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Ben Wallace & The Middle Chamber Masonic Education Program Of North Carolina

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Sophia Lodge

WB Ben Wallace always knew that there were deeper meanings embedded in Masonry, it just took him awhile to find them. And when he did, there was no stopping him from organizing and promoting esoteric, philosophical Masonry across the entire state of North Carolina.

First, he had to found North Carolina’s first Traditional Observance Lodge, Sophia Lodge.

Next through his TO experience, becoming Master at Wilkerson College Lodge No 760, North Carolina’s Research Lodge, and then Chairman of the North Carolina Grand Lodge Committee on Masonic Education he developed a 3-hour presentation of the Allegory and Symbolism of the Three Degrees. With permission from the Grand Master, he toured North Carolina giving this presentation for three years.

But Ben Wallace was not done with promoting esoteric and philosophical Masonry. He had a burning desire to take it to the next step. And the next step was to morph his Allegory and Symbolism lecture into a full-blown program sanctioned and offered by the Grand Lodge of North Carolina. Thus, was born North Carolina’s Middle Chamber Masonic Education Program.

This program is given quarterly for a full year.

Part One is an Introduction to Masonic Allegories and Symbols, the original Wallace lecture. It became known as “The Hook” because it was given to interested Brethren free of charge to give them an overview of what was coming. After that, any Brother wishing to take the next step had to sign up with the Grand Secretary and pay the sum of $150. That payment included the “Big Five,” 5 books chosen for the course. They are:

Ben Wallace
  • The Meaning of Masonry by Wilmshurst
  • Freemasonry Its Hidden Meaning by Steinmetz
  • The Way of the Craftsman by MacNulty
  • Contemplative Masonry by Dunning
  • The Rough and Rugged Road by Hornsby

So, the first quarter is The Hook.

The second quarter is the 1st Degree, The Physical Nature of Man, our interactions with the physical world

The third quarter the 2nd Degree, The Psychical Nature of Man – Psychology and “mind stuff.”

The fourth quarter is the 3rd Degree, The Spiritual Nature of Man, the spiritual aspect of the student.

It takes a whole year to graduate but Wallace says even this is too fast.

We don’t want to give away any more of this great program because the rest of the story is in the video. Don’t miss it!!

Ben Wallace

Right Worshipful Frank Jackson

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RW Frank Jackson

RW Frank Jackson was raised to the Sublime Degree of Master Mason in 1969 at the age of 18. Today he is both the Grand Junior Warden of The Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Texas and the Grand Historian.

Jackson offers many Masons a different perspective on the origins of higher knowledge, scholarship, and philosophical thought. And a different perspective on the development of Freemasonry in the United States.

How many people, whether Masons or not, know the role Egypt, a part of Africa, was to play in the development of knowledge? How many know that Socrates and Aristotle spent time in Egypt? That Plato spent 13 years studying in Egypt and Pythagoras some 21 years?

Much of what we attribute to the knowledge of the Greeks who passed it on to the Romans came originally from Egypt and Africa, some of it transported directly by Aristotle.

The video will cover:

  • Origins and development of the Pyramids
  • The Library at Alexandria
  • Jackson’s personal Mason journey
  • Early Texas Prince Hall Development

One has to remember that Prince Hall Masonry went through a period of governance by a National Grand Lodge. It also didn’t bloom nationwide until post Civil War. This has made for a much different path of Masonic development from Mainstream Masonry.

Keep all these factors in mind as you watch RW Frank Jackson in the video above. You may find that it will broaden your horizons.

 

Norris Wright Cuney

Noris Wright Cuney

Born  May 12, 1846

Hempstead, Texas, U.S.

Died  March 3, 1898 (aged 51)

San Antonio, Texas, U.S.

Resting place      Lakeview Cemetery, Galveston, Texas

Residence  Galveston, Texas, U.S.

 

Known for  Leader of the Texas Republican Party, First Grand Master Prince Hall Masons Of Texas http://www.mwphglotx.org

I Had A Dream ~ The Last Degree

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Grand Lodge, Frederic L. Milliken, masonic bannerThe wages of a Master Mason and the lesson of the Third Degree is  – IMMORTALITY!

If you have ever taken the time to contemplate on the meaning within the Craft, the culmination of the Masonic journey, what the way of life we call Masonry is, well its end is IMMORTALITY.

And when we get to the other side what are we going to see and hear and feel and taste and touch? Who knows. But we can dream, can’t we?

