As charity is a critical virtue in the practice of Freemasonry, Guthrie Masonic Lodge #35 closed out 2022 with several local contributions to cap off their year of giving.
Guthrie Lodge #35 contributes to several different causes and organizations throughout the year. Normally the lodge gives to two or three regular causes and adds different individual ones over the course of the year.
For example, every year, Guthrie Lodge #35 provides scholarships of $1000 to qualified Logan County graduating seniors. This isn’t for Guthrie High School only; all Logan County high school seniors are eligible to apply to the program, regardless of their school. In 2022, Guthrie Lodge #35 had 16 slots available, but only gave away eight scholarships.
Also, the Lodge supports an annual charity walk event that is intended to raise funds for the foster families at Peppers Ranch. The walk is normally held in June and solicits local companies for sponsorships, to supplement the funds provided by the Lodge.
In addition to the charity walk, Guthrie Lodge #35 also provides Christmas gifts for all foster kids at Peppers Ranch every year. This year the Lodge provided funds to brothers within the Lodge, as well as a list of the age and gender of each child. The brothers then split up their lists and the funds and used them to purchase age-appropriate gifts. The brothers of the Lodge then have a wrapping party where they wrap the gifts, then caravan to Peppers Ranch to deliver them directly to the families.
Guthrie Lodge #35 also provides gifts to the residents at the Willow Creek nursing center, as part of their Adopt-A-Grandparent program. Through this program, the Lodge purchases gifts for the residents and delivers them for special occasions.
Outside of their regular causes, Guthrie Lodge #35 also gave to several special situations, typically brought to the Lodge by members. For example, Guthrie Cub Scout Pack 850 was a beneficiary this year, after Guthrie Lodge #35 provided funds as part of Pack 850’s spaghetti dinner fundraiser focused on helping the pack get to this year’s Cub Scout summer camp. Not only did the Lodge provide direct funding to the program, but several of the Lodge’s brothers came and actual served food and drinks during the spaghetti dinner.
In addition to the Cub Scout pack, Guthrie Lodge #35 also gave to the FFA programs at both Coyle High School and Mulhall-Orlando. Coyle’s program requested additional funding to help with their premium sales and support the local students in caring for their animals. Mulhall-Orlando asked for assistance in refurbishing their high school show barn. In both cases, the brothers of Guthrie Lodge #35 answered the call of charity.
Finally, Guthrie Lodge #35 provided additional funds for the local FOP Lodge #105 “Christmas with Cops” program, as providing help to needy local children is a key focus area for the Lodge’s charity efforts. In fact, the “Christmas with Cops” contribution helped Guthrie Lodge #35 finish strong with their charity work, as this contribution was added to the contributions to Peppers Ranch Christmas gift-giving and the Mulhall-Orlando funds, for a total of over $4000 in total gifts in December alone.
ThebrothersoftheLodge hope to get word out to the local Guthrie community, as they are always looking for community partnerships and new causes to target for contributions. For information on the high school scholarship program, or to refer local charity opportunities, citizens may reach out to the secretary of Guthrie Lodge #35 at guthrie35. secretary@gmail.com, or contact the Grand Lodge of Oklahoma for further contact info.