Freemasonry Today

Random Acts of Kindness

How many times have you received a skeptical, quizzical or even surprised look when you told someone you’re a Mason? Our fraternity is often shrouded with mystery, misrepresented by Hollywood, dismissed by uninformed naysayers and misunderstood by the masses. But it doesn’t have to be that way.

The best way to prove our value to society is by educating others through our actions. Freemasons are good men of their word who benefit society in countless, quiet ways that are often conducted outside of the public eye. That’s why Grand Master Tom Gamon is challenging every Pennsylvania Mason to demonstrate goodwill by performing Random Acts of Kindness. These small, thoughtful gestures will give others a glimpse into what it means to be a Pennsylvania Freemason.

Opportunities to make a difference in another’s life present themselves daily; we just need to Let us know about your Random Acts of Kindness! be willing to take a moment to observe our Email your story to pr@masonicvillages.org. If you surroundings. It may be as simple as helping a have a picture (and permission from everyone stranded motorist jump start his car, buying coffee included), attach it to your email. for the lady behind you at Starbucks, carrying someone’s groceries, mowing an elderly neighbor’s lawn, picking up trash in a park, making a meal for a shut-in or donating food or clothing to a family in need. When you answer the challenge to assist someone, simply give the individual one of these business cards. Our website and social media channels are listed for those wishing to learn Do Good Unto All You were just helped by a Freemason . The only compensation requested is for you to pay it forward by helping someone else in need. more. Make sure to get some business cards from your lodge secretary and keep them in a convenient place such as in your wallet or your glove box. Let’s challenge ourselves to live the values of A Way of Life Freemasonry is kindness in the home, honesty in business, courtesy in society, pity and concern for the unfortunate, resistance of the wicked, help for the weak, trust in the strong, forgiveness for the penitent, love for one another, and above all, reverence and love for God. www.pagrandlodge.org Freemasonry by showing concern for the wellDo Good Unto All being of others.

Donations Feed Front-line Heroes and Children

Shriners Hospitals for Children Philadelphia surgeons (l-r): Dr. Amer Samdani, Chief of Surgery; Dr. Dan Zlotolow, hand surgeon; and Dr. Sarah Nossov, lower extremity surgeon; package meals.

Brother Alex Stottle believes in paying it forward. Alex, an environmental manager for Poultry Holdings LLC, which owns Freebird Chicken in Fredericksburg, PA, recently saw a decline in company sales due to COVID-19. He decided to facilitate the donation of upwards of 5,000 pounds of chicken to the Shriners Hospitals for Children in Philadelphia. “A lot of our product goes into the New York metropolitan area, and with most of that area shut down, we had a lot of extra product we needed to find a home for,” Alex said. “We sent two full trailer loads to The Bowery Mission (a homeless shelter) in NYC, and we also donated to the Bethesda Mission (a rescue mission) in Harrisburg and the local food bank. “I thought there must be other places out there that could use the product,” he said. “I looked at where we could make a difference. That’s when I thought of Shriners Hospitals. So much good happens at hospitals.” A Past Master of Union Lodge No. 324, Mifflintown, Alex reached out to fellow lodge Brother Mike Smith, P.M., who connected him with Brother Joe Rupe, P.D.D.G.M.-19, who serves on the Board of Governors for Shriners Hospitals. Joe put Alex in touch with Brian Daley, Director of Food and Nutrition Services at Shriners Hospitals, and they made arrangements to deliver the product. “I’m happy that I can make a difference to a Masonic organization,” Alex said. “I got involved with Freemasonry 20 years ago because my dad was a Mason. He always told me, ‘When the time is right, you’ll make your own decision to join.’ There were people in the lodge whom I knew and respected. That’s why I joined. We make good men better, and I wanted to be part of that. It has been an awesome experience. It’s an organization where you get out of it what you put into it.” Alex plans to continue donating chicken as long as his company has extra product. “Of course, we’d rather be selling the product than donating it, but as long as there is product available, I will try to help out in the community,” he said. “It’s the right thing to do. I like to lead by example, and maybe this will inspire someone else to take notice and make a difference.” Brian Daley, with Shriners Hospitals, said he was impressed with Alex when he spoke to him about the chicken donation. “He was so nice and accommodating to us, and figured out what we could use and had it to us two days later,” he said. “It’s important to us that during these tough times, we’ve been able to feed our staff and our patients.” Thanks to the donation, Brian has been able to provide 500 weekly chicken meals to Temple Health staff, who share their campus and are on the front lines of fighting COVID-19. He also distributed chicken to the Salvation Army Kroc Center in Philadelphia, which has been distributing meals to people in need daily. “At this time, food is an essential thing, and the fact that Alex has been kind enough to donate 5,000 pounds of chicken and not only are we able to use it, but we can help other people, is a really amazing thing,” Brian added. This is not the first time that Alex has given back to the community. Besides being a firefighter for 30 years, he also spent the past few years distributing Christmas dinners for people in need. “We started receiving a turkey at work for Christmas,” he said. “As we already had plans to be at my daughter’s house for dinner, I thought, ‘What can I do with a turkey?’ I decided to give it to a family