Yes, we can dream. And may your dream lead you to ONENESS with the Grand Architect of the Universe. May peace and harmony prevail and every moral and social virtue cement us as ONE with the Creator!

Blessings, Brothers and Sisters. Blessings!

 

Brother Mike McCabe Passes To The Celestial Lodge Above

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Brother Mike McCabe, a six-time Past Master, passed away on March 13, 2018

You might remember the articles published here on Freemason Information about the Struggles of Mike McCabe with the Grand Lodge of New Jersey and his subsequent expulsion.

You can review them HERE & HERE & HERE & HERE.

McCabe’s longtime friend Rich Baxter had this to say:

Mike McCabe passed away today on March 13, 2018, he was one of my best friends for over 30 years. In our early friendship he took me up to the Grand Lodge in North Jersey for a ceremony – he wanted me to consider joining the Masonic Lodge. I never did join but I always knew that Mike was of the highest standard that a Mason could be, he lived and breathed the Masonic traditions and embraced them. When he saw wrong with this lodge that had shady dealings going on, he reported it. That’s the way Mike was, an honorable man who had character beyond belief. He held himself to a high standard and expected that of others in the Masonic Brotherhood. To be thrown out of the Masonic Lodge was something I never expected that other Masons could get away with. They may have done this to him but I believe the bad karma will eventually come back on them- the cowardice and malice they showed Mike is yet an example that evil and corruption exists in the least expected places. No, the Lodge never voted Mike McCabe back in, but he will always be a good standing Mason and person in my eyes and in the eyes of many who knew him. God bless, Mike, Rest in Peace, my brother.

Mike McCabe

McCabe was expelled from the Grand Lodge of New Jersey on very minor infractions that did not live up to the severity of unmasonic conduct. He also wrote an expose of his Grand Lodge for pulling the charter of his Lodge, Trimble Lodge, after a vote did not go the way the Grand Master wanted. McCabe claimed that the Grand Lodge confiscated the well-endowed funds of Trimble Lodge to bolster its own shortcomings.

McCabe sought a new trial and/or reinstatement claiming the Grand Lodge did not follow its own Constitution, By-Laws and rules and regulations. He never received one, but he never lost his faith in the Craft which he served so well. His many accomplishments in Freemasonry will live on forever and his legacy as a Freemason will shine brightly as a path to emulate.

” I would like to leave you with this thought: The tide recedes, but leaves behind bright seashells, on the sand. The sun goes down, but gentle warmth still lingers on the land. The music stops, and yet — it echoes on in sweet refrains. For every joy that passes, something beautiful remains.” (quoted from here).

 

The Expectations Of The Millennial Freemason, An Interview With Brother Justin Jones

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Freemasonry, in many cases, is now in the hands of Millennial Masons and Millennial Masons are not settling for “this is the way we have always done it.”

Last month (February 2108) we featured the interview of Brother Rhit Moore – HERE. Brother Moore, barely 40 years old, told us that Millennials in Freemasonry seek value and that they are seeking something MORE. In their pursuit of something more with a value the worst thing you can do is waste their time, he says. Brother Moore also gave us what his Lodge has done to become vibrant, successful and growing.

This month we feature another Millennial Mason, 34-year-old Brother Justin Jones. Brother Jones tells us it doesn’t have to be this way. He tells us that he entered Freemasonry with high expectations into a Lodge where both his Grandfather and Father still belong. But after completing his Master’s work he left Freemasonry in disillusionment. Only by the constant urging of his father did he return.

Brother Justin Jones

You might remember if you followed Brother Moore’s story, that he too left Freemasonry only to return at the urging of his father. In Brother Moore’s case, he returned to be inspired by the work, and in Brother Jone’s case he returned to be inspired by the writings of many like-minded Masons who had traveled his journey, especially the publication Laudable Pursuit. He became a sponge for the writings of those who showed the way to Masonic improvement.

Both these Millennial Masons talk about the disconnect with the way Lodges were run by Masons their grandfather’s age. Youth, by nature, has vigor and drive to set the world on fire and Age tends to say – been there done that and let’s not rock the boat but keep doing things the way we have always done them. This is a natural clash. The older generation is resistant to change. However, change is life, and he who desires to freeze the world in its present state forever will soon find himself alone and cut off from the rest of the world.

