SPOLIG
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east and west. The masters pedestal was an
upturned box and the altar was a boot box
draped in the American fag.
The lodge still has its charter, stored
away rom prying eyes, says Modolo. It may
be restored at some point. Ater all, men
join the lodge not just or its location but or
the men who came beore them.
Its an honor and we try to live up to
their example, he says.
charter was signed by nine Masons. But only three made it to
Caliornia. At Lee decided to stay in Washington and BrotherLevi Stowell resigned rom his lodge, New Jerusalem Lodge
No. 9, to become master o the nascent Caliornia Lodge No. 13.
The charter was approved in November 1848 and Stowell be-
gan his journey. But he didnt go west. Instead, he set sail rom
New York aboard the Falcon, the rst steamship to erry U.S.
mail west via the Isthmus o Panama.
According to a report on mail routes at the time, the journey
would have been raught with danger and delays. I the Atlantic
were tumultuous, ships oten had to wait days in rain-tossed
seas beore they could anchor.
When Stowell arrived at the Chagres River on Dec. 27 o thatyear, he ound the U.S. mail system had made no provisions or
the 200 passengers on the ship to make it rom the Isthmus o
Panama to Panama City, a 60-mile stretch o river and rain or-
est. In the end, he paid the native men o the area up to $60 and
some brandy to erry him 40 miles to Cruces.
Once in Cruces, he aced a 30-mile journey to the town o
Panama. There, travelers oten endured weeks o waiting beore
a vessel became available to travel north again.
Although the exact conditions o Stowells journey are un-
known, at least one report called the crossing nightmarish.
But according to Richard Modolo, master o Caliornia Lodge
No. 1, one thing is known: At some point Stowell was bit by a
mosquito carrying malaria. Thats what eventually did him in,
Modolo says.
Still, Stowell lived long enough not only to arrive in San
Francisco but to help create the rst building in which the
brothers met. The lodge room was in the attic o the building,
draped in chintz and lit by candles in tin candleholders at the
to BRinG califoRnia lodGes chaRteR fRoM d.c., levi stowell set sail on
a steaMship, then BaRteRed with natives in the Rain foRest of panaMa.
westeRn staR lodGes chaRteR caMe to califoRnia By dusty waGon
tRail, folded in the Boot of a KentucKy MinisteR.
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There is an old question asked o a Mason
at an important point in his Masonic lie:
Whence came you and whither are you
traveling? When the question is asked,
there is not much time or contemplation.
The question is answered quickly, and ritu-
alistically and then oten orgotten as the
more dramatic sequel in the ritual captures
our attention. It is too bad, in a way, that we
cannot stop at this point in our ceremonies
and take time to think about the questionand ormulate an answer which is specic
to each Mason who is asked it. Where are
you coming rom? and knowing what you
now know about Freemasonry Where
are you going?
There is an old joke about Christopher
Columbus which is singularly unair to him,
but which nonetheless is still being told. In
one orm it goes like this: When he started
out, he didnt know where he was going.
When he got there he didnt know where
he was. And when he got home he didnt
know where he had been. The joke is un-
air because anyone who has the courage to
strike out into the unknown is to be com-
mended, not ridiculed. The courageous do
not stay home. They go orth to places that
they have never known beore because o
the challenge that it presents. And when they arrive, they ha
to incorporate all their previous experience into making the ne
present understandable. And this new present may ta
years, i not many generations, to truly understand. When t
courageous return home with new inormation, they may nev
know how great an impact their courage has made on the utu
In a sense, we are asking each Mason to have the coura
to seek a uture that he cannot yet know. Our symbolic way
expressing this is Whither are you traveling? but what ware really asking is Do you have the courage to seek out th
unknown toward which Freemasonry points? Freemasonry
a journey, and when a man stands or the rst time at its gate
the West Gate he cannot know where that journey will le
We present him with tools and implements to use along t
way, but we do not tell him how to use them. He must gu
that out or himsel. He is surrounded by riends and brothe
at the beginning o the journey, but there will be a time wh
he will be alone, and when he must discover the way orwa
without any guidance except or the guidance o the Suprem
Architect o the Universe. He learns that the road ahead will nalways be smooth. It will sometimes be a rough and rugge
road, one lled with dangers, real or imaginary, but dange
nonetheless. Only courage will cause him to begin the journ
and only courage will cause him to pursue the journeys en
even when assailed by orces stronger than he is, which may,
the end, prove atal.
