From the East

At the June Stated Communication, I gave a midyear address to the Craft. I am reproducing the text for you in full here:
Brethren,
At the beginning of this year, I stood before you and invited us all into a season of reflection and renewal. I asked us to consider what kind of Lodge we want to belong to—and what kind of Lodge we want to build for those who will come after us.
I began with the simple truth that Freemasonry in Beaverton will be what we make of it—that it is a direct reflection of the collective commitment and effort we choose to bring to it.
Tonight, as we stand at the midpoint of the year, I want to reflect with you on the work we have done together so far, to celebrate what we’ve accomplished, and to call us forward into the work that still lies ahead.
Reflection: A Lodge Becoming
Brothers, this Lodge is becoming. It is changing—not all at once, not perfectly, not without challenge—but genuinely and measurably.
Together we have held three Craft-Driven Conversations, where we explored why we are here, what we hope to create, and what obstacles stand in our way. We named our aspirations:
- Community Visibility,
- Fellowship and Unity,
- Ritual Excellence,
- Charity and Service.
And we named our challenges: Money, Facility, Apathy, Time, Competition, and Institutional Inertia.
And then—we began to act.
- We have completed a full remodel of our Social Hall and installed a new HVAC system, making our building more suitable for our work and more attractive to outside groups.
June Stated Communication Highlights
At June’s Stated Communication, we heard Brother Fellowcraft Raymond Doerr’s proficiency for the FC degree. Having been found suitably proficient, we scheduled his Master Mason degree for Thursday, June 26. This will be preceded on June 19th by Brother Fellowcraft Dameon Martin’s Master Mason degree.
We also entertained a motion to go dark for the months of July and August. After discussion about the recent addition of air conditioning to the Lodge and an overwhelming desire to keep momentum going, the motion to go dark for July and August was rejected with 1 vote for and 15 votes against. See below for more details on our July and August Stated Communications.
Summer Stated Communications
What are you doing on the evenings of July 10th and August 7th? I hope the answer is “coming to Lodge!”
Our custom for quite some time has been to go dark in July and August, owing to the heat upstairs and people’s summer rhythms of increased travel and increased rest. As you just read above, the Brethren voted down a motion to go dark this summer, meaning that we will have Stated Communications in the months of July and August.
July’s Stated Communication will be the second Thursday, July 10, not the first Thursday. Code Section 212 allows for the Master of the Lodge to advance or postpone the date of a Stated Communication which falls on the day of, the day preceding or the day following a legal holiday [see 212-1 (b, c)]. August’s Stated Communication will be held on the first Thursday, August 7th.
Both will be at 7pm with dinner at 6pm, prepared and served by the Rainbow Girls. Donation for dinner is $15; 100% goes to the Rainbow Girls.
Dress for July & August Stated Communications will be relaxed. Instead of business formal (our customary suits and ties), the Worshipful Master is permitting business casual attire: short-sleeved shirts with collars (no t-shirts), slacks or nice jeans (no rips, holes, or tears). No shorts. Tennis shoes permitted, but no sandals or flip-flops.
We will endeavour to keep the business to a minimum and fellowship to a maximum!
Volunteer Help Needed!
We have two active fundraising opportunities that the Fundraising Committee needs your help with:
- TNT Fireworks Sale
From June 24th – July 5th, we are selling fireworks at 185th and TV Highway. This is a great opportunity for us to raise several thousand dollars for the Lodge and all it requires is your time. There are three shifts per day, each four hours long. We need four people for each shift. OES Beaver Chapter will also be helping us staff the tent, but we need all hands on deck. Please sign up for shifts here: Fireworks Booth Staff Scheduling signup sheet - Beach Stay Raffle
Enter to win a 3-day, 2-night stay at a condo in Pacific City. The condo is a 3-bed, 3-bath unit that is dog friendly and sleeps 8. The dates of the stay are Sept. 19th – Sept. 21st. Tickets are just $20 each. Each ticket equals one entry for the raffle drawing. The drawing will be held on August 14th. You can obtain sheets of tickets to sell from the Lodge Secretary.
- TNT Fireworks Sale
Remembering Brethren

The Craft gathered on May 18th at Beaverton First United Methodist Church to perform a funeral service for Byron Ward.
On June 1st, WB Dan Gray, Bro. Brian Smalley, RWB Billy Burns, and WB Greg Jackson (pictured above) took a hike to visit the place where WB George Ruhberg’s ashes are spread.
From the East (con’t.)
- We have launched two fundraisers—a fireworks booth and a raffle for a beach weekend—both designed to support the financial health of the Lodge.