This Masonic withdrawal from the world and its change are what is primarily responsible for the dwindling number of Masons in the USA. It leads to Lodges that Jones tells us really don’t do anything. They don’t want to do anything. They gather for boring business meetings and the fellowship of coffee and stale donuts after which they leave as fast as they can. Or they turn themselves into a Service Club financed by fundraisers to keep dues low. Instead of concentrating on how to make good men better they become the servant of the profane.

Jones tells us this about Masons from years gone by:

“When we volunteered our time we didn’t do it in our aprons. We didn’t wear our jewels to the city council meeting, and we didn’t pass out petitions at the church potluck. Still, people knew these men were Freemasons, and it was witnessing these community leaders embody the noble tenants of our fraternity that often compelled many to turn in their petitions.”

Into that milieu stormed Brother Justin Jones.

Once his eyes were opened to the possibilities of what a Masonic Lodge could be, he has not stopped in his quest to inform any and all who will listen that it doesn’t have to be this way.

Jones started with a Masonic Blog, followed by a Facebook Page and finally a YouTube channel. They are all titled “Masonic Improvement.”

In his Blog post “The Lesson Of The Garden Club” and his video “Why I left Freemasonry” we can see the frustrations of the Millennial Mason and why many leave as fast as they are initiated. In his three-part Blog series on Lodge Culture, he lays out how to change the deadly spiral Freemasonry finds itself in. He talks about Lodge Mission Statements, vision, and goals. He explains the difference between a Lodge’s Climate and a Lodge’s Culture and recounts the experience in his first Lodge where as Master he changed the Climate but not the Culture. Jones is a firm believer in continuous improvement that a Lodge must continually reassess where it is going and what it is accomplishing.

He tells us,

“Continuous improvement requires buy-in from the majority of stakeholders, a goal to strive for, and a way to measure progress. In our organization we often see leaders making important decisions with no buy-in from the membership and goals are often general or non-existent”

Some of the titles from Jones’ other Blog posts will give you an idea of where his thoughts are:

  • The Chamber of Refraction
  • Dues That Still Don’t
  • Beginning With The End In Mind
  • Masonic Improvement: Creating A Vision and Goals
  • The Progressive Line, How It Can Improve Your Masonic Lodge (Or Not)

And Videos:

  • Millenial Apprentices: The Next Revolution In Freemasonry by Samuel Friedman
  • Simple Concepts That Will Improve Your Masonic Lodge
  • 2 Thoughts On Continuous Masonic Improvement
  • The Importance Of Having A “Why” For Freemasons and Masonic Lodges
  • A Look At The Past: The Lost Art of Masonic Retention

Jones is not just influenced by Masonic writers. Stephen Covey inspires him. And he recently posted these thoughts on his Facebook page:

I’m currently rereading “Laudable Pursuit” (read it here http://www.phoenixmasonry.org/Laudible%20Pursuit.pdf) and this quote really resonated with me:

“The harder we have to struggle for something, the more precious it becomes.

Somehow, in sacrificing, we prove to ourselves that what we’re
seeking is valuable. This holds true when we’re pursuing membership.

Sacrifice locks commitment. As people strive to make it through rigorous selection standards and work to prove their worthiness, they persuade themselves that being a part of the group matters.

Initiation rites – like high walls and narrow gates of entry – build
commitment to the group through making acceptance hard to come by.

Being allowed to join becomes something special. An achievement. A privilege. And it creates a sense of exclusiveness.

Belonging doesn’t count much if almost anybody can drift in or drift out of your group at will. If it’s easy to join up, then leave and return, only to leave again, commitment can be hard to find.
Initiation rites also create a common bond of experience that unites all who make it through the ordeal. A strong sense of “we-ness” comes from having gone through a common struggle. This identification with the group
feeds commitment.

Finally, stiff criteria for admission cause the weak-hearted to de-select themselves. They opt out after weighing the costs. For them, the rights of membership aren’t worth going through the rites of Initiation.

The benefit?

People with low commitment never get inside.

The greater the personal investment in getting accepted, the more one builds a stake in the organization. This means you should make membership a big deal. Let people pay a price to join.

That guarantees commitment at the outset, and also makes it easier to build commitment later on.

Make membership hard to come by, and commitment comes naturally.”

— Price Pritchett

Firing Up Commitment For Organizational Change
(Pritchett & Hull Associates, 1994)

www.phoenixmasonry.org

Brother Justin Jones in the embodiment of what Milleniallial Masons are expecting from the Craft. Take due notice and govern yourselves accordingly.