Masons should requently ask themselves the question th
was once posed to them: Whither are you traveling? It w
take courage to ask it, or it is easier to drit through lie witho
answering the question than it is to accept its challenge. But
the end, the journeys end, it will be worth it. The words ro
Robert Frosts poem The Road Not Taken say it all:
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
12
e mSONIeXPLOe
fiNdiNg the courage to face
the uNkNoWN
by John L. Cooper III, Senior Grand Warden
mSONI eDION
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household appliances in his amilys Fresno home to see how th
worked. Instead, he was thoughtul, introspective, and observa
He liked to write short stories. As the son o an Army captain andhomemaker, he spent his very early years in Iran and Georgia. B
by the time he started kindergarten, Nilmeiers lie had settled in
the typical suburban routine. He rode his bike. He played kickba
He watched TV. And he wasnt sure what hed do or a living
Looking back, Nilmeiers rst clue that he might have
inclination toward science and exploring the scientically u
known came his junior year in high school, when he did w
on an Air Force-administered science test. It popped up aga
when he was in junior college in Fresno, when he did well
physics. But his scholastic goals were sidelined when, ater
ew years o junior college and one year at the University Caliornia, Berkeley, he dropped out to go back to work.
I wasnt ready to hunker down, he recalls. I went out an
was bartending and just living lie. I was reading a lot, lea
ing about Freemasonry. I dont think I would have come acro
Masonry i I had stayed in school.
Curiosity to Craft
In act, it was in the late 1990s, when Nilmeier was tendi
bar in Oaklands Rockridge neighborhood, that he became int
ested in the crat. He was passing time reading Whos Araid
Freemasons: The Phenomenon o Freemasonry by Alexand
Piategorski a dense, scholarly look at Freemasonry rom
early European roots orward. He ound himsel ascinated
the conspiracy theory o Freemasonry as a secret society co
trolling the universe. And then he met his rst Mason. It turn
out his bar, George and Walts, was right next to Oakland Dura
Rockridge Lodge No. 188.
explorers o old, renders a cartography o an
unknown landscape.
In this way, Nilmeier is not so dierent
rom explorers who mapped the New World.
Hes a pioneer, but probably not a pioneer
like any youve seen beore. Nilmeiers tools
are not machetes or parchment maps. He
doesnt ride a horse or wear a fak jacket. He
needs no repower to deend his position.He jokes, instead, that his only uniorm is
his computer reading glasses, which make
it easier or him to stare at his computer
screen all day.
Indeed, Nilmeiers pioneering work
is notable in part or its mundane trap-
pings. Nilmeier rises in his amily home in
Livermore next to his wie, Jennier, every
morning. He greets and plays with his three
children, Soa, 7, David, 3, and Charlie, 1.
He dresses in khakis and a blue shirt. Andhe gets in his car and drives to an oce in
Livermore, where he spends his day, like
many o us, staring at a computer and mak-
ing notes.
There will be no pictures o me in a lab
coat, says Nilmeier good-naturedly. It
looks more like going to work and sitting
in ront o a computer. The work I do is
all computational. The building I work in
doesnt even have a laboratory.
How this mild-mannered, Clark Kent
type became the pioneer he is today is a
story o chance, aptitude, and Freemasonry.
Early EndEavors
Nilmeier was not the kind o child who
had a chemistry set. He did not take apart
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that hopeully creates something people can
use to make medicines.
Nilmeier likens his work to the work o
Freemasonry: It gives you a breadth o
knowledge, a broader sensibility, and con-
nects you to history through the traditions.
It makes you more interested in things other
than what youre doing specically. Its about
connecting you to a larger, vaster machine.Nilmeier is attuned to symbology. He
loves, he says, that rituals are conducted in
this beautiul, ornate language. He loves
that Freemasonry gives members the space
and the place to ponder larger things.
He was gratied to discover that, like him,
many o his brothers are something o sel-
taught historians, loving the same kind o
nonction history books that he does.
thE sCiEnCE
of frEEmasonry
And as ar as hes concerned, the connection
between science and Freemasonry isnt only
in how both connect him to a greater whole.
