CORNERSTONE
Michigan Michigan Masons Masons
Spring 2021 ISSUE 05
MASONS AT WORK
The Board Members and what they do for our Fraternity
A NEW NORMAL
Taking steps to make Masonic Pathways a safer community
MONUMENTAL An opportunity to make your mark on Michigan Masonic history.
TABLE of CONTENTS
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Cornerstone Setting Ceremony
Monumental: A New Space Brought to Life By Visions of the Past
Meet the Artist: Chris LaPorte
A New Normal: Steps to Make Pathways a Safer Community
Knockin’ On Our Doors: Prospects’ Interest in the Fraternity Soars
An Opportunity to Make Your Mark on Michigan Masonic History
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MASONS AT WORK: THE BOARD MEMBERS AND WHAT THEY DO FOR OUR FRATERNITY
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his issue of our magazine is dedicated to spring and renewal, growth, and change! For our organization to operate in a manner and fashion that allows for that growth and change to occur in a safe and secure method, we rely on our board members. Our organization has three corporations, and each of them have a governing board. The Michigan Masonic Home is governed by a Board of Trustees. Terms are for three years and a trustee may be elected to serve a second term. The board itself is governed by the President and Vice President, as well as the Secretary and Treasurer. The President presides at all meetings of the board and establishes the various committees of the board. The committees include: Governance, Finance, and Strategic. At each meeting of the Board of Trustees, held quarterly, the reports of each committee as well as reports from the Home on its financial position, census, quality reports, and many more are received. The Home Board of Trustees is composed of the Grand Master, the Deputy Grand Master, and the Grand Treasurer. There are additionally nine elected members of the board. You are not required to be a Page 2
Mason to be a trustee on the Home board. In fact, we have three ladies currently on the board representing residents at our Home, as well as the Order of the Eastern Star. Each year, three members of the board will rotate off, and three new will be nominated by the Home board following a resume and interview process. Those nominations are then forwarded to the Grand Lodge Board of Directors for final approval. Expertise or experience from demographicallydiverse areas of our state are encouraged. If you’d like more information, please contact Kim Campbell at the Masonic Home. She can be contacted at kcampbell@ masonicpathways.com. The Michigan Masonic Charitable Foundation is likewise governed by a Board of
Michigan Masons - Cornerstone Magazine - Spring 2021
Trustees. As with the Michigan Masonic Home, the term is for three years and you can be nominated and elected to serve an additional term. All nominees for the Foundation board must be approved by election at the Annual Communication of the Grand Lodge of Michigan. This board also has several committees. Governance, Human Resources, and Youth are three of the most active. This board is committed to the governance of the Foundation and its trusteeship of the endowed, invested funds of the Michigan Masonic Charitable Foundation. Similarly to the Michigan Masonic Home Board of Trustees, the Charitable Foundation board does not have a Masonic membership requirement. We have representation from the Order of the Eastern Star on this board, and we are looking at ways to expand the opportunity to serve our Fraternity as a Trustee of one of our boards. If you would like more information on becoming a trustee of the Michigan Masonic Charitable Foundation, please send a note to
Kelly McPherson at kmcpherson@mmcfonline.org. The final board that needs to be mentioned is the Grand Lodge Board of Directors. This board is composed of the Grand Master, the Deputy Grand Master, the Senior Grand Warden, Junior Grand Warden, Grand Treasurer, and Grand Secretary. All of whom are elected to those offices annually at the Grand Lodge Annual Communication. These six officers also sit on the Michigan Masonic Charitable Foundation Board of Trustees. This board approves nominees to the Michigan Masonic Home Board of Trustees. All of our trustees and directors work diligently for the betterment of our Fraternity and our Masonic family. They put in long days and spend countless hours educating themselves on matters of importance, but also for the board they are serving. All trustees are invited to the meetings of the other boards, so knowledge learned in one meeting may provide guidance when the board they serve faces similar challenges. We thank our Trustees, past and present!