The Secret Of A Successful Masonic Lodge

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Fort Worth, Texas Masonic Temple

How is your Masonic Lodge doing?

Is it dying? How many candidates have you raised in the last year? Have you analyzed what you are doing wrong and what you are doing right?

How is your retention? Do you raise Brothers that never come back? Or are they gone after about three months?

Are you raising Masons that shouldn’t be there just because you hastily gave them a petition? Are you raising Masons who are applying before they are ready to accept what it means to be a Mason? Are you raising Masons that do not fit into the peace and harmony of your Lodge? Do you have a really good Investigating-Petitioning process that screens out those that won’t fit and those who will quit?

Do you have a good mentoring system, not only for those who are going through the degrees but Master Masons in their first year and beyond if needed?

Brother Rhit Moore

Meet Brother Rhit Moore who suffered through three meltdowns of his Lodge before he got wise. Brother Moore will explain to you what he and other committed members of his Lodge implemented the fourth time around to create a successful Lodge. He will explain how his Lodge raises 20 to 40 new Master Masons every year who stay.

Brother Moore doesn’t have a magic wand. He learned what needed to be done the hard way. But he and other members of Fort Worth Lodge learned from their mistakes and kept on trying. Now they have a system that works for them and Fort Worth Lodge is in a new renaissance.

Maybe you need to watch the video above!

Fort Worth, Texas Masonic Temple

Spare Wheel Or Steering Wheel

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Perhaps you remember from previous articles Sister R. Lucille Samuel, Grand Princess Captain of the Lone Star Grand Guild, Heroines of the Templars Crusade of Texas, PHA Texas. Well, Sister Samuel has moved on to found the Margaret A. McDow Grand Court, Ladies Of The Circle Of Perfection, Texas PHA. In her new position, she serves as Royal Grand Perfect Matron.

As The 1st Royal Grand Perfect Matron, she is responsible for chartering 7 LOCOP Courts in the cities of El Paso, San Antonio, Ft Worth, Houston, Dallas, Killeen, and Austin.

I have been republishing Sister Samuel’s annual Allocutions for a while now. She always has such insight into leadership.

This time Sister Samuel told her Order that Leaders have a Vision and so should we all. They don’t just see, they have a plan. They have a map. They have a goal.

Don’t get lost. Don’t get off track. The road ahead may be rocky and full of pitfalls sometimes so know who and what you can depend on to implement your vision.

Never look back. Keep your hands on the wheel and your eyes on the road.

 

“Your vision will become clear only when you can look into your own heart. Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes.” ~ Carl Jung

“A leader has the vision and conviction that a dream can be achieved. He inspires the power and energy to get it done.” ~ Ralph Lauren

“When you have a vision, you make believers out of dreamers.” ~ Frederic L. Milliken

”Where there is no vision the people perish.” ~ Proverbs 29:18

In the long run men hit only what they aim at.  ~ Henry David Thoreau

June 17, 2017 Left – RM Crystal W. Brown, Royal Grand Perfect Matron of Tennessee presents to L. Lucille Samuel – Right-the charter for Margaret A. McDow Court

 

June 17, 2017 Left – RM Crystal W. Brown, Royal Grand Perfect Matron of Tennessee presents to L. Lucille Samuel – Right-the charter for Margaret A. McDow Court

 

The Charter

 

SPARE WHEEL OR STEERING WHEEL!

Margaret A. Macdow Grand Court

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R. Lucille Samuel

Royal Grand Perfect Matron

 

Psalms 37:5 – Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.

 

Have you ever been driving along and all of a sudden your tire goes flat?  Hopefully you were able to pull over on the side of the road in a safe manner without any accidents or injuries.  So either you call for Roadside Assistance or if you are mechanically inclined you change your tire with the spare in your trunk or under your vehicle.  Of course you expect the tire to be full of air and ready for use.  You depend on it.

 

Many times in life we depend on someone or something like that spare tire.  The problem often times is that you only use that spare wheel when you are in trouble or need assistance.  Do you ever check that wheel to ensure it is ready or serviced?  Do you even know where that spare wheel is located?  How many of us depend on prayer when you need a spare?  You never pray or pick up the Bible until you need help.  I am not saying that any of us are perfect and we should live in church.  Church is not where prayer is it is in your heart.  Such as friendship.  Some of us claim to be our brother and sister’s keeper.  How often do you converse with them?  How often do you pick up the phone or send a message just to check on them.  Not just when they are sick or in need but just to say hello.  But when you need that spare wheel you expect them to jump when you call.  Have you ever wondered why the windshield of a car is so large and the rear view mirror is so small?  Our past is not as important as our future so you should focus on looking forward and not behind you.