Theres a real history o science aecting
Freemasonry and vice versa, he says. The
connection is in the symbology, he says.
Take, or instance, alchemy. The me-
dieval science, whose magnum opus was
the conversion o lead to gold, was replete
with scientic symbols, and described real
scientic phenomena, but added a layer o
symbolism that was about the spirit.
Nilmeier points to the process o sub-
limation. Its a real chemical process in
I talked to Roger Gilmore. He owned the hardware store a
ew blocks down and he used to come in; a lot o guys rom the
lodge would come in, he recalls. I kept talking to Roger, ask-
ing him to invite me in. It took a ew months o him hemming
and hawing. I think he saw me as a young guy interested in the
intrigue o it.
But the act was, the more Masons he met, the more Nilmeier
realized that these men have qualities I want to emulate, he
remembers thinking. It was the conspiracy mystique at rst,but I started going and the men I met just struck me as very
lucid, intelligent, and well dressed. They seemed like a so-
phisticated group.
The respect was mutual, says Don Nelson, past master o
Oakland Durant Rockridge Lodge, a 40-year member who met
Nilmeier when he rst came upstairs rom the bar and into
the lodge. He remembers thinking that Nilmeier was very out-
going, interesting, and well-versed.
Hes the sort o person youd want your son to be like, says
Nelson, who attended Nilmeiers wedding in Rochester, New
York. Hes always got a smile. Ive never seen him upset. Andhes really very interested in learning the work perectly.
Nilmeier was raised in 1999, and served as junior warden in
the lodge beore moving to San Francisco or his PhD work in
biophysics at the University o Caliornia, San Francisco.
He calls Freemasonry the anchor that steadied him as he un-
derwent the lie-changing transitions o college and grad school. It
was during this time as he was approaching his graduation rom
UC Berkeley that he nally started to see himsel as a scientist.
Up until then, it was about the challenge o succeeding and
doing well and solving puzzles, he says. But then I started to
think o mysel as a scientist.
When Nilmeier graduated rom UCSF with his PhD, he gave
a copy o his dissertation to both Oakland Durant Rockridge
Lodge and to Caliornia Lodge No. 1, which he joined in 2007.
To him, being a scientist and being a Mason are much about
the same things. Almost any project I work on is some very
small acet o a larger problem, he says. I write codes and
develop new algorithms, but Im connected to a larger purpose Continued next page
Almost any project I work on is some very small facet of a
larger problem. I write codes and develop new algorithms,
but Im connected to a larger purpose that hopefully
creates something people can use to make medicines.
JeRoMe nilMeieR
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seeking the greater whole not just knowledge thats new to t
world, as he does in his day job, but also knowledge that is ne
to him through his practice o the crat.
But that doesnt mean he talks about his pioneering wo
with most people. Nelson says he hasnt a clue about what h
ellow Mason has been working on. He was always somewh
secretive about his work, he says. I dont even know wh
department he works or in the lab.
ProtEins for lifE
But Nilmeier is willing to share this: The point o mapping th
proteins isnt just or intellectual discovery, but or specic p
poses. Proteins are also a mystery. Scientists may have mapp
the human genome, but they have yet to map the structures
each o the more than 100,000 serpentine, squiggly protei
When weve unlocked their secrets, scientists will be able
turn proteins into something new, something useul som
thing potentially liesaving.
For instance, some proteins in our bodies, guided by our netic code, build cell walls. I Nilmeier can nd a way into tho
proteins, he can stop cell wall creation. Normally that would
be desirable. But when cells are growing out o control, as th
do with cancer growths, its an advantage.
It could be a cancer cure, says Nilmeier. Or i you think
it another way, we all have a whole bunch o proteins that
all kinds o things. I we can gure out where those protei
binding sites are and use those in the drugs were making, t
drug can not only do its purpose but interact with all the oth
proteins avorably.
That means, potentially, ewer toxic side eects or the me
cations we take now.
And while Nelson says he would never characterize Nilme
as anything but humble, Nilmeier is not araid to say that he
charting new territory.
