Author: Pablo Colomban

June 2021 Trestleboard

Pablo Colomban Events, Master's Message, Scholarships Tagged

Greetings from the East!

Summer is almost here and we aren’t quite ready to go dark yet.  We still have a lot of things planned for the month of June.

We had an excellent turnout for our Annual Scholarship Night on May 20th.  We had around 90 people joining us for the event and were able to give out 12 college scholarships.  We also were able to present awards to our Teacher of the Year and the Law Enforcement Officer of the year.  It was amazing to have so many people join us in person.  It was a great feeling to look at the Lodge and dining room and see so many people together.  It’s been way too long!  When I first started my year in the East, I was really unsure what Scholarship Night would look like and I was very pleased with how it turned out.

 

Scholarship Night

On Sunday, May 30th, many Masons will be meeting at 9:00 am at Ft. Logan Cemetery to place flags on the gravesites in the National Cemetery.  If you are interested in joining us, please go to www.flagsforfallenvets.com where you can sign up.  Click on the link labeled “2021 Volunteer Form” and fill out the information.  Under the “Group” category, enter “Mason” and it will put you in the Masonic group.  They ask that you bring a ruler, screwdriver, and mallet with you.  If you have any questions, please let me know.  

We will be having a Stated Communication on June 3rd to read suspensions. It will be open to Masons only. We will not be having dinner open for prospects that night. This will be a very quick and informal meeting.  Let’s skip the suits and wear jeans.  We will be ordering pizza for dinner. Dinner will be at 6:30 pm and Lodge will open at 7 pm. As always, reservations are required.  You can make your reservation online here.

On Monday, June 21st, the Denver Consistory is holding its Stated Meeting.  It is Blue Lodge Recognition night and they will be having a Masonic Trivia Game.  The meeting is open to all Masons.  If you’ve ever been interested in Scottish Rite Masonry or what goes on at the Consistory, this is a great chance to check it out.  Better yet, it is Hawaiian shirt night, so leave the suit in the closet and come have a good time.  The meeting starts at 7 and there will be dinner beforehand.  If you are interested in attending, please contact me.  It would be great to have a big Denver 5 turnout!

I am also happy to announce that we will be performing two Master Mason degrees at Central City no.6 on June 26th.  Brothers Joshua Fraedrich and Connor Gould have been patiently waiting to receive the third degree and we are going to make this a memorable experience for them.  If you are interested in helping with the degree, please let me know.  This will be a great day in a very historic building.

I am very happy to say that things feel like they are getting back to normal in our communities.  Let’s all pray that things continue on this trajectory.  I look forward to seeing you all on June 3rd and over the Summer!

Fraternally yours,

Michael

May 2021 Trestleboard

Pablo Colomban Uncategorized Tagged

Greetings from the East!

Spring is finally here!  Hope you are spending some time outside getting some Vitamin D and working on the tan.

Things are not slowing down, we are keeping our momentum going in May.  We will be initiating two more candidates at our May 6th meeting.  We will be opening early at 5:45 to take care of some business and then will start the initiations right after dinner.  The degree team has been putting in a lot of practice for these degrees, so you won’t want to miss them.  Please RSVP here!

Our second meeting is on May 20th and is our annual Scholarship Night.  Scholarship Night is an open meeting, so it is a great opportunity to bring your significant other to show them what we do on Thursday nights!  We have received some excellent applications for the scholarship and look forward to helping these students in their educational endeavors.  Since we will be hosting these scholarship recipients, it is very important that you RSVP here so that we can make sure to have enough food and can plan ahead to allow for social distancing.

Our Brothers at Central Lodge #6 have invited the Brethren from Denver 5 to join them for a joint communication on May 12th.  I know a number of us have been itching to visit some Lodges and this a great opportunity to visit the oldest Lodge building in the State.  There is some great history in this building.  Let me know if you are interested in going and we will put together a carpool.

We are still working on the details for Masonica which will take place on August 28th.  It will be an afternoon of Masonic education and a great chance for brotherhood after being away from Lodge for most of the summer.  We will be adding details about this event as they come to be.  Keep an eye on the Denver 5 Facebook and Instagram for upcoming details.