 

You have to remember although that spare tire is not used often it is needed.  Value your close friends and treat them with kindness because all things in life are temporary.  Just because your life is going well remember you will have speed bumps along the way.  Friendships can end like the blowout of a tire.  Remember God determines who walks into your life.  It’s up to you to let them stay or walk away.

 

The steering wheel directs our path in life.  It is our navigation and allows us to avoid danger in our paths.  You need both hands at all times.  If you remove your hands you lose control.  Sometimes temptations along the way grab our attention and we tend to swerve on the road.  We must stay focused to reach our destinations.  Many of us rely on the GPS System to direct us.  We trust this system to get us where we need to be.  Sometimes you may be in an area where the GPS system does not work and your signal is lost.  If you are unfamiliar with the area you are lost.

 

Don’t allow this to happen to you in the Masonic Organization.  I was once told the only thing worse that than losing your eye sight is your vision.         We can become complacent and lose all sight of what is important.  If you run into a wall don’t give up figure out how to climb it, go through it or work around it.  As a leader you must keep both hands on the steering wheel and navigate the Order.  When you lose your vision it is time for a new Driver.  You will never have passengers if you can’t control the wheel.

 

The task of a leader is to get your people from where they are to where they have not been.

 

In closing I ask that we all remember “The easiest thing to be in the world is YOU.  The most difficult thing to be is what other people want you to be.  Don’t allow them to put you in that position

 

What It Means To Be A Mason

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Wor. Fran Foster and Wor. Frederic L. Milliken at the Cape Cod Cafe, Brockton, MA, in Dec., 2016.

In 1994 Wor. Fran Foster attended a very special event in his community. The Mt. Rushmore flag came to town, and many scouts, Masons, community leaders and just plain people gathered to celebrate the occasion and help raise and lower the flag. Also, there to record the occasion was local cable TV, Continental Cable.

Foster took a moment to ask Continental Cable Program Director Paul Joia if he could get air time for one Masonic show. Joia said I will do you one step better; I will give you a permanent time slot if you can put together a regular show.

So was born “What It Means To Be A Mason,” recorded at the East Bridgewater – Whitman Cable TV studio in Southeastern Massachusetts. Many Masons from the Brocton Masonic District came to help produce this show under the supervision of Program Director Joia who taught us all how to operate all the equipment, especially the cameras.

Each show different Brothers would step up to the plate to produce this show. For the first two shows, Foster asked Wor. Richard Cusick, Master of Paul Revere Lodge, and Wor. Frederic Milliken, Master of Plymouth Lodge, to be the guests and talk about what it means to be a Mason. After that Foster got guests from every Masonic Body, Masonic Library, The Massachusetts Grand Lodge, and even three Grand Masters.

Foster produced 28 What It Means To Be A Mason Cable TV shows. Although now over 20 years old they are timeless and the quality excellent.

The show selected above is an in-depth look at the Massachusetts Masonic Child Identification Program (CHIP). When the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts added tooth imprints to its Child Identification program, it produced the premiere child identification inside and outside of law enforcement in the state. Now it had a video, fingerprints, tooth imprint and DNA for total ID coverage. This is still the number one community outreach program of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts.

All 28 of the Masonic TV shows Fran Foster produced are available for viewing here: http://www.phoenixmasonry.org/what_it_means_to_be_a_mason.htm

These Masonic TV shows were produced from 1994-1998 and include a number of different topics chosen to educate the general public.

Wor. Fran Foster was a pioneer in the field of Masonic TV and he is the model for those of us who are in the Masonic video business today. It is only fitting and proper that he should now receive the national recognition which he so richly deserves.

Terra Masonica, Around The World In 80 Lodges

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https://youtu.be/ZH-II5nUaRo

Masonic filmmaker Tristan Bourlard and his groundbreaking global film, Terra Masonica, interviews on Phoenixmasonry Live! Special appearance by The Prince Hall Think Tank co-host, Dave Gillarm, who is featured on the film.

Brother Tristan Bourlard

 

I have often wanted to see Freemasonry in foreign lands, to travel and enjoy the Craft around the world. Unfortunately, I do not have a budget that will accommodate my desires.

