From the East
Brethren,
As the last two years begin to fade to memory, a new year and Santa Maria Lodge springs anew.
• Our building renovations are coming together giving us a home for generations to come.
• We have new brothers coming into the family.
• Our presence in the community is being seen again.
• And after two long years, we are coming back together, both, in and out of lodge to bond the brotherhood that has existed from time immemorial.
Welcome Elijah Descoteaux and Mike Pettijohn, our newest brothers. For Elijah we had a great degree with visitors from Heartland Lodge, La Mesa Lodge, Amity Lodge and Point Loma Lodge. Mike’s degree was carried out in excellent fashion with a wonderfully delivered lecture by Worshipful Don Ruch.
We have an additional initiation scheduled on March 10th for Luis Fonseca with more potential members in the pipeline. Come greet your new brothers and welcome them to Santa Maria Lodge/Family.
We had a great camping weekend and BBQ in February with the Al Bahr Shrine RV club in Vista. Thank you to all who came out. We have a number of activities planned this year, ranging from more camp outings to attending local theatres. Don’t forget our dinners out on Fridays and the coffee/breakfast for the guys every 2nd and 4th Saturday upstairs in the dining room.
If you haven’t been receiving the email or messages regarding these activities, and are interested in participating, please reach out to me ASAP so we can get you on the distribution.
Daylight Savings is March 13th, don’t forget to “Spring” those clocks forward 1-hour.
Dave Murray - Worshipful Master
Senior Warden Chase Murray
From The West
Welcome to the month of March my Brothers and friends.
Congratulations to our new brothers, Elijah Descoteaux and Mike Pettijohn. I believe I can say for everyone that we are happy to have you join our Masonic family and look forward to being a part of your Masonic journey moving forward.
A thank you is in order for those who were able to make it to our last outing from the lodge to the Vista Elk’s Club Campground this past month. It was truly wonderful to have as many brothers, family members, and friends in attendance and hope that others will do their best to join in on future events.
This month we celebrate the global holiday of St. Patrick’s day, but why? St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated annually on March 17, the anniversary of his death in the fifth century. The Irish have observed this day as a religious holiday for over 1,000 years. On St. Patrick’s Day, which falls during the Christian season of Lent, Irish families would traditionally attend church in the morning and celebrate in the afternoon. Lenten prohibitions against the consumption of meat were waived and people would dance, drink and feast–on the traditional meal of Irish bacon and cabbage.
Saint Patrick, who lived during the fifth century, is the patron saint of Ireland and its national apostle. Born in Roman Britain, he was kidnapped and brought to Ireland as a slave at the age of 16. He later escaped, but returned to Ireland and was credited with bringing Christianity to its people.
In the centuries following Patrick’s death (believed to have been on March 17, 461), the mythology surrounding his life became ever more ingrained in the Irish culture: Perhaps the most well-known legend of St. Patrick is that he explained the Holy Trinity (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) using the three leaves of a native Irish clover, the shamrock.
As always brothers and friends, be safe and aware if you travel to celebrate this holiday. Drivers may not be on their A-game when making their way home, even if you are.
Chase Murray - Senior Warden
Junior Warden (Elect) - Pete Johnson
From The South
Greetings from the South,
I’d like to thank Worhsipful Dave and his wife Catheren for putting on the Camping/BBQ picnic at the Vista Elks Lodge this past Saturday. It was a great time and wonderful to sit around, break bread and socialize with everyone there. It was a great turnout and looking forward to more events like this.
This months dinner will be provided by Ranch Catering. The menu is as follows:
Corne beef and cabbage, chicken dijon, baby red potatoes, carrots, green Jell-O & Pineapple salad, rye bread, and Shammrock Cake.
Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me. - Revelation 3:20
Pete Johnson - Junior Warden (Elect)
Worshipful Bill Graham (PM)
Secretary’s Corner
Here comes March and we are moving right along! We made 3 new Mason’s this month and have more in the wings. If you attended the ceremonies you saw some excellent ritual work and got to meet the new Brothers. If you were unable to make it, there are more Degrees upcoming and hope to see you there! We are meeting at 0800 on the 2nd and 4th Saturday’s of the month at the Lodge for coffee and then breakfast. Our candidates and new Brothers are often there. Come join us and get to know these fine men that are joining our Fraternity.
The Master has several events planned for March. Please keep an eye on the Trestleboard, the calendar and the website for the exact dates. Come join us and re-ignite your passion for the Fraternity!
I continue to slowly receive Dues payments, however, there are still 48 Brothers that are in arrears. Remember, you have an obligation to pay your dues. If you have not made your payment, you are overdue. The dues for 2022 are $118.00. Per our By-Laws, the calculation is $60.00 + per capita rounded up to the nearest dollar. Per capita is $57.25 this year, which gives us our total of $118.00.
If you are in arrears for your dues, you need to pay all that is owed to be brought back in to good standing. As an example, if you pay for 2022 only, and owe for 2021, I cannot send you your 2022 dues card. You are still in arrears and will need to bring your dues up to date first. Please contact the Master or myself to discuss this if you have any questions.
If you are 2 or more years in arrears, you may be suspended for non-payment of dues as per the California Masonic Code, Section 809.370. Suspension for Non Payment of Dues. Neither the Master, I, nor any other Brother in Lodge wishes this to happen!
iMember 2.0 is in full swing. Please go check it out at member.freemason.org. There are many things you can do there such as changing your address, your personal information, locate lodges, find resources and documents. Maintaining your contact information ensures that you will receive all notices that the Lodge sends out in a timely manner. Please go check it out!
If you are financially unable to pay your dues, please contact the Master to discuss.
If you have lost your envelope, you can mail your dues to:
Santa Maria Lodge No. 580,
PO Box 68, Ramona, CA 92065
You can also go to our website, http://www.santamaria580.org, and pay online. If you have paid and have not received your card in a reasonable amount of time, please contact me at 951-970-4294 or secretary@santamaria580.org and I will take care of it.
S/F
Bill Graham, PM - Secretary
Reminder!!
Have you moved? Changed your phone number? Changed your e-mail address? Have you notified the Lodge if you have done any of these things?? In an ongoing effort to ensure that all member get due and timely notice of all Lodge information, it is important that you keep your information updated with us.
I would greatly appreciate it if all of you would log in to member.freemason.org, go to the My Profile section and ensure that all of your address/phone number/e-mail is up to date. This will automatically update the i-member section that I use as the Secretary to for your mailings and other contacts.
Calendar of Events
Lodge Officer Directory
Master - Dave Murray (Catheren)
Senior Warden - Chase Murray
Junior Warden (Elect) - Peter Johnson
Treasurer - Ken Bychak II, PM (Laura)
Secretary - Bill Graham, PM (Teri)
Chaplain - Don Ruch, PM (Vicki)
Marshal - Bruce Smith, PM (Beverly)
Senior Deacon - Vacant
Junior Deacon - Rex McCray
Senior Steward - Bob Weldon, PM (Brenda)
Junior Steward - Cole Dick
Tiler - Mark Lantz
619-302-1223
619-607-2935
858-943-1079
707-328-9617
951-970-4294
619-787-3858
760-788-9475
760-788-4957
760-789-5254
760-533-3733
858-231-4646
Santa Maria Masonic Building
Association (SMMBA) Directory
President - Peter Krickhuhn, PM
Vice President - Chase Murray
Treasurer - Pete Johnson
Secretary - Dave Murray
Member - Ken Bychak II, PM
Member - Bob Weldon, PM
Member - Don Ruch, PM
Member - Bruce Smith, PM
760-612-1978
619-607-2935
858-843-1079
619-302-1223
707-328-9617
760-789-5254
619-787-3858
760-788-9475