CORNERSTONE SETTING CEREMONY FOR NEW SHARED SERVICES ADMINISTRATIVE BUILDING
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onstruction of a new Shared Services administrative building was commemorated with an official cornerstone setting ceremony within the campus of the Masonic Home on Monday, April 12th. Hosted by Most Worshipful Grand Master Craig Mason and Grand Lodge Systems CEO Robert Conley, the event featured Craig H. Maison, Grand Master of Masons in Michigan, Brother Greg Mapes, Mayor of the City of Alma, and many more. “The cornerstone is symbolic throughout Freemasonry, originating from the stonemasons and incorporated today to represent the labor and time necessary to build the moral foundations of truth, charity, and compassion that guide our Fraternity,” said Systems CEO Robert Conley. The new administrative building will replace offices currently housed in the decommissioned hospital attached to the Masonic Home. These offices will include Shared Services for the Michigan Masonic Home, the Grand Lodge of Michigan offices, and the Michigan Masonic Charitable Foundation offices. Michigan Masons - www.michiganmasons.org - Spring 2021
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MO
A new space brought to life by visions of the past. Page 4
“A
rs gratia artis” is the Latin term from the MGM logo we see every time the lion roars at the beginning of an MGM film. It means “art for art’s sake.” But perhaps we Freemasons would feel more comfortable with a slight variation of that term and say “ars gratia structura,” which can be loosely translated as “art for building’s sake.” Art has always been an important part of our Masonic history. Original operative stonemasons were called “freemasons” because their special skills and artistry allowed them to travel freely around medieval Europe to construct the magnificent buildings of the past, and to carve the intricate patterns and symbols into the freestone that decorated those buildings.
Michigan Masons - Cornerstone Magazine - Spring 2021
ONUMENTAL
In the spirit of this bond between our fraternity and art, it is fitting the new administrative building for the offices of the Grand Lodge of Michigan, Michigan Masonic Home, and the Michigan Masonic Charitable Foundation, soon to be completed in Alma, will include a significant piece of art as an integral part of its interior design - a mural that exemplifies the quality of our lives as Freemasons, the symbols of our Craft, and the historical influence of our fraternity. This large, remarkable mural will be created by Chris LaPorte, 2010 grand prize winner of ArtPrize© in Grand Rapids, the world’s largest art competition, and will hold a place of honor and focus in the new administrative building lobby for all to see.
Inspired by a vintage 1924 photograph of a proud Master Mason degree team from an actual Michigan lodge, the massive graphite rendering will incorporate additional Masonic symbolism and replace the faces from the original photograph with the faces of brother Freemasons from Michigan and across the country who have helped shape our world. And just as those brothers influenced our world in different ways over time, the “Master Mason Degree Team” mural is sure to be a source of pride and enjoyment in many different ways for generations to come.
Michigan Masons - www.michiganmasons.org - Spring 2021
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Michigan Masons - Cornerstone Magazine - Spring 2021
ABOUT the
ARTIST C
hris LaPorte is an Associate Professor of Art at Aquinas College in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He was awarded the grand prize of 2010 ArtPrize© for his entry “Cavalry, American Officers, 1921.” Measuring 8’ x 28’ (yes, that’s FEET), “Cavalry” was Mr. LaPorte’s tribute to his late father and a personalized rendition of a vintage photo the artist had seen at an antique store. Little did he know at the time what seeing that original photo would inspire in him and others in the years to come. Since winning ArtPrize© in 2010, Mr. LaPorte has become known for creating a variety of custom monumental drawings; large-scale graphite renderings that use nostalgic imagery to help private citizens and groups tell their stories through his art. Clients who have relied on Mr. LaPorte to tell their stories in this unique and memorable way are organizations such as Aquinas College, The Dominican Sisters of Marywood, East Grand Rapids Library, and the Amway Corporation, just to name a few. Mr. LaPorte creates his magnificent pieces from his home studio in the Eastown neighborhood of Grand Rapids, where he lives with his wife and their children.
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A New NORMAL Taking steps to make Masonic Pathways a safer community.
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he year 2021 is off to a great start for the Michigan Masonic Home. Thankfully, we were one of the very first retirement communities in Michigan to receive the COVID-19 vaccination. By January 25th, 99% of our Independent and Assisted Living residents and 84% of eligible Health Care Center residents had received both doses of the Moderna vaccination. Spirits are high and there is a feeling of pride among the residents, knowing that they are doing their part to make Masonic Pathways a safer community. Even after our vaccination success, following both Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) guidelines, we continue to require the wearing of masks and appropriate social distancing. Always known for our immaculate housekeeping, thanks to some special grants, we have “upped our game” by adding the latest in Though we all crave a return to normalcy right now, change can be good too! Here’s a glimpse of the recently opened dining rooms on the second floor of the Jack F. Sanders Health Care Center. Designed for those experiencing memory loss, these all-new spaces feature natural feeling ambient lighting, cozy gas fireplaces, and mouth-watering aromas from the adjacent pantry. Whether seated with others at a table for four, or at the inviting counter, residents can now enjoy a comforting homelike atmosphere. Page 8
Michigan Masons - Cornerstone Magazine - Spring 2021
COVID fighting technology, including electrostatic disinfectant sprayers and UVC disinfection lights. Known to be highly effective against COVID, the UVC lamps are used to disinfect rooms between patients and to remove any possible infectious agents from items being brought on to our campus during new resident move-ins. For another layer of safety, we have also installed symptom screening technology at every employee entrance. No employee, Masonic Pathways or contracted, may enter the building without going through our new screening/temperature check process. If entrance is denied, a supervisor and our Infection Preventionist receive electronic notification. The employee is instructed to leave the building and seek medical advice from their personal physician. If testing positive for COVID-19, whether showing symptoms or asymptomatic, employees must quarantine at home until cleared by our Infection Preventionist. Admittedly, we do not know what the new normal will look like post-COVID at Masonic Pathways.
