This article is a little different, rather than write about traveling to another lodge, I am writing about a golf tournament that my mother lodge Warren No. 51 hosted on June 28th, at the Portland West Golf Course.
This was our second annual "Meet The Masons" tournament and it was a great day. We had fifty golfers show up for the tournament that lasted from 8:00 am to around 1:00pm. The weather was on our side, being in the low 80s with no rain in sight.
The tournament was an 18 hole, "shotgun" style format, and it had a few fun "curve balls" for the golfers. On one hole the challenge was to putt the ball using a very large wooden gavel. The gavel was hand made by WB Richard R Washburn and it added some extra fun for the day. At another hold the golfers had the chance to place bets with a "pro." If you bet that he would do well, and if he did, you were entered into a 50/50 raffle that was later drawn back at the lodge during the barbecue.
WB Tom Mumford's brother Chuck Mumford, an avid golfer showed up for the tournament again with his crew of three other golfer, Dave Hinman, Rich Suipum, and Brianna Tassinari. They had the lowest score and won the tournament for the second year in a row. We hope to see some new brothers at our tournament next year who may be able to give them a run for their money.To be able to lend a hand, and show support is a core belief of so many brothers. There was a respectable number of brothers from different lodges in attendance. Solar Lodge #131, Anchor Lodge #112, St John's Lodge #2, Philosophic Lodge of Research, and Washington Lodge #81 came to support our fundraising match.
This allows us to put some money back into the community by supporting high school students and other organizations that reach out to us periodically for a helping hand. The tournament also provided a warm feeling of fraternal brotherhood, which was in addition to the warmth of the late June sun.The barbecue was prepared by WB Tomas Kesser. Tom was in charge of the grill while Bro. Maykel Torriente and myself set up the dining hall. Tom was serving up burgers, sausages, grilled chicken, and a ton of ribs.
The title "Meet The Masons" golf tournament was designed to encourage non-brothers to show up and see what we, as Freemasons, are all about; friendship, morality, and brotherly love. Once the barbecue was over there was an opportunity for anyone interested to take a tour of the lodge.
Taking time to show the lodge to interested people will perhapes lead someone in the path of knocking on our door and seeking admission into the great fraternity we are apart of. On behave of the brothers of Warren Lodge thank you.
Ryan Howard
Warren Lodge #51
