Michigan Masons Cornerstone Summer 2022

Leonard Davis

Get to Know the Newest Grand Master of Michigan

I am so excited to share this experience with you as your Most Worshipful Grand Master. I would like to take a moment to share a little bit about myself and my Masonic journey. I was initiated an Entered Apprentice in 1989 and was raised to the sublime Degree of a Master Mason on March 23rd, 1989. I am proud to be a third-generation Mason and delighted that my son, Paul, carries on the tradition as a fourth-generation member of the Craft.

Brothers,

I served as Worshipful Master in 1994, 2008, and 2013 for Solomon’s Key Lodge #580, and in 2004 was honored by my lodge as the “Mason of the Year.” I have served the Fraternity in Michigan as a member of the Board of General Purposes, and as a Regional Grand Lecturer. In 2016-17 I served as a Grand Steward under the leadership of then Grand Master William Finkel, and in 2018 I was elected to the office of Junior Grand Deacon. I am a member of the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite in Michigan, the York Rite bodies in Michigan, inMichigan,visitedFraternity.withtodifferenthasofOneMasonicinhonoraryInternational,Shrinersandholdmembershipstwenty-sixMichiganlodges.ofmyfavoritepartsmyMasonicjourneybeentravelingtolodgesandgettingmeetandenjoyfellowshipthebrethreninthisNotonlyhaveImanylodgeshereinbutIhavealsosatlodgesindifferentstates

as I travel with my family. My wife once asked me if I felt weird going into these new lodges and I told her no; the Masons in those lodges are brothers and friends I just haven’t met yet. During my travels I have met many brothers with interesting stories to tell about the history of their lodge and their journey. I have also seen treasured Masonic history displayed in the most unexpected places. I encourage you all to travel to lodges you have never been to and experience the warmth and fellowship of new brothers. If we all have a commitment to excellence and strive to be the best that we can be, there is no limit to what we can accomplish. This is what Freemasonry is all about.

My wife, Anita, and I have six children (one daughter and five sons) and our family continues to expand with nineteen grandchildren and two dogs, Ollie and Maddie. We enjoy camping (or “glamping”) and I love getting on the links and playing a few rounds of golf. I have been employed in the building supply business for over thirty-six years, where it started as a summer job that I never left.

I am so pleased to begin this year serving as your Most Worshipful Grand Master, and I look forward to seeing you in lodge

In this edition of Cornerstone, we’ve asked three of our Michigan Masonic Home residents to share some of their best summer memories. They shared memories of traveling with friends and family, working their first summer jobs, and which activities at the Home they enjoy most. Residents Harvey Clark, Gary Horn, and Barb Boyce shared their stories and what made summers so special.

Harvey Clark

spend your summers growing up, do you have some memorable moments?

: I grew up on a farm six miles west of Mason, Michigan. Summer work for us was farming crops – wheat, corn, and hay. We were also doing fallowing, a program where the government would pay farmers to not plant crops, because they wanted the land fallowed. We had some dairy cows and a few chickens. It was a lot of work, but as I look back on it now, I think those were some of the best times of my life.

My uncle was a forest ranger in Mio and he told us about a program where you could lease a lot in the Huron Forest for $1 a year if you wanted to build a cabin or structure on it, and we spent a lot of time up there at the cabin we built. We went swimming with our friends and cousins, those were great times.

Is there a summer program you especially enjoy here at the Home?

HC: Just about all of them really, the activities that they offer are really great. I do like the music programs a lot. In fact when my parents lived here, I started performing music programs here, and now my son comes here to perform as well. My dad played the fiddle, my mother played the piano, and I play guitar and ukulele. I’m learning the harmonica right now. My son graduated from Western with a music degree and his wife is a piano teacher, they are a very talented family. I enjoy all music but like folk music the most; the Kingston Trio, Woody Guthrie, and Pete Seeger. That music speaks to me.

Stories from Michigan Masonic Home Summers Masons Cornerstone

Gary Horn

Can you tell us a little bit about how you spent your summers

: Summer for me meant a lot of fishing. I grew up in Flint, and while I didn’t realize it at the time, fishing was as much about supplying food for dinner as it was recreation. I learned a lot about fishing from my dad. About the time I was in 5th grade I became interested in baseball. I only lived about three or four blocks from the ballfield and from the time I was eight up until I was seventeen, I was also involved in the boy scouts. I was in Troop 48, that was a big adventure for me. I made it into the Order of the Arrow and that was a big deal because it was an honored part of the scouting experience. Summer camp was near Kalkaska at a camp named TAPICO, short for Tall Pine Council, where I earned my pioneering merit badge. That allowed me to build my first lean-to shelter, which I was quite proud of at the time.

What do you enjoy about the summer programs here at the Home?