However, we do know that this past year our residents never had to worry about being alone in a health crisis or wondering whether they would be safe shopping for groceries or visiting a pharmacy. The Michigan Masonic Home has always been a haven for seniors, and even a pandemic has not stopped us from furthering our mission of enhancing the lives of those who choose to make Masonic Pathways their retirement home. If you or a loved one spent this last year feeling isolated and alone, now is a great time to consider a move to the safe environment of Masonic Pathways. You will never be without family; your Masonic brothers and sisters are waiting to greet you. Whether you are looking for a maintenance-free Village Estates duplex, “top-floor” Ashlar Terrace independent living, or assisted living in either a one or twobedroom suite, or a one-room studio, we have it all. To schedule a tour, in person or virtual, call 800-321-9357 today.
Michigan Masons - www.michiganmasons.org - Spring 2021
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KNOCKIN’ ON OUR DOORS
As we continue to navigate through the pandemic, we have had to deal with activity and attendance being kept down, but we have seen interest in the fraternity soar!
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he Grand Lodge annually fields an average of about 600 inquiries into Masonry from people interested, mostly through electronic means. During 2020 that number spiked to over 1,200! The year 2021 looks to continue the trend of more interest as we had over 220 inquiries in the first quarter. Prospective candidates are telling us they are looking for more human interaction, camaraderie among other men, and to do good things in their communities; all areas the Masons have been leaders in for centuries! Our office is still fielding questionnaire answers from these prospects and have been sending their information and answers to lodges around the state. It is important that lodges contact these prospective members in short time. They are knocking on our door... please answer!
The Grand Lodge office has a Six Step program and Mentoring booklets that lodges can order, or there are PDFs of both documents available for download at members.michiganmasons.org. Log in and click on “Members” then “Books, Education and Training.” For assistance finding these resources, call (800) 321-9357. These tools are valuable in creating a bond that will extend well beyond the candidate’s raising, as well as in finding out early who might not be the right fit for the fraternity. Thank you to all of our lodge members who are putting in the time and effort to meet with these candidates for Masonry. We will keep them coming, as long as they keep knocking!
43%
of prospects are from the Metro Detroit area
51% 44% of prospects have contacted us through michiganmasons.org Page 10
of prospects are contacting us through BeaFreemason.org site
Michigan Masons - Cornerstone Magazine - Spring 2021
MAKE YOUR MARK on Michigan Masonic
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HISTORY
he new administrative building for the Grand Lodge of Michigan in Alma will soon be completed. In keeping with the spirit of our Fraternity and its bond with art and symbolism, the building will include a significant piece of art as part of its interior design. The art piece will be a mural depicting “The Masonic Degree Team.” The mural will display a group of thirtyone historically prominent Masons and is approximately 13 ft x 12.5 ft in size. This incredible work will be the feature as you enter the building. We are offering five lucky Michigan Masons the opportunity to include their face amongst these renowned men. That’s right! YOU can be a part of this monumental piece of art that will soon become a part of Michigan Masonic history and be seen for generations to come!
GET YOUR ENTRIES HERE: bit.ly/MasonicMural
OR
Text the word: Mural to 406-302-5086 All proceeds from this sweepstakes will benefit the Michigan Masonic Museum & Library.
Michigan Masons - www.michiganmasons.org - Spring 2021
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1204 Wright Ave Alma, MI 48801 michiganmasons.org
Everyone in our Masonic Family deserves to live a dignified and meaningful life - we can help! Live Better At Home is available to help Masons of all ages and their families connect with the resources that can make a difference and improve their quality of life.
(800) 321-9357
masonsupport@michiganmasons.org