TELL YOUR STORY.

Summer greetings from Alma, Michigan!

With over 11,000 lakes and ponds, thousands of miles of coastline, and millions of acres of forest, summers spent fishing, hiking, and exploring Michigan comprises one of the most loved legacies of our state.

These memories made of casting a line off the docks of Lake Michigan, riding along the shore of Mackinaw Island, or paddling along the scenic Upper Peninsula run deep through our spirit. They're shared experiences of where we're from and who we are. Similarly, we each have shared experiences as a member of our Craft, as well as unique ones, too. These memories are your legacy, and we're asking you to share them with us.

We want your stories to be part of the Michigan Masonic Oral History Project. The Oral History Project publications are the first of their kind, and the stories we’re collecting will not only leave a legacy for you and your fellow members, but they will also live forever in the Library of Congress. This fall, you’ll be contacted via email by our project partner, PCI Publishing Concepts, to participate in this exciting project. Follow the instructions in the email to submit up to two photos and tell your story.

Every day, hundreds of untold stories from our Brothers are lost forever. The Oral History Project captures and preserves those stories before they are gone. The finished publication is something you and your family will enjoy for years to come, and it’s our hope you will contribute a story to make it complete. For more information on this project please visit the Michigan Masons home page at: www.michiganmasons.org

The Michigan Masonic Oral History Project is a living history for members both senior and new, and it won’t be the same without you. Thank you for your time and your consideration. We can’t wait to hear your story.

Fraternally,

Robert P. Conley Michigan Masons, SCEO

It's said nothing endures but change, and that's certainly true in Masonry. MWGM Larry Judson and WGM Craig Lehrke joined PGM Bob Conley in the latest edition of Trowel Time to discuss their Masonic journey and how it changed their lives for the better. If you haven't had an opportunity to view Trowel Time, you can check out all the episodes by searching YouTube for Michigan Masons Trowel Time. We think you'll find the show both entertaining and educational. Excerpts below have been edited for length and clarity.

Larry Judson

Igrew up in Gaines, Michigan, and I went to school in Byron. I did my degree work at Michigan State University and got my bachelor's in education and master's in administration.

I got into Masonry in a unique way. While I was visiting a grocery store in Byron, I was having a Coke with one of the fathers of two kids that I taught in school. He looked at me and said, "Why are you not a Mason?" And I said, "Well, Don, I guess I never knew how to become a Mason, but I would like to be one." Those were the fateful words. As soon as I said I'd like to be one, he walked across the street and picked up a petition.

I’ve had many great years in the Craft, but unfortunately, in 1999, my first wife passed away of cancer. Then about three years later the good Lord brought Mary into my life. When I decided to join the Grand Line, I talked with Mary and I said, "We’re either going to do this together or I'm not going to do it." She said it was fine with her, and she's been like a fish in water.

I believe this is going to be a very positive year, and I've challenged the Craft to get out there to get some good men in. I want to be the first Grand Master in fifty years who shows a positive increase in the number of Masons in Michigan. One of the things that I want to do at the next Grand Lodge session is read off the names of every lodge that has shown growth in Masonry.

I'm seeing more degree work than I have seen since I was a master back in 2011, and in October we're going to have an All Degree Day again to support that. So, in the coming year, I'm going to ask each of you to dig deep in your heart and ask yourself, "What can I do for Masonry?"

Craig Lehrke

Iwas born and raised in Grand Rapids and that’s where I went to school. I went to college at CMU, and graduated there with my bachelor’s degree which was all I needed to become an officer in the Navy. In the Navy I went through flight school, became a pilot, and flew helicopters. Then after Desert Shield and Desert Storm, there was a huge draw down in manpower. I left active duty but stayed in the reserves and became a teacher and principal.

After 9/11, things got very busy and very tough. Being a school principal when you're gone every other year is challenging. So, I retired from education and stayed on active duty overseas until 2013. My last tour of duty was probably my favorite. It was a tour in Africa. And looking back, it was probably one of the most Masonic things you could do, because I was a representative from one of the richest countries in the world, and I was working hand in hand with members of the nations of some of the poorest in the world; and it didn't matter. We were on equal terms. Today, I have a charter business with my sailboat, which I do under the bridge out of St. Ignace, and this winter I got a phone call asking me to be a captain of a Soo Locks boat tour. So now I also take tourists through the Soo Locks.

I had dropped a petition at Verona Lodge in Bad Axe before I went to Africa, and immediately after signing the petition I was sent overseas. Two years later I came home, and the secretary of the lodge came up to me and asked, "You still want to be a Mason?" I was initiated a month and a half later. Instead of laying over thirty days, I was laid over close to 700. Still though, I went through the degrees and jumped right into junior deacon after I was raised.

I’m a fourth generation Mason. My father and my grandfathers were all Masons, and my dad visited Masons. I learned from his example of taking the time to visit people. Learning that commitment to helping your Brother and serving others was what stuck. That's what guided me into the military, and it brought me back to Masonry when I retired from the military. Serving in my lodge is what motivates me.