I want to thank everyone who has been attending meetings!  I was unsure what kind of turnout we would have at our meetings when we started meeting in person.  I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the turnout.  I’m also happy to hear that most other Lodges in the State have started back to meeting in person as well.  It is crucial to The Craft!

Hope you all have a great month!  Look forward to seeing you all in May!

Meet Joshua R

Pablo Colomban Meet Denver 5 Tagged

This is another installment in a series where we will introduce some of our members. These are the up-and-coming leaders of our Fraternity. These are men from all walks of life. Fathers, sons, husbands… and we all call each other Brothers. These are just some of the stories behind Denver Lodge No.5.

We’ll let Josh introduce himself.

I grew up in Thornton, spent my college years in Boulder, and now live in Denver. I grew up spending my summers with my grandparents camping in the mountains. As such I have a nostalgic feeling about the mountains and hope to spend time exploring all they have to offer. I recently started traveling, which has ignited an interest in exploring and learning about other cultures.  My first trip outside of the Americas was to Southeast Asia, and I will admit I now have the travel bug. My next destination is Europe, and I plan on attending a few soccer games as that is my favorite sport to watch.

Josh had been a great addition to D5 and we’re always happy to see him. Say hi to him at our next meeting.

April 2021 Trestleboard

Pablo Colomban Master's Message, Scholarships, Trestleboard Tagged

Hopefully, everyone’s backs are healed up from shoveling snow after that last storm! Even though it doesn’t quite feel like it yet, Spring is here! 

We have had a productive March.  Bros. Joshua Fraedrich and Connor Gould were passed to the degree of Fellowcraft.  We’re proud of you Brothers!

April looks to also be busy.  Our first meeting of the month is on April 1st.  We will be opening early before dinner to tend to some business, then after dinner, we will be initiating three candidates into the Fraternity.  Make sure you attend this meeting and as always, RSVPs are required for dinner.  You can make your reservation at this link

On April 10th, we will be attending the Boulder Polar Plunge.  This event is being held at the Boulder Reservoir again this year.  If you signed up for this event and haven’t received an email about it from the organizer, please reach out to WB Tom Shotts at tomshotts@comcast.net.  We have printed new t-shirts for the event as well.  

Our second meeting on April 15th will consist of hearing two proficiencies and then cutting out early to enjoy a beer after Lodge.  We did this after the last meeting and it was a great opportunity for fellowship.

The deadline is closely approaching to submit applications for our Annual Scholarship Night.  The applications and essays are due to the Lodge by April 15th.  If you know of anyone who is attending college or a trade school in the Fall, please make sure they turn in an application.  Scholarship Night will be on May 20th.  

Stephen Carlson

Meet Stephen

Pablo Colomban Meet Denver 5 Tagged

This is another installment in a series where we will introduce some of our members. These are the up-and-coming leaders of our Fraternity. These are men from all walks of life. Fathers, sons, husbands… and we all call each other Brothers. These are just some of the stories behind Denver Lodge No.5.

Meet Stephen Carlson.

Stephen is a Colorado native who was initiated as a Mason at Denver Lodge No. 5 in November of 2018. His favorite things to do are going to lakes and reservoirs with his stand-up paddleboard, and spending time with friends and loved ones. He has two dogs, one of them is a former racing greyhound.

Stephen had been a great addition to D5 and we’re always happy to see him. Say hi to him at our next meeting.

March 2021 Trestleboard

Pablo Colomban Events, Master's Message, Scholarships, Trestleboard Tagged

Greetings from the East!

Brothers,

February has been a great month for Denver Lodge No. 5.  We were able to meet in-person for the first time in 2021 and it felt great to be back in the Lodge room with all of you!  We have been taking precautions to make it a safe environment.  We are still taking temperatures at the door, spacing out in the dining room and the Lodge room.  You are welcome to wear a mask during the meeting as well.  We still ask that you MUST MAKE A RESERVATION.

We had two proficiencies at the last meeting.  Bro. Connor Gould did a great job on his EA proficiency and Bro. Joshua Ruegsegger, J.D. dazzled us with an excellent MM long-form proficiency.  I’m very proud of you both!

Coming up in March things are not slowing down.  We will be opening Lodge early on March 4th at 5:30 pm to hear another EA proficiency and handle some business.  Then after dinner, we will be doing two FC Degrees.  This will be our first time doing degree work this year and we are excited to get back to work.

