“The lodge room was packed to capacity.”  Now isn’t that something you like to hear?  But it was true on the evening of Tuesday 15 November 2005 at Weymouth Masonic Building. The parking lot was full, too,  and many Masons had to park way down the street. This was but small inconvenience for what turned out to be a great evening.

A few of the members of the visiting suite get ready for the lineup. Because there were so many in the suite, Masons formed up in the large downstairs room, then took the stairs up to the lodge room.

There were plenty of purple aprons to behold – many Grand Lodge officers and DDGMs from other districts came to honor RW Phil in his swansong visitation – and there were plenty of officers and members from other lodges in the 8th Masonic District. There were substantially over 100 visitors, with many from Rural Lodge amongst them. RW Phil gave an extraordinary tour de force as he introduced the huge suite individually by name, giving each Mason’s office. The incoming procession completely filled the lodge room floor, and it was only by careful attention by the Marshals that chaos was averted as the head of the lodge committee met the tail of the DD’s committee and formed a ring! (DDGMarshal: Wor Philip Cromer; Weymouth United Lodge Marshal: Wor Todd Ridder.)

Many officers spoke in honor of Phil and his outstanding two years of tenure. RW Phil in turn thanked his retiring suite and presented each of them with Mark Tabbert’s excellent new book on “American Freemasonry”. (Mark Tabbert is Curator at the National Heritage Museum, and presiding Master of Mystic Valley Lodge in Arlington). RW Phil was eloquent in his praise of Masons who had been formative in his Masonic path through DeMolay and through Weymouth United Lodge, and he spoke in glowing terms of his long friendship with his mentor RW Robert Steadman, who was chairman of the reception committee on this night. RW Phil remarked on a word that had been new to him – the word ‘homecoming’ applied to the DDGM’s final Official Visitation to his home lodge. He found that description apposite and touching. Indeed this must have been an emotional evening for RW Phil as he received the deserved accolades of his fellow Masons.

It is of course a secret as to who will be our incoming DDGM for the 8th Masonic District. We’ll just have to wait for the Feast of St John in December at Grand Lodge! Your Rural Lodge Newsletter will have the news out to you in the last week of December.

From Rural Lodge Newsletter 2
22 November 2005