who had just lost their father.” The next year, Alex asked some brothers if they knew of anyone who could use a turkey, and some of his co-workers donated their turkeys. It took off from there. “After being Master in 2008, I decided to grow this little charity and inspire others in my lodge to do something that would impact our local community,” he said. “It grew from just a turkey to a complete dinner and dessert. My biggest year, my wife and I gave 32 complete Christmas dinners to local families in need. Every so often, someone would want to know who was doing this, but all they were told is, ‘He is a Mason.’” Brother Mike said he’s proud of the work that Alex has done for the community. “I consider Alex to be of the highest character,” he said. “He is very much committed to helping his local community and others. Even before the current COVID-19 crisis, Alex donated meals to local families in need. I am an elementary school principal and have personally helped Alex identify families who would benefit from his generosity.”

Brother Alex Stottle, P.M., Union Lodge No. 324, Mifflintown

Delivering Meals, Care & Safety

Photo courtesy of Harold Aughton, Butler Eagle Saxonburg is a small town in western Pennsylvania with a big heart.

Brother Joe Beachem is the town’s police chief, and he has partnered with Saxonburg businesses to help feed the community during the COVID-19 pandemic. Joe and his police officers pick up donated meals from the historic Hotel Saxonburg and other restaurants and deliver them by car to families in need. Delivering the food to recipients’ doors eliminates the risk of coronavirus exposure to the restaurants’ staff, who would have to deliver the meals had Joe not volunteered. “It started as a pay-it-forward program where people anonymously paid for meals for the elderly or people shut in or a high risk group,” Joe said. “The restaurants were short staffed because of the pandemic and couldn’t deliver, so the police department offered to help out. We’ve been doing this for more than four weeks now, usually between 10 and 15 houses a day. We’ve delivered about 300 meals so far, which is amazing.” The program has become so popular that the list of participating businesses continues to grow, now including Batch, What’s Cooking on Main, Novotny’s Pizza and Main Street Bake Shop. Some individuals order meals for themselves and also donate a meal to a family in need. The Mayor of Saxonburg, Bill Gillespie, and other city officials have also pitched in to help deliver the meals. “We’re going to keep doing this until the virus is over,” Joe said. “It’s a way to help the needy and assist our struggling community businesses at the same time.” Judy Ferree, owner and general manager of the Hotel Saxonburg, said she started the program the day she was told she had to close her business except for take-out. A friend of hers from another town wanted to support the hotel and donated money to deliver a meal to someone in need. Judy mentioned the exchange on Facebook and others said they wanted to participate. “We’ve done at least 672 single meals, and each meal feeds four people for $50,” Judy said. “I told the police chief what I was trying to do, and he immediately insisted on doing it himself to keep me safe and help the residents. I thought it was incredible for him to step up like that. It is a good way for the community to see that he is visible and trying to help them out. He’s a great guy. I don’t know what we would do without him.”

