Page 10 - 2017 Summer

Grand Lodge of Washington
Gr and Lodg e of W ashingt on a Stated Meeting. A Lodge could also have a Masonic educa-
Masonic Tribune
Masonic T r ibune tion night where they could view one of the videos to start the
Volume XCVIII No. 4 - Summer 2017 Issue - Page 10 evening and then discuss the content of the video.
Volume XCII No.1 - Summer Issue - Page 3
Capturing all this information on video would not only help to
provide great content for use by the Lodges but would also
help to preserve information on our rich history and traditions
of our Grand Jurisdiction.
JUNIOR Grand WARDEN I would like to wish all the Brothers a great Annual Communi-
cation and I look forward to speaking with as many of you as
JGW CANDIDA TES possible. Safe travels and see you soon.

F O R U M Respectfully submitted,
VWBB Jerry Buchner

Question: Do you have any thoughts on ways to better use
technology for the good of Masonry? Question: What are your qualifications to lead our Frater-
nity?
Response:
We have heard our Grand Master say one Response:
of the biggest problems is retaining new
members. For every new man that joins it was born to be a Mason. My father,
seems like two walk away from the Frater- I both Grandfathers, and at least one
nity. One of the primary causes for this is of my great Grandfathers were Masons. I
when a new man joins our Fraternity they am a Senior DeMolay and served as State
find further Masonic education nonexis- Master Councilor in Hawaii. I am a mem-
tent and get very frustrated. They quickly ber of three Lodges. Shoreline 248, Fern
become disillusioned with boring Stated Hill 80 where I served as Worshipful Mas-
Meetings consisting only of reading of minutes, voting to pay ter twice, and my family Lodge – Phoenix
bills, closing Lodge, and going home. I think we can assist 154, where my father, Grandfather and Great Grandfather (a
Charter member) were members.
Lodges by using technology to create content that will be
both entertaining and informative. Professionally, I am a retired attorney having served the peo-
ple of Washington for over thirty years as an attorney for the
Our Deputy Grand Master’s theme for next year is “Commu- State of Washington.
nicate to Educate”. We have tools to communicate: Grand
Lodge website, Facebook page etc. Communication is use- I have served on the Grand Lodge team for the last 18 years.
less without good content. We need to create content that The details can be found in my statement of availability. Most
significantly, my 14 years on the Jurisprudence Committee
will help educate our Brothers on the history of FreeMasonry has prepared me to lead our gentle Craft. The Jurisprudence
in general and this Grand Jurisdiction in particular. We also Committee works directly with the Grand Master on the vari-
need educational material that will help Lodges with ideas for ous activities and problems faced by our Grand Lodge. I am
community service and how to build friendship and Brother- very familiar with the types of issues that the Grand Master
hood. faces and how they have been and should be resolved.
This year I have been traveling to many of the District Meet- If there is one lesson I have learned, it is that no individual
ings. At every District Meeting the Worshipful Masters report has the solution to every problem. I have found that having
on their Lodge. We have heard many wonderful stories of trusted and honest advisors to discuss problems and poten-
the rich history of some of these Lodges, community service tial solutions are the most successful. No one knows the
projects they are doing and activities they have to promote emergent issue the Craft will face in 2020-21. But, I know
friendship and Brotherhood. how it should be addressed. Gather Brothers who are fa-
miliar the type of problem, have them evaluate and make
I would like to videotape the Worshipful Masters speaking recommendations. This worked with the tax exemption for
about their Lodges. Then edit those videos into three catego- our buildings.
ries. One on the history of their Lodges, another on various Masonry has two major long-standing interrelated issues
community service projects they do and another on ideas --Our dwindling membership and poor communications.
to build friendship and Brotherhood. These videos would be They will only be resolved by a concerted and long-term ef-
posted on the Grand Lodge website for the Lodges to use. fort.
Brothers could on their own watch the videos to learn more
information and Worshipful Masters could use these videos Membership: During my travels around the state, I have no-
ticed most successful Lodges are truly active in their commu-
as education/entertainment at Stated Meetings. These vid- nities. For example, Daylight 232 assists the Seattle Youth
eos would also be a great source for Masonic education and Symphony, ROOTS (Rise Out of The Shadows) and partici-
to give Lodges ideas on ways to participate in community pate in many community events. The community outreach
service and activities to build friendship and Brotherhood. brings good men to our doors. I strongly encourage Lodges
We also have many Brothers in this Grand Jurisdiction that to reach out to their communities to start. The Grand Lodge
have a tremendous wealth of knowledge about the history and Washington Masonic Charities can help.
of our Lodges. I would like to videotape them and capture Communication: We have made great strides in using elec-
some of the stories they have to tell. These videos could be tronic methods with the improved website, posting of videos,
edited into 15-20 minute clips that could fit into the agenda at social media, etc. More can and should be done. We can
10 (Continued in page 11)