Temple TIMES
A Message from Michael D. McKee, Executive Director
I hope this message finds you well. We are working with the city of Philadelphia to propose right of way legislation to set up our final two poles for the Masonic Temple lighting project.
This process will take about six weeks to complete. Then, we can place the poles and mount the lights. This has been a long and challenging process, and the team appreciates your support.
We are working on preserving the paintings of the Past Grand Masters throughout the building. In the archives, we continue to preserve numerous books for future generations. We are looking into scanning some of our one-of-a-kind books, so we can share them digitally.
The Library and Museum team is grateful for your support of
our endeavors. As we continue celebrating the 150th anniversary of the Temple, we’ve had great success in offering free monthly tours and other events, one of which was our building rededication on June 24.
The Philadelphia Inquirer and other news outlets provided great coverage of this special year, and we are excited to continue celebrating this milestone!
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For many years, Pennsylvania Masons and their loved ones have generously supported our Masonic Charities through lifetime gifts, deferred gifts and bequests.
What are the Spirals in the Black Floor Tiles?
By Michael Comfort Director, Masonic Library and Museum of PA
As you walk across the black and white tiled floors of the Temple, you will occasionally notice spiral designs in the black limestone tiles. These are Ammonite fossils.
Ammonites lived during a time of Earth’s history known as the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods. Together, these periods represent about 135 million years; the Jurassic period began about 201 million years ago, and the Cretaceous ended about 66 million years ago.
Ammonites were marine animals. They looked like the reconstructed one on display in our museum. They had a coiled, external shell similar to that of the modern nautilus.
Limestone such as this is used on flooring and buildings all over the United States. Prominent buildings, such as the state capitals of Virginia and Vermont, use the same stone containing the same fossils. This type of limestone is typically quarried throughout the mid-western section of the country.
In 2021, Giving USA reported that 9% of all charitable gifts were made through bequests. The total giving through bequests increased 400% from 1980 to 2020 and demonstrates the upward trending and popularity of this approach to planned giving.
Because of their simplicity and flexibility, bequests and similar strategies are a popular form of charitable giving and are often incorporated into an estate plan. Perhaps due to the simplicity, the language is sometimes carried over from prior wills and trust documents without sufficient attention. Worse yet, some donors do not regularly review or update their estate planning documents. Fortunately, our Office of Mission Advancement and Development is here to help. We regularly provide our donors and their advisors with accurate names for our Masonic Charities, descriptions of our charitable programs and sample language to help ensure that your bequest does what you want it to do.
In addition to being outdated, did you know that most bequests are undisclosed to the charities? It is estimated that 90% of bequests are not disclosed to charities until the donor
has passed away. This makes it difficult for charities to consider future interests in planning and to properly recognize the generosity of its donors. At Masonic Charities, membership in the Franklin Legacy Society is available to any donor who discloses their generous giving through a bequest. In addition, when we know you’ve thought of Masonic Charities in your planning process, we can better serve you through our department’s collaborative solutions and professional resources. Of course, our donors should consult with independent professionals concerning their estate planning. We are happy to assist with referrals upon request.
For additional information or to join the Franklin Legacy Society, please contact us at giving@masoniccharitiespa.org or call 1-800-599-6454.
Charitable Bequests: Simple and Flexible . . . But Too Often