I do think o mysel as a pioneer, he says. I think most s
entists do. Were doing new things and creating new knowled
and advancing our eld.
which a material moves rom one solid
state to another without going through the
intermediate step o becoming a liquid. The
classic experiment is about orming crystals
on a glass. Those crystals are turned to a
vapor and then put on a cool glass.
Crystals will then orm on the glass, he
says. But alchemical texts also talk about
sublimation in terms o the growth o angels
wings on a wall. They use this allegorical
language to describe a physical process,another type o transormation. Thats what
people mean when they talk about a sub-
lime process.
Likewise, he says, Freemasonry trades
largely in allegorical symbols in the orm o
its working tools the compass, the square,
the level. They are actual working tools or
men in the trades, and symbols o steadi-
ness, equality, and orthrightness.
I see a similarity between how symbol-
ogy is used in the alchemical tradition and
in the Freemasonry tradition, he says. The
coupling o images with symbols is wonder-
ul. It brings a great richness to lie.
Indeed, or Nilmeier, the lie o the mind
is rich and broad, not limited to the ever-
emerging map on his computer screen. In
both the crat and science, his work is about
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Freemasons rom all walks o lie explored, settled, ought or,
and helped shape Caliornias early statehood.
Go west, young man was a popular call to action in 19th
century America, and thousands heeded the call. For many,
the ultimate destination was Caliornia a promised land o
sunshine, opportunity, and gold and Freemasons were among
the throngs o adventure seekers and settlers. These Freemasons
rom all walks o lie played key roles in Caliornias early his-
tory. Here are two o them.
The frontiersman
Christopher Kit Carson was a ur-trapper, explorer, and sol-
dier who helped Caliornia win its independence rom Mexico.
According to historians, Carson led numerous trapping expedi-
tions throughout the West rom his base in Taos, N.M., and in
1842 he met John C. Frmont, a U.S. military ocer and explorer.
Frmont hired Carson to be his guide on an upcoming expedi-
tion along the Oregon Trail, which would be the rst o several
western journeys and the start o an important relationship.
On June 14, 1846, Frmont and Carson became involved in
the Bear Flag Revolt in Sonoma, during which American settlers
declared Caliornias independence rom Mexico. Three weeks
later, war with Mexico was made ocial when Commodore John
D. Sloat, a Freemason, sailed into Monterey Bay and claimed
Caliornia or the U.S.
Carson ought throughout the Mexican-American war, but
he is best known or his bravery at the Battle o San Pasqual
in a small town northeast o San Diego. There, according to
historical records, U.S. orces were attacked
and surrounded by Caliornios Spanish
and Mexican settlers, some o whom were
born in Caliornia. Carson and two others
successully slipped through enemy lines
and made a treacherous journey to San
Diego to request reinorcements.
When the war ended in 1847, Carson
traveled to Washington, D.C., bearing dis-patches rom Caliornia. President Polk
commissioned him a lieutenant o the United
States Mounted Rifes; however, Congress
reused the commission due to Carsons lack
o education. As a result, Carson returned to
New Mexico, where he became a Mason at
Montezuma Lodge No. 109 in Santa Fe.
The minister
Thomas Starr King, a minister at a Unitarianchurch in San Francisco, was only in
Caliornia or a brie time, but he had enor-
mous impact on the uture o both Caliornia
and the U.S.
According to a biography rom the Starr
King School or the Ministry, King was a
transplant rom Massachusetts who was
known or his soaring oratory skill, his posi-
tion as an abolitionist, and his advocacy or
Caliornias siding with the Union during
the Civil War. At speeches throughout the
state, King reportedly draped the American
fag around his pulpit and made a ery case
or preserving the Union. He also threw his
support behind tycoon Leland Stanord,
who won the governorship in 1861, solidi-
ying Caliornias place in the Union.
Continued on page 21
OctOber NOvember 2011 19
MasoNic exPlorers helPed
shaPe califorNia
by Cason Lane
mkING eGOLDeN Se
IN LIFONI
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IN LIFONI
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Kings attention then turned to the health
and needs o the Union army, which lacked
proper provisions and medical care. He
became an active undraiser or the U.S.
Sanitary Commission a predecessor to the
American Red Cross and raised more than
$1.25 million in Caliornia.
