DecEMBER 2013 NEWSLETTER

Alvin Masonic Lodge No. 762 A.F. & A.M.

Paul Pool - Worshipful Master. Glenn Starkey - Lodge Secretary & Newsletter Editor. !

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

I cant believe its already Christmas. 2014? I just got used to writing 2013! Heard anyone say that lately? For a majority of adults as the years pass, hectic schedules and financial struggles make us lose sight of the wondrous Christmas spirit. But look into the eyes of a child, say Christmas and watch a sparkle immediately appear. Its a magic time for them where happiness abounds day and night. And its a time for adults to rekindle some, if not all, of that same magic within ourselves.... Enjoy the holiday with family and friends as best you can. Bring peace into your heart by worshipping at your place of choice. Of course, there are a few young ones whose Christmas sparkle is still in the development stage. => Year End Wrap-Up: Our lodge has been dark this past week due to Grand Lodge convening. A lot of resolutions were to be addressed and it will be interesting to see which are passed. The Arctic blast rolling through with its ice storms everywhere surely created a problem for traveling brothers. Our Senior Warden Craig Woodard was one of those journeyers and we look forward to his safe return. Mark your calendars! 6:30 p.m., Thursday, Dec. 12th, CHRISTMAS FAMILY NIGHT at the Alvin Lodge. This is an evening for everyone Alvin Masons, OES, DeMolay, their families, children, brothers and friends from other lodges. Let the little ones know we are expecting a special visitor from the North Pole that night! For this Christmas Family Night our lodge asks that everyone bring a donation of toiletries. These donations will be given to the Alvin Womens Shelter for use by the women and children in dire need of the Shelters services. Any and all types of toiletries are
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appreciated. Put your donation in a bag and we will have a container to hold them all. Past Master Terry Turner of our lodge is coordinating this with the Victims Assistance Representative of the Alvin Police Department. You can also contact Brother Turner if you have other types of donations for this worthy cause. <= When you watch Christmas Story in a few weeks, remember this photograph The lodges November 22nd Turkey Cooking fundraiser was successful in many ways because of the hard work and dedication by Brothers Jason Richard, Ryan Ruiz, George Williams, Al Pool, Paul Pool, Buddy Glass, numerous EAs, FCs, and a long list of brothers who stopped by to give a hand. Not only did they work around the clock through the weekend to help raise money for the lodge, but they assisted the community as well: 5 cooked turkeys were given to a local church for needy families, 15 frozen turkeys were donated to the Womens Shelter of Alvin, and 2 families in need each received a cooked turkey courtesy of a generous brother. Masonry in Action! And Thanks to Brother Craig Woodard for his numerous lodge repairs. Its great to enter the lodge and have light switches and other things actually work! IMPORTANT: When you need information about lodge activity on a particular date, go to our Internet website and view the calendar: http://www.alvinlodge.org/calendar.html. As information is given to me, I place it there. By using the websites calendar as the single source of activity, you are viewing correct information. 1. Lodge Stated Meetings First and third Thursdays of each month. Meal is 6:30 pm and meeting at 7:00 pm. Generally, every Monday night is C School practice or a degree. 2. MWSA Meetings Every second Wednesday of the month. 3. Family Nights -- (Masons, OES, DeMolay) Every second Thursday of the month. 4. Life Program Every fourth Thursday. Contact Bro. Terry Turner for information. This is open to all brothers and lodges in the area! 5. DeMolay Meetings Every first and fourth Wednesday of the month. 6. OES Stated Meetings Second and fourth Tuesday of the month. Iris Lowe is the Worthy Matron of OES #15. John Wayne Chapter # 3667, Mark Peebler, Advisor The Alvin Masonic Lodge extends its CONGRATULATIONS to all members of the John Wayne Chapter # 3667 for their fantastic efforts and hard work. I cant keep up with all of their news but I do manage to capture some of their event photos for you. Its truly great to see these young men in action. Of course we also want to recognize the DADS and MOMS who faithfully support them in so many ways. Send your personal compliments to the Chapter, Dads,
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or Moms to Mark Peebler, dadpeebler@jwdemolay.org or Chris Little, clittle@cldaviscompany.com. They will appreciate your recognition of their endeavors!!!

