Patty and I were very pleased to be the guests at Western Star Lodge No. 26 at their Table Lodge and Awards Night. The food, fellowship and recognition of long-serving brothers made this a wonderful evening!I was impressed that the Grand Lodge of Minnesota Mission Statement was prominently displayed in the dining hall. I'm told that it is noticed by many people when they come in for pancakes!
Five brothers received 50-year awards. Four of them are shown with District Representative Rick Wallace during the presentation. One brother recalled that he was working in St. Paul, but decided to join Western Star Lodge because he knew he'd be returing to Albert Lea. When he was brought to further light in Masonry, he was most pleased and surprised to find eight of his co-workers from St. Paul had come to welcome him into the fraternity.
Another brother noted that he was a student at the University of Minnesota and rode the Rock Island Rocket to Albert Lea for his degree work, and then back the next morning to the U.
It makes one proud to listen to the stories from these long-serving brothers. Each one said they weren't as active in their lodge as they wished to have been, but you could tell from the passion in their voices that they loved this Gentle Craft, and its precepts are ingrained in the character of each of them.