Saxonburg resident Karen Kennedy lives in a senior citizen community and has been a recipient of the free meals, from stuffed cabbage to lasagna to spaghetti. “Every day, you see the chief with his mask and gloves on delivering the meals,” she said. “He will not come in the house or anything, but he does talk to you. Our police chief is just the highest integrity man that I’ve ever met in my life. He’s so humble. He’s a gentle giant.” Joe, who is married with five children, has been the police chief for 10 years and involved with law enforcement for 25 years. “It’s nice to have a job where every day is different,” he said. “We try to do a lot of foot patrols where you can get out and talk to people and find out what their concerns are. “A program like this [in Saxonburg] has actually helped me reflect on what it means to a good member of the community,” Joe said. “The community is coming together to support those in need and a very strained segment of our business community at the same time.” Joe said he wants police officers to be viewed as more than just law enforcement, but as people who care about the residents. He recently set up a community outreach program called “Stay OK Saxonburg” for residents who want police to check on them during the coronavirus crisis. “If we call you, and you don’t answer, we send an officer to check on you,” Joe said. “There are people who might be suffering from a medical condition. We just want to make sure that everyone feels as safe as possible during this trying time.” A member of Ellwood Parian Lodge No. 599, Ellwood City, since March, Joe joined the fraternity because his three cousins were involved with the lodge. “The general impression [from them] was it was very fulfilling, and the self-improvement aspect had a lot of meaning,” he said. “I looked into it and decided to ask for a petition.”

Serving Double on the Front Lines

Brother Matthew Myers did not expect to start his medical residency during a pandemic. Matt, a paramedic from Northumberland, PA, graduated from Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine in May and began working at the UPMC Pinnacle Emergency Room in Harrisburg in June. “I never thought this would happen (starting my residency during COVID-19),” Matt said. “But this is what we train to do throughout medical school and as physicians – to take care of patients, no matter what is going on. “A lot of the social activities that were planned for bonding between the attending physicians and residents have been canceled due to the pandemic,” he said. “Our educational conferences are virtual, or we do them outside, where we can social distance. We also wear masks during our entire shifts.” To get up to speed with the virus, Matt reviews online modules from his medical school, keeps up with Center for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines and is researching and tracking coronavirus cases in central Pennsylvania and the state as a whole. “At first, things started to downtrend as far as admissions, but we are now starting to see more numbers of positive cases start to pick up again,” Matt said. On his very first day of his residency, Matt had a very sick patient whom he aggressively managed from the start. “It was very reassuring that I could do this and know what needs to be done with critical patients in the beginning,” Matt said. “It was the confidence booster I really needed to get things going.” As with all new things, easing into the residency takes time, Matt said. “It’s a lot different than medical school, as I’m now responsible for patients and putting orders in,” he said “I still look at lab results and EKGs, and it’s weird to see my name as the ordering doctor. But overall, the transition has been going great. My co-residents are terrific, and the faculty is very supportive. The nursing staff and techs help me with anything I ask for.” As a paramedic with the Americus Ambulance Co., in Sunbury, the Elysburg Fire Department and the DH&L Fire Company in Selinsgrove, Matt has transported a handful of patients with COVID-19 and has taken the proper precautions, wearing masks and gloves. Matt started as a volunteer firefighter at age 16. “We would help local ambulances on medical calls,” he said. “I really enjoyed it. I went through an EMT and paramedic course and got certified. I really like

helping people, and there’s something different to do every day.” Matt plans to continue being a paramedic as time permits, but going forward, the hospital is his main priority. “I still plan on being involved with the pre-hospital team at UPMC Pinnacle and providing medical direction and some education there,” he said. When he’s not busy helping others, Matt is an active member of Eureka Lodge No. 404, Northumberland. His father, Monroe Scott Myers, P.M., is also a member of the lodge. “I’ve been a member for two years,” Matt said. “My dad always wanted me to get into Freemasonry, and then I started to get involved. It has been a good experience. It’s a very good group of guys to be around, and it is nice going down the Freemason journey.” Selinsgrove Borough Police Officer and fellow lodge brother Nathan Fisher routinely worked with Matt as a paramedic when he was with the Point Township Police. He considers Matt among the best paramedics he knows. “His knowledge and work ethic is amazing,” Nathan said. “He’s a driven kid, and he reaches all of his goals. His patient care is just stellar. It’s amazing being in the fraternity with him. He’s an all-around great person.”