Yet I have just made this wonderful world-wide excursion through Freemasonry from the comfort of my home, thanks to Tristan Bourlard’s movie, Terra Masonica.

I traveled near and far. Here in the United States I was able to visit the oldest Lodge in America. Have you heard of St. John’s Cemetery in Pennsylvania that has been reclaimed from the jungle? That is a story in itself.

Starting in the Mother Lodge Number Nothing in Scotland I toured the U.S.A., South America, the South Pole, the North Pole, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, the Ukraine and India. I was actually able to be at the installation of a new Worshipful Master of the Mother Lodge of Scotland and to see the joy of the whole community expressed at this event.

These travels showered me with the history and MEMORIES of Freemasonry here and abroad. There was, in Phoenixmasonry’s Live Interview, the appearance of special guest Brother Dave Gillarm from Mt. Pisgah Lodge No 53, Columbus, Georgia, The Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Georgia. He recounted having Bourlard live with him while filming Georgia. The Memory came when Bourlard filmed a woman, over 100 years old, who was present at Martin Luther’s King’s speech given at Gillarm’s Lodge in 1958.

Masonic Memories continued when Bourlard filmed in Jerusalem and we saw shots of King Solomon’s Temple from a different angle. The there was the persecution of Freemasonry in Spain under Franco exposed. We learned about Estela Lodge No 1, Antonina Village in Brazil that purchased slaves in order to set them free.

The chance to experience Fin Del Mundo, The End of The World Lodge in Antarctica and Hele Bjorn, the Lodge at the North Pole, Grand Lodge of Norway was a once in a lifetime visit.

Terra Masonica shows us places where practicing Freemasonry is still difficult. In Mali, Africa and in the Ukraine we visited places where Masonic Meetings were held in secret locations or met under armed security.

Above all we learn about the Universality of Freemasonry. Bourlard recounts that one of his purposes in making this movie was to break down the barriers that exist in Freemasonry and to bring Brothers together. Realizing that there is a big Masonic World outside your Lodge is a step in that direction. The roofless, walless Masonic Temple in the wilds of Parana Brazil was built by a Mason who was tired of all the bickering and who wanted a place for Freemasons of any Jurisdiction to meet. In India we witnessed Freemasonry dedicated to educating young people and teaching them how to interact with people of different cultures and beliefs.

Bourlard reports to us that while many parts of the World, such as North America, are lamenting a marked decrease in Masonic membership, Freemasonry is doing well in France and Germany and growing by leaps and bounds in Brazil and India. He predicted that the Grand Lodge of India would be the largest Grand Lodge in the world in just a few years.

Many stories have been left behind in this brief  account of this Masonic journey across the Globe. One thing is for sure. While we look at Globalization taking place in civil, political, religious, economic and entertainment undertakings, we should not overlook the fact that Globalization is taking place in Freemasonry also. And Terra Masonica is just the movie to educate you and thrill you on this subject.

 

You may view Terra Masonic on ITunes. Soon it will be available for purchase on Amazon. Right now you can buy it here:  http://www.matsol.info/

Interview With Patrick Craddock, The Craftsman’s Apron

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We last visited Patrick Craddock in June of 2013 with an article on Freemason Information that you can see HERE. Since that time Craddock has increased his product line.

https://youtu.be/Da1DCHXx08w

While he may not make all his accessories personally they are his design. Everything on Craddock’s Site for sale has been personally designed by him and for him. They cannot be found elsewhere.

“Throughout the early 1990’s to 2009, Patrick produced aprons in the evenings and on weekends as a sideline business. From a hobby born of necessity, The Craftsman’s Apron has become the foremost purveyor of quality Masonic regalia in North America. Today our aprons are worn in twenty-seven States and two foreign countries. In addition to our aprons we have increased our product line to include custom ties, Lodge banners, cuff links, t-shirts, officer jewels and collars.”

Of course, Craddock’s mainstay is still his handcrafted, hand painted aprons. A large portion of the aprons Craddock makes are custom designs special ordered. Whether you want to design your own apron or just give Craddock some of your favorite Masonic symbols and let him work with them to make a one of a kind creation, you will be hard pressed to find anybody else in the United States that can do that for you.

Craddock also delivers lectures, most often a power point presentation of the Evolution of the Masonic Apron in the United States. He travels to many Jurisdictions to their Grand Session and he is available to speak anywhere upon request.

To contact Patrick Craddock  visit his wonderful website: https://www.craftsmansapron.com/ and The Craftsman’s Apron Facebook page.