‘The new Grand Master is…’

    

GLNY

Puffs of white smoke are emanating from Masonic Hall—vanilla cavendish, if I’m not mistaken—meaning we have a new Grand Master! The Most Worshipful Steven A. Rubin, Grand Master of Masons in the State of New York, will be installed this afternoon.

No, I am not present at the Grand Lodge Communication. I’m simply following the updates on 1010 WINS.

I didn’t think they’d have results so early. Still waiting on tallies of the other contests. Will add those here later.

UPDATE—Those other elections: WOR-AM reports the names of the other winners.

RW Robert Hogan
Deputy Grand Master

RW Mark Loughran
Senior Grand Warden

RW John Haslam
Junior Grand Warden

RW Alberto Cortizo
Grand Treasurer

 
RW Richard Schulz remains as Grand Secretary, having sought re-election without any challenger.

The Senior Grand Warden election was interesting; when the deadline for declaring candidacies passed last fall, no one had stepped forward for the position! Had I known that was to happen, I myself would have filed on the Scald Miserable ticket. Maybe next time.

     

‘Civil War Dinner at Gettysburg this month’

    

Good Samaritan Lodge 336 in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania has another creative collation planned for later this month. From the publicity:

We will be hosting a Civil War Dinner on Friday, May 24 at our lodge. Presentations from our Civil War guests will begin at six o’clock, and dinner will be served at 6:30. Menu: Union or Confederate.

Union will be Maj. Gen. James Wilson’s Beef Loaf specialty with Benjamin Wade’s lima beans and tomatoes.

Confederate will be Capt. Franklin Buchanan’s favorite Spanish Chicken with John Hunt Morgan’s Plantation Style collard greens.

Both will be served with a simple green salad and roasted potatoes. Dessert will be strawberries with whipped cream.

Join us for a great meal and excellent in-character presentations on Masons in the Civil War.

Tickets, at $50 each, can be had here. The lodge is perfectly situated at 9 Lincoln Square in Gettysburg.

     

‘Brent Morris receives UGLE Grand Rank’

    

Brent Morris shared this on social media, and says ‘Here is a photograph from Wednesday, April 24 of one of the newest Past Junior Grand Deacons of the United Grand Lodge of Antient Free and Accepted Masons of England. We were particularly honored that HRH the Duke of Kent, KG, Most Worshipful Grand Master, was present to preside over the advancement of the honorees.’

Congratulations to Bro. Brent Morris, who was elevated recently to Grand Rank in the United Grand Lodge of England! Brent is among the newest Past Grand Junior Deacons, having been invested at Freemasons’ Hall in London April 24.

If I understand the UGLE’s Constitutions, Brent now is merely sixty-one heartbeats away from the Grand Mastership. Of course you remember he served as Worshipful Master of Quatuor Coronati Lodge 2076—the first lodge of research, etc.—for the 2007-08 term, and was the first American Mason to preside over the lodge.

The UGLE’s rules are a little too complicated for me, but there are ninety Grand Rank positions in the UGLE system. The appointment to Past Grand Rank, such as Junior Deacon, is in grateful recognition of good and faithful service to the Craft. Bravo!

You’ll observe the dove on the regalia. A different idea than the moon within the Square and Compasses most of us in America know. “A symbol of purity and innocence; also peace,” says Kenneth R. H. Mackenzie of the bird in his The Royal Masonic Cyclopaedia.

     

‘Kaywoodie lives on, thanks to New York Mason’

    

Magpie file photo

S.M. Frank and Co., the business that makes the legendary Kaywoodie brand of pipes, will live on, thanks to the Brother Mason who purchased the company. W. Bro. Nathan Davis, who has been selling the brand’s briars as Greywoodie, LLC in recent years, made the deal with longtime owner Bill Feuerbach, who continued his family tradition into its fourth generation until seeking retirement. From an announcement today:

It has been announced just about everywhere, and more interviews are coming, however, I wanted to take a personal approach here. I bought Kaywoodie after five years of selling Kaywoodie pipes, having given up a thirteen-year career to do so.

Greywoodie photo

I never imagined it would happen like this, for all the good and bad. Using a 100-year-old Kaywoodie pen to buy the 173-year-old company really just put that last piece together for me. I found a way to make this a true career, and not just a hobby.

Without Bill Feuerbach supporting me and teaching me quite literally everything, this could not have happened. I am honored that he trusts me to carry his fourth generation family business forward. I hope I can do something that would make the Kaufmann Brothers, Mr. Bondy, Mr. Frank, and four Feuerbach men proud.

Known for quality briar skillfully made into good smokers and retailed at reasonable prices, the brand dates to the early twentieth century. People aren’t aware, but there was a time when Kaywoodie enjoyed a stronger reputation than Dunhill when it came to quality pipes. Read more here at Pipedia.

Magpie file photo

In my own pipe racks, not only has Kaywoodie the largest population, but my all time favorite briar is a straight billiard I bought at the New York Pipe Show at the Ramada in 1999.

Nathan is Worshipful Master—at least until next month—of Cobleskill Lodge 394, located near Albany. He was one of several Masons I’d meet every December at the Northeast Regional Pipe Smoking Contest and Hudson Valley Pipe Club Holiday Party, which had been hosted at S.M. Frank’s factory when I began attending twelve or so years ago. The pandemic kiboshed that in 2020, but when asked on social media if he might revive that tradition, Nathan said he’d love to bring it back. (He actually did get the contest going this year, but naturally it’s not the same atmosphere without the party.)