On March 18th, we will be hearing a presentation from Pablo Colomban, P.M. titled “That Other American Revolution Led by Masons”.  Dinner will be at 6:30 pm and Lodge will open at 7:30.

A couple of reminders:

The scholarship application due date has changed.  The new date is April 15, 2021.  If you know any students that are going to college or trade school in the Fall, please encourage them to apply for the scholarship.  The link to the application can be found online here.

This is a second reminder about paying your dues.  If you have not yet sent a check or paid via Paypal on our website, please do so as soon as possible!

The Boulder Plunge is taking place on April 10th from 8:00 am – 1:30 pm. This is always a fun family activity so bring out the kids and loved ones. This event is also open to any prospective candidates. And if you don’t want to brave the cold waters, they will also be holding a 5k that you can participate in. If you are interested in participating, please contact WB Tom Shotts.

I look forward to seeing you all in March!

Michael Rotert, W.M.

February 2021 Trestleboard

Pablo Colomban Events, Master's Message, Scholarships, Trestleboard Tagged

Greetings from the East!

I hope this message finds everyone happy and healthy!

Denver Lodge No. 5 has a lot going on this month.

We have a large number of prospects that have been attending our meetings, both in-person on online.  A number of them have put in petitions so we will be looking forward to doing a lot of degree work in the coming weeks.  If you are interested in being involved with putting on these degrees, we would love to have you.  Please reach out to me if you want to be involved.

Our first meeting is on February 4th via Zoom.  We will again open the meeting at 6:30 pm for prospects and then at 7:00 pm, the meeting will be opened to Masons only.  I am going to present a lecture I have been working on called “Truths in your Toolbox”.  If you haven’t already, please contact WB Pablo Colomban to be added to the Zoom list. He will send out a link to the meeting via email a couple of days before the meeting.

We are going to open back up to an in-person Lodge meeting for our second meeting on February 18th.  This is going to be a busy meeting.  We have a lot of proficiency work that has been delayed and a lot of business to take care of.  We want to make sure the building is a safe place to meet.  We will be taking temperatures at the door and will be allowing for social distancing in the dining room.  It is also very possible to spread out in our Lodge room.  You are welcome to wear a mask during Lodge if this makes you feel more comfortable.  As always, there will be hand sanitizer available.  I also want to reiterate that if you are not feeling well, please do not come to Lodge.  We miss seeing everyone in Lodge and want everyone to feel comfortable in attending our meetings! Due to Covid restrictions, your RSVP is required with the Junior Warden so that we can make proper arrangements.

A few last notes…if you have not yet paid your dues, they are now late.  Please use the PayPal tab on our website or send a check to the secretary.  Let’s help save Bro. Secretary from having to send you a late notice.  Also, the scholarship applications are now available to download on our site.  If you know of someone who is interested in applying for the scholarships, we are accepting them now until May 15th.

Hope you all have a great month and I hope to see you soon!

Michael Rotert WM

 

 

tim-mcdowell

Meet Tim

Pablo Colomban Meet Denver 5 Tagged Tags: , , , ,

This is another installment in a series where we will introduce some of our members. These are the up-and-coming leaders of our Fraternity. These are men from all walks of life. Fathers, sons, husbands… and we all call each other Brothers. These are just some of the stories behind Denver Lodge No.5.

Meet Tim McDowell.

Tim grew up in Pennsylvania, went to culinary school in New England, and arrived in Colorado on July 4th, 1999. The mountains were calling and he’s never looked back! He is an avid cyclist, snowboarder, cinephile, and cook. He has degrees in the Culinary Arts, Film Studies, and Business Management. Tim is an entrepreneur at heart and has worked for himself for over a decade. Tim, his wife Lisa, and son Sylvan live in Denver, CO. He became a Freemason in April of 2018 at Denver Lodge No.5. Both of his Grandfathers were Freemasons in Pennsylvania. The tenets of Freemasonry have helped him become a better husband, father and to find the balance of work/life.

D5 is lucky to have Tim as Junior Warden this year. Say hi to him at our next meeting.