GH: Fishing at Miller’s Pond is a wonderful experience; it gives us time to get out of the building and see some of the countryside. The Millers are a wonderful family to work with and Lisa Godfrey, who coordinates the trip, does a great job. I also look forward to the Great Lakes Loons baseball games in Midland. It’s a great place, the people are so nice, and someone affiliated with the Masons pays for our tickets and it's always a great time. I would like to say a big thank you to whomever helped to make those trips possible.

BarbWhatBoycewasspecialabout

summers for you growing up?

BB: We camped a lot at Indian River, hiking and fishing, and we used to go to Ludington a lot too. My aunt lived in Ludington, and we would walk down to the beach. My cousin and I fell asleep on the beach one day and when we woke up, I was so burnt I couldn’t even sleep that night. My aunt was a nurse and tried everything just to cool us down that night, we were a mess. I played softball a lot too, I played on the boys’ team when I was in grade school. I played first base.

What activities do you enjoy doing here at the Home during summer?

BB: I love the music, and I also do ceramics, and latch hook. My rug was in the paper, it took me fourteen months to complete due to the COVID shutdown and delays. I create a lot of ceramics, I’ve made cardinals, fish, angels, puppy dogs, jack-o-lanterns you can put a light in, and a vase. I really enjoy it. I love country music, we used to go to the Grand Ole Opry every year. Our county 4-H club had a style show, and I was picked to go to the state style show in Lansing at Michigan State to model my suit. We also played games and learned to square dance. It was a great experience.

More than just faces on the new Masonic Degree Team Mural, the winners of the raffle and auction bring a combined 206 years of service to the Craft. They have held offices, fundraised, and worked in their communities alongside their brethren. They attend lodge meetings, belong to multiple appendant bodies, and lend aid to those in need. They are teachers, administrators, managers, and businessmen; but above all else, they are men committed to bettering themselves, their community, and the Faces THAN JUST

Worshipful Brother James A. Schad (Jim) is proudly and humbly represented on our mural as one of the most universally respected members of our Craft, not only in Michigan but nationally as well. Jim is from a Masonic family; his father and four brothers were Masons. In 1963 he was raised in Vienna Lodge #205 and was Worshipful Master when the current Clio Masonic Temple was completed. He was honored as Vienna Lodge's "Mason of the Year" in 1982 and was a life member. Jim was elected as Grand Tiler of the Grand Lodge and served in that position until he was made the Grand Tiler Emeritus in 2004. Jim served with distinction on the George Washington Masonic National Memorial committee here in Michigan and he is responsible for the increase in our membership’s commitment to the memorial in our annual per diem that each dues-paying member provides to the Memorial.

Jim was born on March 16th, 1931, to George and Ella Schad. He shared his parents with two brothers and three sisters. Jim served in the U.S. Army from 1952-1954. Much of that time was spent in an artillery unit guarding the largest air base in Korea. Three short weeks after he was mustered out of the Army as

W. Don Baugher holds the honor of being the 148th Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Free & Accepted Masons of the State of Michigan and one of the images on our Masonic Degree Team mural. Don is a member of Coloma Lodge #162 and a strong advocate for all children as exhibited in his service to the National Masonic Foundation for Children. He belongs to all appendant and concordant bodies and is a 33rd Degree Scottish Rite

BornFreemason.inSenath, Missouri in 1938, Don moved to Michigan in 1956, and after his service in the U.S. Army went on to work for the Whirlpool Corporation. Don married Georgia "Jo" in 1961 and they recently celebrated their sixty-year anniversary. They have two daughters, Natalie and Melanie. They also love their three granddaughters, two great-grandsons and one great-granddaughter.

sergeant, he married his high school sweetheart, Joyce Lounsbury, in 1954. They were blessed with two sons, Jim Jr. and Larry. Following his service to our country Jim went to work at General Motors for thirty-three years in the Flint area.

Jim and Joyce eventually moved permanently

Baugher Schad

Hall's North Star Lodge #5. Rick stated, “Wes was a friend, mentor, and a wonderful man and Mason.”

He played a significant role in bringing Masonic groups together across the historical lines of race and tradition that has long separated them. He also played an enormously outsized role in Rick’s early formative time as a Mason, and Rick has always had a deep and abiding respect for Wes. When Rick won the spot he immediately thought of his departed friend and

aniel L. Pelak was raised as a Master Mason in 2002. During his many years with the Fraternity, Dan has achieved a great deal. He’s a Past Master of York Lodge #410 and a life member of Grand Rapids Lodge #34. He is also involved in the Scottish Rite (lifetime member), York Rite (King in Royal Arch and Past Thrice Illustrious Master

Lee S. Fruman was born in Detroit, Michigan in 1949 and moved to Franklin, Michigan in 1960. He graduated from the University of Michigan with a degree in anthropology and zoology in 1971 and subsequently graduated from the University of Michigan Medical School in 1975. He initially practiced emergency medicine and then opened a family medicine practice in Pontiac and Troy, Michigan. He later attended Wayne State University Law School and graduated as class valedictorian in 1990, and thereafter practiced both law and medicine, as well as teaching a law school course in health law. Dr. Fruman has authored several articles relating to medicine and law. Following the death of his father, who was a Scottish Rite Mason and Shriner, Dr. Fruman has also run family manufacturing and commercial real estate enterprises as well as a charitable foundation.