An avid naturalist, King enjoyed explor-
ing Caliornias vast wilderness. In act,according to the essay Thomas Starr King:
Apostle o Liberty, Brother o the Crat by
Brother Adam G. Kendall, King success-
ully lobbied or the protection o Yosemite
Valley. In 1864, President Lincoln desig-
nated 20,000 acres or public use.
Kendall adds that King, a member o
Oriental Lodge No. 144 in San Francisco
(now Phoenix Lodge No. 144), served
as grand orator o the Grand Lodge o
Caliornia in 1863.When King died in 1864 rom diphthe-
ria, the state legislature adjourned or three
days o mourning and few its fags at hal-
sta, according to the Starr King School
or the Ministry. More than 20,000 people
reportedly paid tribute to King as he lay
in state, his con draped in an American
fag. Posthumously, King was voted as one
o Caliornias greatest heroes by the state
legislature and had a Yosemite mountain
named in his honor.
Visitfreemason.orgto learn about two other
important explorers and California Masons,
John Townsend and William H. Eddy.
eB extRa
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Charting new territoryAccording to the Lewis and Clark Fort
Mandan Foundation, Meriwether Lewis
was a 27-year-old Mason and captain in
the U.S. military when President Thomas
Jeerson called him in 1801 to serve as his
personal secretary and aide. Two years later,
Jeerson tapped Lewis to lead the Corps o
Discovery expedition.
The goals o the expedition were to ex-
plore the uncharted land northwest o the
Mississippi River, much o which the U.S.
had recently acquired in the Louisiana
Purchase, and locate a northwest water
route to the Pacic Ocean. Lewis asked
William Clark, a lieutenant he had served
with in battle, to join the expedition as co-
commander, and in 1804 they set out rom
Illinois to explore the Pacic Coast.
When the expedition returned rom the Western wilderne
in the all o 1806, Lewis and Clark received land grants in t
new Louisiana Territory, which stretched more than 800,0
square miles rom the Mississippi River in the east to the Roc
Mountains in the west, and rom the Canadian border in t
north to the tip o Louisiana in the south. The two heroes al
received prestigious appointments: Lewis was named govern
o the Louisiana Territory, and Clark was eventually appoint
brigadier general or the upper Louisiana Territory.The two were successul not only in blazing new trade rout
and opening land or settlement, but also in paving the way
Freemasonrys expansion into the Western U.S.
22
GeW OmSON
the role of leWis aNd
clark iN freeMasoNrys
WestWard exPaNsioN
by Cason Lane
ISO
in 1804, Freemasons West oF the mississi ppi
m ight have been counted on tWo hands .
Four years later, there Were tWo lodges
in t he te rritory, and by 1817, the re Was
a g r a n d l o d g e , t o o . t h i s W e s t e r n
expans ion oF Fr eemasonry, chron icled
by masonic author ray v. densloW, Was
due i n part to th e early eFF orts oF
mer iWeth er leWis and Will iam clark .
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joined the lodge in the all o 1809. Though
St. Louis Lodge No. 111 was well known
due to the ame o its members, it was
not the rst lodge west o the Mississippi.
According to Denslow, that honor belonged
to Louisiana Lodge No. 109, which was
established in 1807 in St. Genevieve, a set-
tlement on the west bank o the Mississippi
that later became part o Missouri.
Masonry in a new land
Ater becoming governor, Lewis turned his attention to local
Masonry. A member o Scribe o the Door to Virtue Lodge
No. 44 in Albemarle County, Va., Lewis now joined a small group
o ellow Masons to establish a lodge in St. Louis. In 1808, he wrote
the Grand Lodge o Pennsylvania requesting a lodge charter.
Meriwether Lewis was a name to conjure with and no time
was lost by the Most Worshipul Grand Lodge, writes Denslow
in Territorial Freemasonry: The Story o Freemasonry and theLouisiana Purchase. Six days ater the letter was written, the
much desired warrant was on its way to its destination, where
the little band o eleven Master Masons waited to receive it.
With the charter granted, St. Louis Lodge No. 111 was es-
tablished. Lewis became its rst worshipul master, and Clark
Continued next page
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Shortly ater Missouri became the 24th state in 1801, Denslo
writes, the Grand Lodge o Missouri was established, whi
eased the ormation o lodges in Missouri and other territori
west o the Mississippi.