January 2021 trestleboard

Pablo Colomban Events, Master's Message, Trestleboard Tagged

Brothers,

I hope this message finds you well! We are in the midst of the lost week between the holidays and the New Year. I’m really not sure what day it is, but I do know that I have been eating plenty. I hope you find yourself in the same situation!

Like almost everything that has happened in 2020, we have had to get creative in how we approached installation this year. Normally, on a Saturday after our last December meeting and before the holidays, we would all gather for a nice meal with our families and friends and then do our annual installation of officers. This wasn’t possible this year, so instead of trying to do an installation on a Zoom meeting, we took the opportunity to bring the installation to you in the form of a movie. I am no Scorsese, so we are using the term “movie” lightly, but I invite you to join us on January 7th at 7:00 pm via Zoom to watch the installation. I will be opening the Zoom call at 6:30 to give the opportunity for prospects to ask any questions and so I can find out what Santa brought you.

To RSVP and receive the Zoom meeting link please contact WB Pablo Colomban

For our second “meeting” in January, Right Worshipful Brother Ray Dunn, who is currently the Senior Grand Warden of the Grand Lodge is going to join us virtually to give us a talk on leadership. The details for this meeting will also be sent out at a later date.

The current status of things in our Country and State are not very conducive to having our normal meetings, but hopefully, things will continue to improve. In the meantime, I will be working to try to create opportunities for us to enjoy fellowship. Whether virtually or being together in person. This is definitely not the way I wanted to start my year in the East, but we’ll be working to make the best of it.

As always, I greatly appreciate all of you and look forward to seeing you soon!

WM Michael Rotert

November 2020 Trestleboard

Pablo Colomban Events, Master's Message, Trestleboard Tagged

Revised October 30th, 2020

October has been a great month for Denver Freemasonry!  At our first stated communication, we initiated three new brothers in our fraternity.  Many thanks go out to the brethren that participated in the degree work that made the evening a success!  On October 10th we held a charity 5K Run/Walk and Food Drive at Sloan’s Lake in the beautiful fall weather.  Almost 20 brethren, prospects, and family participated and we collected 430 pounds of non-perishable food that we donated to Soldier’s Angels, a non-profit organization that distributes food to needy veterans.  The bulk of Soldier’s Angels work comes around the holidays, so stay tuned for another volunteer opportunity for us to donate our time to help this worthy cause.  I want to recognize Brother Tim McDowell for his efforts putting together the event and finding the veterans charities for us to support this year!  At our second stated communication, we voted on amendments to the Denver #5 by-laws.  Five amendments passed and one was withdrawn so that the Scholarship and Education Committee could refine the amendment and resubmit it to the lodge.

We continue to have an average of 10 prospective members at each of our dinners, which means we’ll have several more initiations to perform over the next 6 months.  That also means we have a great need for brethren to volunteer additional time to be mentors for these new members as they journey through the degrees.  Our posting program continues to be one of the best Denver; however, it takes a lot of time to teach and mentor and the more seasoned Masons we have that can volunteer some time on Wednesday nights, or even to do phone posting, the more we can take off the shoulders of the Posting Committee.  Please contact James Bechtel if you’re interested in helping out with posting.

Due to the increased Covid-19 restrictions, we must wistfully transition our meetings to virtual format for the month of November. We will continue to monitor the situation and transition back to in-person meetings as soon as possible.

Our next virtual communication is on November 5, 2020 at 7:30 pm via Zoom.  This lodge meeting is our annual Heritage Night celebrating the first lodge meeting held in Denver on November 3, 1858.  We will have a guest speaker, WB Patrick Dey, who will be giving a presentation on MW Lawrence N. Greenleaf who was Worshipful Master of Denver #5 in 1866, 1868, and 1869, and Grand Master of Colorado in 1880.  Please RSVP to receive the Zoom meeting information.

Our second virtual communication is on November 19, 2020 at 7:30 pm via Zoom.  Stay tuned for more information.  Please RSVP to receive the Zoom meeting information.

Posting in person will be on a limited basis in order to comply with current restrictions.  Please contact James Bechtel for scheduling.

I pray the Grand Architect of the Universe will guide us through these uncertain times and return us to normal in the near future.

Fraternally,

Kevin Trabert
Worshipful Master
Denver Lodge #5 A.F. & A.M