Page 61 - PGM Compendium

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH
Of
M⸫W⸫ Thomas C. Ehlers: 1997-1998

Most Worshipful Brother Thomas C Ehlers was born in
LeClaire, Iowa, on November 20, 1935, to Arvid R. and
Roaine Eiiiers. His father worked as an operating engineer
in the construction business, and so while growing up Tom
lived in Arkansas, Illinois, Wisconsin, Mississippi, Kansas,
Kentucky, and Minnesota. He graduated from Bettendorf
High School in Bettendorf, Iowa. He entered the United
States Air Force in 1954 and while in the service attended
evening classes at Whitworth College in Spokane,
graduating with a Bachelors Degree in Psychology.

He attained the rank of Chief Master Sergeant and retired
with 20 years of service in 1974. His major assignment in
the Air Force was as an instructor in Aviation Physiology,
working in high and low pressure air chambers. He taught
pilots and aircrew members the effects of low pressure on the body and treated medical cases in the high
pressure chamber, where hyperoxygenation of the tissues was used to assist in the medical treatment.

Returning to Spokane, he went to work for the Washington State Department of Transportation as a Safety
Officer and retired in September of 1992 while serving as an Administrative Officer. While at the DOT
he attended evening classes at Eastern Washington University and graduated with a Masters Degree in
Public Administration.

Our Past Grand Master was raised a Master Mason in Medical Lake Lodge No. 102 in 1963, and
immediately became involved in the whole Fraternity. He was Master of Medical Lake Lodge as well as
Secretary and Treasurer and he took an active part in Scottish Rite and Shrine.

He served the Grand Jurisdiction as Deputy of the Grand Master in District No. 27, served on the Charity
Committee, and was Grand Orator before being elected Junior Grand Warden in 1994. He would progress
regularly through the elected line until line until his installation as Grand Master in June 1997.

His knowledge of the importance of the ritual to the Fraternity made him the ideal Grand Master to oversee
the implementation of the One-Day Conferral for this Jurisdiction. He would share these words with the
then Grand Lecturer, Robert L Van Zee: "If we are going to do this, it will be done by the book, nothing
will be left out, nothing will be added and there will be no deviations."

Even with his strong belief in the importance of our history and ritual, he understood the necessity for the
Fraternity to move forward. In his Grand Master's address to this body he said; "In order to succeed we
must defeat ourselves. We must defeat our old ideas. We must move forward. We must progress to make
our Fraternity fit for the future. We must leave that which is unworthy of our attention and focus on the

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