The Grand Lodge o Missouri proved to be the great Mason
colonizer, granting charters to its members, which were carri
over land and sea to the urthermost borders o the Fatherlan
Denslow writes. The Santa Fe and Oregon trails were dott
with members o the raternity.
The great Masonic colonizer
Denslow writes that the St. Louis Lodge
gradually disbanded ollowing Lewis un-
timely death in 1809 and the War o 1812,
in which many Masons ought. However, in
1815, the Grand Lodge o Tennessee granted
a charter or a new lodge in St. Louis:
Missouri Lodge No. 12. Clark was among
the members, and he reportedly held manylodge meetings in his home.
Masonic Mystery: The Death of Meriwether Lewis
In Octobr 1809, mriwthr Lwis, thn gornor of th
Louisiana rritory, st out for Washington, D.., fro St.
Louis. Whil traling through nnss on th Natchz
rac, Lwis and his sall ntourag stoppd at a local inn forth night. ours latr, Lwis was dad fro gunshot wounds.
ccording to historian elln aulrs articl h masonic
pron of mriwthr Lwis and th Lgacy of masonry in
montana, thr wr no ywitnsss, so th circustancs
of th dath rain a hatd dbat.
Whil any scholars insist that Lwis coittd suicid,
thr is apl idnc to suggst urdr, aulr writs.
aulr cits a story passd down through th Lwis faily.
s th story gos, mriwthr Lwis had his masonic apron
with hi on his journy, possibly n in his poct whn h
did. is sil and linn apron was dcoratd with hand-paint-
d masonic sybols, including th two pillars, an hourglass,and th all-sing y. ut th aprons ost notabl fatur
ight b th bloodstains on th front. In th 1970s, lab tsts
idntifid th stains as dr blood and huan blood, which
has not bn lind to Lwis.
aulr also proids accounts of two incidnts that furthr
ful th urdr thory. h first was in 1848, whn th stat
of nnss initiatd plans for a grasit orial. Lwis
body was partially xhud so it could b idntifid andxaind by th orial coitt. t th ti, th co-
itt dtrind th caus of dath to b assassination,
though no rason for this judgnt was gin. h scond
incidnt was in 1928, whn an accidntal xhuation of
Lwis rains rald what appard to b a bullt hol in
th bac of Lwis sull.
hough a rust was ad in 1996 to xhu and xain
Lwis rains, th National Par Sric dnid it.
Whil th facts about his dath ight nr b nown,
thr is no doubt about Lwis iportant rol in rican
and masonic history. oday, Lwis is orializd with a
onunt along th Natchz rac Parway in nnss.
h apron, passd down fro on Lwis gnration to thnxt and fro collctor to collctor is now a trasurd
possssion of th masonic Grand Lodg of montana musu.
24
ISO
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At the Masonic Home at Covina, three residents whose lives
have spanned continents, cultures, and remarkable events pro-
vide inspiration to uture generations.
They are seen as explorers because o their adventurous
spirits, and their ability to adapt to whatever new and dicult
circumstances beell them.
These are not careree travel tales; they are stories about ght-
ing or the right to explore another day, and a better uture.
Walk to freedomCovina resident David Rosen describes his lie as though he is
analyzing the emergence o the Federalist party calm, thought-
ul, matter-o-act. Its a manner that bets his ormer career as a
college political science proessor. But this is no account rom a
history book. Its the story o his survival.
Rosen was born and raised in South Arica. At age 19, with
World War II raging, he joined the military. He was captured by
Italian orces in North Arica, and spent three and a hal years as
a prisoner o war: in Italy until the countrys collapse, then in a
German camp along the border o Germany and Poland.
Rosen attempted escape several times. Each time, he was
recaptured. Each time, he resolved to try again.
I decided that I was going to escape and meet up with the
Allies, Rosen says. At last, in a moment o chaos in the camp,
he was able to slip away undetected. Ater three and a hal years,
he had escaped.
Rosen walked 150 miles to reedom.
Occasionally I had a companion. Usually
I was on my own. Everybody was on their
own, Rosen says. Finally, he met up with
American soldiers. He was ree.
