Do the men you want to attract to your Lodge actually have the opportunity to learn about it, and to know a Mason whom they can actually ask about Freemasonry if they are interested?
I often hear lament that in the past, most community leaders seemed to be Freemasons, yet it seems otherwise today.
That begs the question, do we host dinners to which these leaders are invited? Do we invite the local firefighters who protect our community to a dinner at which we honor them? Do we invite our local officials to a dinner at which we learn about their plans for our neighborhoods? Do we invite the leadership of our Chamber of Commerce to a dinner at which we learn about their current initiatives?
If we hope to have the leaders of our community join our Lodge, it seems to me that it sure would be helpful if those leaders actually knew about our Lodge. Better yet, if they know a Mason whom they can ask about Masonry.
I really like the idea of hosting a dinner for our local first responders! That would be a great way to show our appreciation and possibly awnser any questions that they !ay have !
First Responder appreciation dinners are a truly superb way for our Lodges to get in touch with our communities, and good men in our communities.
The benefits for a Lodge that does this on a consistent basis are myriad, as are the benefits to the men and women being honored. Especially in this time of commonly expressed hatred towards local police, we do very well to honor those who work to protect all of us from crime and receive very little thanks for doing so.
You'd have to have a budget to provide a good dinner or awards ceremony. Too many of today's masons have no interest in investing cash into the fraternity. Dues need to be much higher.
We do unfortunately have Masons who do all they can to avoid providing a nickel to the Fraternity, and zombie Lodges as a result.
But, we also have a great many Masons who do meaningfully contribute, and Lodges that are thriving. I think that is where are efforts are best invested, instead of continually trying to save a zombie Lodge filled with Masons who don't care to improve it, our efforts, tallents, and contributions actually do good if they are directed towards a Lodge that is filled with excited Masons, and continually working to improve itself.
But yes, we need money to provide a great dinner for our community, and Masons must understand that Freemasonry isn't free, and can't thrive if it is starved for funds.
Of the three Lodges of which I’m a member, all three of them have invited community officials at one point. Chehalis had hosted County commissioners, the Sheriff, as well as other County officials. Centralia Lodge had invited the police department, as well as the Chief of Police. Both Centralia and Tenino lodge had contact with their elected officials at one point or another. I think the big key is to do this consistently, and maintain a relationship of sorts with these community leaders.
Back in the day, as one older Past Master mentioned in a meeting, being a member of the Freemasons was “the thing to do.” Every man who had standing in his community was a member. It was a big driver to the large membership in the 1920’s and 1950’s. But times changed. It was no longer the “thing to do”, it was what your parents did, and that wasn’t cool. When the membership dropped, and those important community leaders who were members passed away, the Lodge’s relevance in the community waned. Many towns think their Masonic Lodge went away many years ago, and from what I’ve witnessed, when they find out we haven’t gone away, they are quite pleased!
What we need to do is make Freemasonry the “Thing to be” again. And I think there’s enough younger men who would agree with that. Our lodges need to develop the mindset that they are indeed relevant, and that there’s good men out there that are interested in joining and being involved. Getting out in the community and letting them know we’re still around is a great start.
It is undoubtedly true that changes in our society have impacted Masonic membership numbers.
But it is also true that our Masonic Lodges have turned inward. In far too many cases a Lodge will do little or nothing to reach out and be involved in the local community. That also has impacted Masonic membership numbers.
If we hope to attract the best men to Freemasonry, we must get to know those men. For that we need to look outward, and we need to do it consistently.
I really like the idea of hosting a dinner for our local first responders! That would be a great way to show our appreciation and possibly awnser any questions that they !ay have !
First Responder appreciation dinners are a truly superb way for our Lodges to get in touch with our communities, and good men in our communities.
The benefits for a Lodge that does this on a consistent basis are myriad, as are the benefits to the men and women being honored. Especially in this time of commonly expressed hatred towards local police, we do very well to honor those who work to protect all of us from crime and receive very little thanks for doing so.
You'd have to have a budget to provide a good dinner or awards ceremony. Too many of today's masons have no interest in investing cash into the fraternity. Dues need to be much higher.
We do unfortunately have Masons who do all they can to avoid providing a nickel to the Fraternity, and zombie Lodges as a result.
But, we also have a great many Masons who do meaningfully contribute, and Lodges that are thriving. I think that is where are efforts are best invested, instead of continually trying to save a zombie Lodge filled with Masons who don't care to improve it, our efforts, tallents, and contributions actually do good if they are directed towards a Lodge that is filled with excited Masons, and continually working to improve itself.
But yes, we need money to provide a great dinner for our community, and Masons must understand that Freemasonry isn't free, and can't thrive if it is starved for funds.
Of the three Lodges of which I’m a member, all three of them have invited community officials at one point. Chehalis had hosted County commissioners, the Sheriff, as well as other County officials. Centralia Lodge had invited the police department, as well as the Chief of Police. Both Centralia and Tenino lodge had contact with their elected officials at one point or another. I think the big key is to do this consistently, and maintain a relationship of sorts with these community leaders.
Back in the day, as one older Past Master mentioned in a meeting, being a member of the Freemasons was “the thing to do.” Every man who had standing in his community was a member. It was a big driver to the large membership in the 1920’s and 1950’s. But times changed. It was no longer the “thing to do”, it was what your parents did, and that wasn’t cool. When the membership dropped, and those important community leaders who were members passed away, the Lodge’s relevance in the community waned. Many towns think their Masonic Lodge went away many years ago, and from what I’ve witnessed, when they find out we haven’t gone away, they are quite pleased!
What we need to do is make Freemasonry the “Thing to be” again. And I think there’s enough younger men who would agree with that. Our lodges need to develop the mindset that they are indeed relevant, and that there’s good men out there that are interested in joining and being involved. Getting out in the community and letting them know we’re still around is a great start.
It is undoubtedly true that changes in our society have impacted Masonic membership numbers.
But it is also true that our Masonic Lodges have turned inward. In far too many cases a Lodge will do little or nothing to reach out and be involved in the local community. That also has impacted Masonic membership numbers.
If we hope to attract the best men to Freemasonry, we must get to know those men. For that we need to look outward, and we need to do it consistently.