Congratulations, Nathan! I, uh, kind of acquired all the pipes I need for this lifetime, but I may buy one more to celebrate your milestone.

    

‘Dennis Daugherty, R.I.P.’

    

Just days before Grand Lodge’s Annual Communication comes the sad news of the death of RW Bro. Dennis Daugherty yesterday. There will be better informed and more personal eulogies than I can offer, but I can say without any hesitation, mental reservation, etc. that Dennis was for many of us the embodiment of how Masons ever should meet, act, and part. Always an understated role model, for sure, but inspiring nonetheless.

Dennis affiliated with Publicity Lodge 1000 in 1991, and served in the East in both the 1997-98 and 2010-11 terms. Although he resided in Utica in recent years, Dennis still attended Publicity’s Communications until the pandemic, riding Amtrak five hours each way. He also was a Corresponding Member of The ALR for many years.

From the Office of the Grand Secretary:

SAD TIDINGS

RW Bro. Dennis A. Daugherty

Has Laid Down

His Working Tools 

New York - 2 hours ago 

Dear Brethren and Friends,

It is with a very heavy heart that we announce the passing of Right Worshipful Dennis Allan Daugherty, the Grand Representative of the Grand Lodge of Kansas near the Grand Lodge of New York. R.W. Dennis Daugherty was a 63-year member of the Craft with plural memberships in Bestor G. Brown Lodge 433 in Wichita, Kansas; St. John’s Lodge 1 in New York City; Publicity Lodge 1000 in NYC; Kane Lodge 454 in NYC; and The American Lodge of Research.

R.W. Brother Dennis was Initiated on December 6, 1960; Passed on January 31, 1961; and Raised on February 28, 1961 in Bestor G. Brown Lodge 433.

He faithfully served our Grand Lodge on several committees, including the Credentials of Members & Returns of Lodges Committee, the Publications Committee, and the Masonic Hall Tours Committee.

R.W. Brother Dennis was a Senior DeMolay, having actually met and served with Dad Frank Sherman Land the founder of the Order of DeMolay in Kansas City, Kansas.

R.W. Bro. Dennis was 85 years young and he presently resided at the Masonic Care Community in Utica.

We will provide information pertaining to funeral arrangements as soon as they are known. 

Ted Jacobsen photo

MW Bill Sardone, Dennis, and Grand Master Kessler at Grand Lodge last May.

Our Grand Master, MW Richard J. Kessler; Grand Secretary and Senior DeMolay, RW Richard T. Schulz; and the Past Grand Master of DeMolay, MW William M. Sardone, PGM, share in their expressions of sympathy and sadness on behalf of all of our Brethren and DeMolay for this great loss.

May our Almighty Father welcome our dearly departed Brother into His celestial home above. Amen.

     

‘MM° on Song Mountain’

    

The brethren way out in Onondaga County are planning a Third Degree on a mountain top. That’s up by Lake Ontario. From the publicity:

The Onondaga District will host a collective Third Degree at the top of Song Mountain in Tully on June 8 (rain date June 15).

The performance of this degree is something we have been planning for, and working on, for more than a year, and we are extremely excited to be able to present this to the brethren of our state. Many of us cannot remember the last time our entire district has gotten together and worked to raise a class of Master Masons, let alone 22 brothers in a picturesque environment on the top of a mountain, overlooking Otisco Lake. The amount of effort, time, and dedication the district team, as well as all of the degree participants, are putting into this all but guarantees that this will be one for the ages.

We’re excited to have you be a part of it and look forward to seeing many of you on the mountain! There is a capacity of 250 brothers. Cost of attendance is $30 per person, the same for spectators, degree participants, and candidates alike, to cover operating costs and lunch on the top of the mountain.

The degree will be an all day affair. The gavel will drop at 9 a.m. sharp. Please arrange to be there well in advance in order to be seated in time for the opening. Seating will be on bleachers. Dress in long pants (jeans are fine) and a button-down or polo shirt. Wear shoes appropriate for walking and be prepared for being in an outdoor environment.

R and R Imports

There will be a buffet dinner at the conclusion of the degree at the base of the mountain. This incurs a separate cost of $40 per person, and is open to all Masons and their families regardless of participation in the degree at the top of the mountain. A separate reservation will be required.

The reservation process begins here. When your reservation is accepted, you will receive an email confirming your spot. When we reach 250 reservations, the reservation portal will close.

     

‘Researchers to look at Pope Leo XIII’

    

Kolbe Foundation

Pope Leo XIII

Western New York Lodge of Research will meet next Saturday for its Installation of Officers, Festive Board, plus a paper on the papal past. From the publicity:

Western NY Lodge of Research

Annual Election,

Installation of Officers,

Festive Board

& Presentation

Saturday, May 11, 10 a.m.

Bro. Ken Stuczynski will present “The Libel of Pope Leo XIII.” Menu: vegetable soup and turkey sandwiches, and dessert. $20 at the door. RSVP no later than May 8. Attire: jacket (tie optional).

These guys have their whole year planned. Click here. They meet in the Scottish Rite Valley of Buffalo, located at 2379 Union Road in Cheektowaga.

If I understand, there is a chance this meeting will be available via Zoom. Also, if you’re a regular, hopefully you know how to RSVP. (I don’t want to publish the phone number.) I would go just for the soup, but it’s 300 miles away.