I was lucky to be alive, Rosen says.
Later as I grew older and had more sense,
I thought to mysel: So I wanted to escape,
but what then where was I going to go?How would I nd ood, shelter? Prisoners
and soldiers dont think about those things.
david Rosen spent MoRe than thRee yeaRs as
a pRisoneR of waR, until his BRave escape.
Continued next page
OctOber NOvember 2011 25
eL DveNe
the true stories aNd
extraordiNary tales of
three hoMes resideNts
by Laura Normand
mSONI SSISNe
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employees. He lived and worked alongside Aboriginal peop
and soaked up the culture, describing the Australians he met
all very jolly, good people.
But in the end, mom knew best.
My mother didnt like getting letters rom Australia. S
kept telling me to go to America, Lissenberg says. He ollow
her advice in 1965, and shortly ater became a U.S. citizen.
Lissenberg, who is a member o Meniee Valley Lodge N
289, ound Masonry in Australia, but couldnt join because
Eventually, Rosen moved to the United
States. A member o Joseph L. Shell Daylight
Lodge No. 837, he is the rst known mem-
ber o his amily to join the raternity.
When asked what kept him going dur-
ing his imprisonment and on the long walk
to reedom Rosen says simply, One
doesnt think like that. Its only later, when I
refect on it, that I wonder how I did it.
Culture chameleon
When John Lissenberg was 19, World War
II wrenched him rom his home in the
Netherlands. Germany had invaded, and
Lissenberg was orced into Germany, where
he worked as a prisoner or the Nazis. He
says that i he hadnt been taken to Germany,
he likely would not have survived.
Back in the German-occupied Netherlands,where Lissenbergs mother still lived, citi-
zens had been cut o rom ood and uel
shipments. By order o President Truman,
American bombers airlited ood and sup-
plies to them.
The Dutch are eternally grateul to
the Americans, Lissenberg says. And
my mother, who was very patriotic Dutch,
loved America ater that.
Ater the war, Lissenberg ollowed a job
opportunity to Australia, where he lived
or nearly 17 years, at rst in Sydney, and
then in the seaside town o Wollongong.
(In Aborigine, Wollongong means Where
the mountain meets the sea.) There, he
worked or Australia Iron and Steel, and
used his knowledge o the English, German,
and Polish languages to help recruit new
John lissenBeRG was Raised in the netheRlands, suRvived
nazi-occupied GeRMany, and lived aMonG aBoRiGines.
26
mSONI SSISNe
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the Arab passengers extensive luggage
rolled in blankets and roped into a 5-oot
heap atop the bus raining down at every
pothole. His avorite city is Brussels, where
the streets are sparkling clean and the lo-
cals are the most partying bunch o people
youve ever seen.
Riedel, a member o Sunnyside Lodge
No. 577, became a Mason in 1976. He wasinspired by his ather and older brother,
both Masons.
We say that Masonry makes a good man
better, Riedel says. I saw that with my
dad. I deeply believed in it.
wasnt a citizen. When he submitted his Masonic application
in Caliornia, he included a letter o recommendation rom a
lodge in Australia.
Today Lissenberg lives at the Masonic Home at Covina. He
much preers American coee to Australias, but nds this
countrys tea too weak. One o the Homes sta knows how he
likes it, and prepares a special brew or him at mealtime. On
days that she doesnt work, he brews it himsel, extra strong.
Five continents at a time
When the Baghdad nuclear plant was bombed in 1981, Covina
resident Robert Riedel was there. Once, on a fight to Paris, his
plane made an emergency landing in politically volatile Syria
and he didnt have a Visa. He was threatened
by Peruvian Indians, and out-blued a
would-be extortionist at the Jordan airport.
I was accustomed to having guns point-
ed at my head, Riedel says drily.
All part o the job or this chemical en-gineer and nuclear physicist. Riedel started
out designing chemical plants, and moved
up the ranks to project manager, overseeing
the design and construction o chemical
processing plants all over the globe. At one
time, he was in charge o six major projects
on ve continents.
Although his work schedule didnt allow
much time or traditional tourist activities,
Riedel still saw the sights, in his own way.