- We have added new social activities: we held a game night and started a monthly hiking group—steps toward building the Fellowship and Unity we all value.
- More than half a dozen Brothers have learned and performed new ritual roles, breathing fresh life into our ritual work and deepening their connection to the Craft.
- And we have a healthy pipeline of inquiries from men interested in joining our Lodge. The Grand Lodge’s West Gate program is bearing fruit: the men who take the time to engage in those intentional conversations over weeks and months are proving to be well-prepared and genuinely dedicated to learning about the Craft and about our Lodge. These men make better candidates—and ultimately, better Brothers—than those we might hastily rush through the process.
- We have launched two fundraisers—a fireworks booth and a raffle for a beach weekend—both designed to support the financial health of the Lodge.
These are achievements to celebrate. But they are also a reminder that progress invites further responsibility. Now is not the time to pull back. Our work is not yet done. Now is the time to push forward.
Renewal: The Work Before Us
We have made good progress, but our work is far from done.
- Our fundraising efforts and new social efforts require sustained follow-through and broader participation. A small handful of Brothers cannot carry these alone.
- We need to draw in a wider swath of our membership—not only to Stated Communications, but to our social gatherings and community-building efforts.
- And we must begin to think beyond this year—toward the next two to five years. Who will fill the chairs? What programs or initiatives will we carry forward? How will we sustain and build upon the momentum we’ve begun?
- Our fundraising efforts and new social efforts require sustained follow-through and broader participation. A small handful of Brothers cannot carry these alone.
In this conversation, we must be clear-eyed. Perhaps a traditional progressive line does not serve us as it once did. And after 114 consecutive non-repeating Masters, we must face the sober reality that this tradition may well have come to an end. That is not failure; it is evolution.
We must ensure that every chair, from the East to the Tyler outside the West Gate, is occupied by the Brother best suited to serve in that role—not by tradition, not by inertia, but by capability and commitment. If we embrace this principle with humility and with clarity, we will be better positioned to lead this Lodge into the future.
A Call to the Craft
Brothers, I return again to the three commitments that have guided us this year: justice, kindness, humility.
Be just—act with fairness and integrity. Follow through on your commitments. Support one another. Speak truth with care.
Be kind—create an atmosphere where every Brother feels welcome and valued. This Lodge should be a place of warmth, encouragement, and mutual respect.
Be humble—recognize that we are stronger together. No one Brother can build this Lodge alone. The work is ours to share.
Brothers, we meet on the level and act by the plumb—reminders that here, we stand as equals in both rights and responsibilities. Radical ownership means this Lodge belongs to each of us. And a Lodge that belongs to all must be built by all—not merely enjoyed by many while built by a few.
Our fundraising efforts, our social gatherings, our leadership—these do not happen by themselves. They require willing hands, generous time, and shared commitment. It is not fair, nor fitting, for us to enjoy the benefits of a vibrant Lodge if we are not also contributing to its vitality. Freemasonry is not a spectator activity; there is no place for sideliners in a living Lodge.
So I say this as both a challenge and an invitation: If you have not yet found your place in the labor of this Lodge, now is the time. Step forward. Offer your skills. Lend your energy. The work before us is worthy—and it belongs to us all.
This Lodge is ours. It will be what we choose to make of it. The vision we articulated in January is still before us. The obstacles we named remain real. The progress we have made is encouraging—but it is only the beginning.
Now is not the time to relax. Now is not the time to say, “We’ve done enough.”
Now is the time to lean in. To deepen our commitment. To push forward—together.
So I ask you:
Will you show up?
Will you take ownership?
Will you bring your energy, your ideas, your hands to the work?
Will you help us build the best version of Beaverton Masonic Lodge—not in ideas alone, but through action?
If we do this—if we walk these next months together in the spirit of justice, kindness, and humility—I believe we will look back on this year as a true turning point in the life of this Lodge.
I am honored to walk this path with you.
Pay Online
You can now make donations to the Lodge online, using the Lodge’s Square account:
Each item includes a processing fee, calculated into the total amount, so that your entire gift is received by the Lodge.
Calendar
Access the full calendar online here!
- Every Monday – Monday Morning Coffee, 8-10am – Social Hall
- June 19 – Master Mason Degree for Dameon Martin, 7pm
- June 21 – Men with Compasses Hike, 9am
- June 26 – Master Mason Degree for Raymond Doerr, 7pm
- June 24-July 5 – Fireworks Booth Fundraiser!! 9am-9pm daily
- July 10 – Stated Communication, 6:00pm Dinner, 7:00pm Stated