PROCEEDINGS GRAND LODGE - Freemasons of Wisconsin

increments. You know, we have lost very, very, very few members, like half of onepercent, when we do it that way. But if I just send you a notice and I jack the dues from$15 to $100 with no explanation, watch the resignations pile up on the secretary’sdesk. I have an obligation to communicate to my brethren why I need the money,because that’s good stewardship. You have to look at your own situation and developfrom there.”If you want to help your organization or lodge, work on membership. That willsolve a lot of problems. In fact I say set a goal of 10%. I actually plan degrees. I saywe will do an Entered Apprentice degree on this date in four months. If they say theyhave no candidates, I say, find some. It’s amazing if you have a plan to do a degreeyou’ll get candidates, but if you say we will do a degree if we get some candidates, youwill never do a degree. That’s positive mental attitude. Too many of our men do nothave PMA they have PMS. You know where PMS comes from, we get it from our wivesonce a month. We have to have a positive attitude, brother, to pull for the future.Dream, it can happen.”Reactivate members. I will tell you right now that it is harder to reactivate a nonactivemember than to get a new one. It is easier to find ten new members than to getan old one to come back to lodge. Why. because they’re happy with their membership.They have a dues card, they have a ring and they know they will have somebody showup for the funeral and do a funeral service. One time I drove five hours to conduct aMasonic funeral service for a brother that I did not know. Afterwards the family cameup to me and told me that they were trying to figure out the cheapest way to bury Dadand they knew that the Masons wouldn’t charge anything, so that’s why they askedus to do it. Well, thanks for the honesty, but I had a few thoughts at that time thatweren’t very Masonic. You can bring some of those members back who live locally andthose who don’t live locally, make sure you send them newsletters. I have found thatthe best sources of unsolicited funds comes from my members who live out of town,because they feel guilty that they can’t support the lodge. They still have a love for theirlodge. I have seen checks for $1000, $3000 come in and then someone at the nextmeeting says we shouldn’t send them a newsletter because it costs 39¢. If I get $3000back for 39¢, that’s a pretty good investment, a lot better than the bank pays thesedays. I look ahead. My book downstairs, “How to become a Masonic Leader”, actuallyhas a workbook on how to plan for the year, It’s easy, but if you have a plan for nowand just go by the seat of your pants all you are going to do is wear out your pants andnothing else. You have got to look ahead and let people know what’s going on. Plus,if your membership is not active and knows there are activities, some of them startgetting curious and come out. When I was working with a dying church, I would telleverybody that if you have two cars in your family, drive two cars. I have them packthe place with cars, because the neighbors start to see all the cars and think there issomething going on down there. Within three or four weeks I have more attendance,because they don’t want to be a part of a dying group, they want to be a part ofsomething that is growing. You have to do a little bit of public relations and a littlebit of promotion and it pays off.”Something else too, membership is more than boring meetings, brothers. Anotherthing we need to be doing is making sure that people know who we are, what we are,when we meet and who to contact. I met a brother yesterday, very typical, he sat infront of his local Masonic Lodge for I don’t know how many different nights. Hewanted to be a Mason, knew no Masons in town and waited for somebody to show upat lodge to get a petition. Let’s not make it that hard to join. Leaders should be excited87