Every morning, no matter what the city or
country, hed walk rom his hotel to the job
site. At the end o the day, hed take a dier-
ent route back. Even when like in Mexico
City his hotel was seven miles away.
Riedels stories paint a vivid picture o
ar-o cultures. He was evacuated rom Iraq
via 16-hour bus ride across the desert, withfRoM the deseRts of iRaq to the valleys of peRu, RoBeRt Riedel has woRKed
in countRies acRoss the GloBe and he has the stoRies to pRove it.
OctOber NOvember 2011 27
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Our case management services are broad, exible, and abl
serve amilies in their own communities throughout the st
I you are in need o support or know o a amily in distres
contact us at 888/466-3642 [email protected]
mSONI eNe FO O ND FmIL
The Masonic Center or Youth and Families provides integr
psychological services to youth ages 4 to 17 struggling wit
behavioral, academic, emotional, or social difculties. To
learn more about MCYAF, visit mcya.org or call 877/488-6
I eek
To learn more about Acacia Creek, our new senior living
community in Union City, visit acaciacreek.org or call
877/902-7555.
S INFOmeD
You may request a presentation be made at a lodge
meeting about the Masonic Homes and Outreach program
by contacting Masonic Assistance at 888/466-3642 or
vISI e OmeS
Arrange a private or group tour to get a frsthand look at r
dential services on our two campuses. Be sure to call ahea
(even i on the same day) so we can announce your arriva
the ront security gate and make proper tour arrangement
Contact the Home at Union City at 510/471-3434 and the
Home at Covina at 626/251-2232.
Connecting withMasonic Assistance
mSONI SeNIO Oe
Masonic Senior Outreach, a program o the Masonic
Homes o Caliornia, provides the senior members o our
raternal amily access to the services and resources they
need to stay healthy and sae in their homes or in retire-
ment acilities in their home communities.
These services include:
* Inormation and reerrals to community-based senior
providers throughout Caliornia* Ongoing care management at no cost
* Financial support
Masonic Senior Outreach also provides interim inancial
and care support to those who are on the waiting list
or the Masonic Homes o Caliornia. Contact us at
888/466-3642 [email protected] .
mSONI FmIL Oe
Masonic Family Outreach support services are available
to Caliornia Masons and their amilies who need help
dealing with todays complex issues, such as the impacto divorce, the stresses o a special needs child, job loss,
and other signifcant lie challenges.
We support and serve the whole family
masonic Hoes of California
masonic enior utreach
masonic aily utreach
masonic Center for Youth and ailies
all 888/466-3642 for inforation and support
m a s o n i c a s s i s ta n c eFeNL e SeD ON mSONI vLeS
28
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]://mcyaf.org/http://acaciacreek.org/mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]://acaciacreek.org/http://mcyaf.org/mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]8/3/2019 freemason20111011-dl
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http://www.freemason.org/memberCenter/public/masonicEducation.htm#lhttp://www.freemason.org/memberCenter/public/masonicEducation.htm#lhttp://www.freemason.org/memberCenter/public/masonicEducation.htm#lmailto:[email protected]8/3/2019 freemason20111011-dl
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GND mSeS POe
2011 2012
PIDIC
PTg
PIDT CIC
D T DDITI
mILIg IC
gD LDg & m CLII
1111 CLII TT
CIC, CLII 94108
We WILL N e PGe FO
ILD LIe IN LIFONI
e FS e SLING
The vast majority o low-income amilies dont have a single book in their homes
Caliornia ranks near the bottom o the United States or child literacy
90% o children who cannot read at grade level by 3rd grade will never catch up
Together, the Masons o Caliornia and Raising A Reader will make a proound
dierence in child literacy or those who need it most: kindergartners in Caliorniaslowest-perorming public schools, who are at the highest risk or educational ailure.
We will circulate childrens books to homes, engage amilies in shared reading o
those books, and help thousands o children develop reading readiness skills.
Your generous contributions will support our goal to signifcantly improve child
literacy in Caliornia, changing the lives o thousands o vulnerable children.
http://www.freemason.org/RaisingAReader/index.htmhttp://www.freemason.org/RaisingAReader/index.htmhttp://www.freemason.org/RaisingAReader/index.htm
