Brethren:

As our nights have become longer than our days and the occasional frost warns of the weather ahead, we brace ourselves for the change of season from Road Construction to Snow Removal.

While the joke is perhaps a little tired and worn, it is also constantly true.  Road crews still have a large part of Monona Drive torn up and soon after they finish for the year, salt will be spread across the new roads to defeat ice and plowing will follow as soon as snow piles up.  The cycle repeats every year: salt and plowing are necessary to prevent accidents; but they also tear up the roads -- requiring road repair during the other months of the year.

Such is also the nature of our craft. Each year we elect new officers, but the year wears them down a little.  We initiate good men into our fraternity every year; yet we also lose some to death/illness, relocation, or disinterest.  The first two are immutable parts of our human existence, but Freemasonry is a lifelong fraternity of fellowship and character building and no good man should lose interest in that.  It is particularly disheartening if a Past Master has lost interest, because he obviously had interest in abundance at one time.  Your lodge needs every Past Master who can do so to come and give their guidance.  It is the responsibility of the Worshipful Master (and his officers) to provide programs to keep you interested and bring you further light -- but we need your help.  Please counsel us about how we can improve and what topics or programs would interest you.

At our Stated Communication on Tuesday, October 20th, we will initiate another good man into our fraternity.  Our Annual Communication is Tuesday, November 3rd, and we will elect officers to serve our lodge for the next year and discuss a resolution to submit to Grand Lodge in 2010.  Please make every effort to attend both meetings.

We are still looking for someone from Doric to help organize the adult advisors for DeMolay.  We have several people willing to assist -- brethren both inside and outside of our lodge and likely parents of some of the DeMolay kids -- but we need a brother (or two) from our lodge to be the core leader and organizer.  I am asking you, brethren, won’t you please consider taking up this noble cause?  You don’t have to know anything about DeMolay and you won’t have to do it all -- you’ll just need to help advise the lodge regarding their needs and communicate with the various other adult volunteers and the kids.  This is a great opportunity for our lodge for community outreach and can benefit our lodge in numerous ways.  Please let one of the officers know if you can help.

We have beautiful new pews for seating, obtained from a local church that is remodeling and donated by Elmer Custer.  Thanks to Elmer for the donation, to Mitch and Roy for organizing it, and to Roy’s grandson and a friend of his for helping Mitch and Roy with the heavy lifting.

The summer coffee klatch has disbanded for the year.  Thanks to Nick, Roy, Chuck, and others for running it and to all who attend the coffee klatches.  The donations provided have purchased numerous improvements for the lodge the last couple of years.

Please see www.doriclodge.com for the latest news.

See you in lodge!

-- Greg Corey
WM 2009