When you believe our youth have lost their way, pause a moment and reflect upon all these great young people do!

WORDS TO PONDER
Volunteered in your community or at the lodge lately? When we help others without asking
anything in return, we are making the world a better place for us, our children, and our childrens children.

Always remember, you CAN make a difference in this world.

FROM THE SECRETARYS DESK

Within a few weeks 2014 will arrive. Until then everyone will look back on the past year and talk about all they did and did not accomplish. New Year resolutions will be made in earnest and probably forgotten within a few months, if not sooner. Its been the habit to do so since Moby Dick was a Minnow. But dont waste your time thinking about past negatives. Make realistic
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goals for the coming year and stick to them. Be positive about yourself and others will view a different you. Youll be amazed at how life changes when you work to better yourself all-around in a positive manner. Above all, eliminate the four-letter word CANT from your vocabulary. You will be surprised at what you CAN achieve. A Stewards position is one of the most demanding, thankless, yet vitally important task in a lodge. Stewards arrive at the lodge long before everyone else, start cooking, and ensure something will be ready to eat prior to our meetings. As brothers arrive and sit around tables to await their food, the Stewards are finishing in the kitchen and rushing to setup the serving area. After dinner, brothers fly out of the dining hall like a flock of quail and the kitchen still has to be cleaned. Past Stewards were Bros. Derek Dame and Buddy Glass. This year our Stewards are Bros. Wade Jenkins and Gus Poindexter. When they were not able to be present, Bros. Paul Pool, Al Pool, and one or two others stepped in and cooked our meals. (Only the good Lord knows what all Al puts in those belly-burning stews and gumbos he makes. It shows you can disguise anything if you put enough peppers in the pot.) But regardless of the road-kill jokes we make, I always see brothers going back for seconds and hear them grumbling about not enough desserts. I want to recognize and thank our Stewards for all they do. Its a lodge job you dont see brothers lined up to take, yet it is important. Thanks, Brothers. With Christmas upon us and people being more cheerful, not everyone is necessarily in a festive spirit. There is an odd Holiday Blues depression some people suffer through during this time. While it may seem humorous that someone would be depressed during the holidays, it is a reality. The medical field is not sure what truly causes this morbid imbalance, yet it exists and you may be surprised at the people who suffer with the depression. Of course there are always dear friends and loved ones who pass away during holidays, and this creates its own holdiay sadness. But keep an eye out for those people you know. If they seem different, overly quiet, or sullen, take some time to talk with them. Some times a simple conversation with a friend can help ease their depression. Okay, dont forget this Thursday, December 12th, is our Christmas Family Night and we will have a special guest for the kids (and adults tooThey dog-pile onto Santas lap to have their pictures taken as well!) (Secretarys get to go firstI think its a Grand Lodge law somewhere.) Our building is continuously used for meetings by the lodge masons and organizations such as OES, DeMolay, MWSA, and various special social functions. It speaks well of us to be such an active lodge and that it is a comfortable environment for activities but we need everyone who uses our lodge to help keep it clean after meetings and properly secured when they leave.

May you live upon the level and part upon the square.
So Mote It Be

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The following links are to help you find lodge information in the swiftest manner! Alvin Lodge Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Alvin-Lodge-762-Ancient-Free-andAccepted-Masons/ Alvin Lodge Website: http://www.alvinlodge.org/ Alvin Lodge Calendar of Events: http://www.alvinlodge.org/calendar.html Alvin Lodge Email: AlvinLodge762@gmail.com John Wayne Chapter # 3667, Order of DeMolay Facebook Page:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/John-Wayne-Chapter-3667-Order-of-DeMolay-AlvinTexas/483169650391
Every newsletter I ask for news to share. I want everyone to know about our Masonic familys accomplishments so send it to me at our lodge email address. Send me your feedback on the newsletter as well. Something in particular you would like me to add to it?

Sincerely and fraternally, Glenn

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