Dr. Fruman has a long history of involvement in soccer coaching. He founded the Royal Oak Youth Soccer Association in 1977 and subsequently served as a coach in southeast Michigan and Florida, coaching youth soccer teams for twenty-five years, varsity high school teams for twenty years, and a men’s team for ten years. He has also worked as a team physician for a professional soccer team and high school teams, as well as being the medical director for several years at state high school finals tournaments in soccer and basketball.

rother Tom Ackerson was raised as a Master Mason on June 15th, 2000 in Wacousta-Dewitt Lodge #359. He started volunteering at the lodge fish dinners before he was a member and that quickly led to more volunteering with the Brothers, this time at the lodge’s Duck Derby raffles. Through these shared events and moments of brotherhood, it was an easy leap to make the decision about asking to be a fellow Mason. He was mentored by WB Dick S. Cross.

For over twenty-four years, Tom has been an educator with LifeTech Academy.

#44 in May, 2006. In 2012, he joined Monroe Chapter No. 1 Royal Arch Masons Michigan, Monroe Council No. 1 of Cryptic Masons, and Detroit Commandery No. 1 Knights Templar, where he was knighted on November 19th, 2012. He was conferred as a 32nd Degree Scottish Rite Mason on October 27th, 2012 in the Valley of Detroit (now the Valley of Michigan).

Tom Ackerson

What first drew you to Masonry?

Chris Parfeniuk: I’ve always been interested in the history and mystique of Freemasonry. For numerous years I was interested in joining, but never put myself up to it until I noticed a friend of mine, who I played hockey with, had a Masonic license plate on his car. Talking with him about Freemasonry and its virtues made me take the final steps to become a Freemason.

What do you remember most about the day you were raised?

CP: While being raised was very important to me, my most Thebeingmemoryimportantwasinitiated.degreework was excellent, the spoken ritual was concise, and every lodge officer appeared to be on their toes for the floor work. The surprise visit of some Grand Lodge Officers to my EA degree perhaps added some adrenaline and extra motivation to the degree work that night. The most important memory was first gazing on the three great lights of Masonry under the flickering light of real candles. It truly felt mystical.

What is your favorite community event your lodge is involved in?

CP: My favorite community event is our donation to the Midland Diabetes Center. The center uses the money to provide scholarships to individuals who need the Diabetes Center services but are uninsured or under insured. These include diabetic adults as well as pregnant women who are experiencing diabetic medical concerns.

What are your lodge's goals in 2022?

Chris Parfeniuk

Centre Lodge #273 in Midland

CP: For 2022 there are three areas that we wanted to focus on. Those included improving our use and knowledge of Groupable, as well as ensuring that officers are prepared when they progress to the next position. Lastly, we're improving interaction with other lodges in our area. This includes visits to get to know the brothers in different lodges while being respectful of how they do their floor work. Hopefully this will start some reciprocal visits and eventually we can support each other in degree work.

Meet the Master

What first drew you to Masonry?

Ben Wright: One of my friends that I was doing a lot of mud run-type events with got into the Craft and started telling me about this group of guys he joined and the things they were doing. I had a longer talk with Daniel Soulier about Freemasonry at this friend's wedding, which really made me want to join. At that time I needed some friends more invested in me and my personal development, and it seemed like Freemasonry was a great fit.

What do you remember most about the day you were raised?

BW: My installing officer snuck a couple lines into the Ancient Charges and Regulations that induced me to "regularly seek the counsel of senior Doric Past Masters, and create opportunitiesluncheonandto tender their wise counsel.” Also having four local Knights Templar from the Commandery DeMolai No. 5, and one of their members which I investigated when he joined my lodge presented me with my Master’s pin from Grand Rapids Chapter No. 7 of Royal Arch Masons. Most importantly, the speech I gave correcting a grave error while presenting my wife at an installation about four years ago during my address to the brethren after having received my gavel for the coming year.

What is your favorite community event your lodge is involved in?

BW: We need to evaluate and select a new community involvement event for Doric to be part of. Previously as I was coming through the line, Doric hosted Child ID programs a couple of times at a local school, and a couple of more times at the Grand Rapids Festival of Arts.

What are your lodge's goals in 2022?

Ben Wright

Doric Lodge #342 in Grand Rapids

BW: Our goal is to recover and grow our lodge engagement from the last two years of pandemic. To that end, my officers and I are working with Corey Curtiss on a Lodge Success initiative. We need to look inside the lodge every once in a while to identify room for improvement.

Centre Lodge #273 meets every first Thursday at 7:30 p.m. 148 E. Main St. in Midland

Doric Lodge #342 meets every first Thursday at 7:30 p.m. 233 Fulton Street E. in Grand Rapids