Well, we have our last stated communication for our "year" on Monday, (we will have a public officer's installation ceremony later this month yet) and then Dark for the summer until the second Monday in September. We have a couple of family events, an all Masonic Picnic, a night at the races (I'm not a race fan, but the comraderie is great and the beer's cold), and 2 Shrine club fundraisers. Plenty to do to keep busy in the summer, but I do miss lodge nights. Who goes dark? Who stays open for biz?
Do you folks have A/C in the lodge? We're looking into it, but of course it's very expensive. I don't know that having A/C would keep us open during summer, but last year we did a special 2nd degree for a past master's grandson who lives out East. The building was nearly unbearable for me, it might have been dangerous for the older generation. We brought up a couple of cases of water, blasted the fans, and carried on. The unwritten rule of jackets during degree work was waived
Most lodges around here go dark from July to August. We still have about a special a month and we also have the picnics and breakfasts
Yes on the AC at my Lodge....it is a rather new building....1994....lodge was formed 1864ish...not sure right off the top of my head.....but back to the AC, sometime they set it so cold a jacket is needed...............
We're in an old Lutheran Church, built probably around the turn of the last century, which we bought about 50 years ago when the church moved into a newer building. Air conditioning, along with some sort of lift to get the disabled and elderly upstairs to the lodge room are on the wish list, but everything is so expensive. We Had to put a new roof on last year, to the tune of about $35K.
We have A/C. That, and three fans on high speed. I'm not sure when we had the A/C added...sometime in the last 200 years but boy and I glad they did!
My lodge goes dark. But our education and social committees are usually still active, so the business isn't entirely abandoned, which I like. We plan trips and charity events. Last year we had a canoe trip down the Delaware, this year we're going camping for a weekend. As to the A/C issue... there's only one lodge room in my building with A/C. I meet in the New York GL building, smack dab in the middle of the flatiron district of NYC. Weird that there's only one usable room in the summer, right? Maybe not though, things are terribly expensive here.
Ours goes dark for July and August, with normal business resuming in September. Chapter and Commandary also go dark during these months. Blue lodge has A/C, but Chapter and Commandary does not.
Those that go dark...do you have a few months with two stated meetings? We are required to have 12 stated meetings a year...
We meet on the 2nd and 4th Mondays September through May, with the second May meeting being open (public) installation for the following year's officers
We continue meeting in the Summer but at a different, some might say top secret , location code named "The Acacia Club". The Acacia Club is a building with A/C a short distance from our regular Masonic Building. The Masonic Building does go dark for July and August as there is no A/C. We don't do degree work at the Acacia Club as it doesn't have the required facilities, but it's a good place to get together with the brethren.
No, we only have one meeting per month, so it would be a total of 10 per year (regular stated meetings). We do hold "extra / special" meetings for degree work if needed.
I believe in Ohio there is a 10 min. but I'm never sure we put on an average of 30 meetings a year wth two stateds a months and usually at least on special a month.
