Paul Szmal: I'd like to welcome in Casey MacDonald. I know, Casey, you've been here before, but first time you and I have had a chance to chat. Good morning. What fun.
Guest: Great, Paul. Good to see you.
Paul Szmal: Yes. Very good to have you on board. So before we get into the 250th celebration that the Geneva Archmasons are doing, I wanted to get a little background for people who may not be familiar with the organization on what it is and what it's about.
Guest: Well, the Masons go back many centuries. In Geneva alone, 1807. 219 years we'll be celebrating this particular year in September. So we've been a part of the community for a long time. It's a fraternal organization. So these are men basically hanging out with men in friendship and brotherly love and helping out the community where we see the need.
Paul Szmal: And what kind of projects do you work on community-wise?
Guest: Well, we just did a blood drive on Juneteenth for the celebration, commemoration of that event, reminding people that 320,000 white soldiers and 40,000 black soldiers all died fighting for the Union Army and bringing freedom to all of us. So to me, it felt like a good idea to put a blood drive together for that. Everybody bleeds red. So give red blood.
Paul Szmal: Yes. And it was a very successful event. And that we did just on June 12th, we did. That was a fun event. Okay. So what was the impetus of putting together an event for the 4th of July?
Guest: Well, we heard the city of Geneva didn't have any money to put on an event. They weren't planning on doing anything. So I said to my brothers, let's step to the plate and do something because it is the 250th. It's not one of these ordinary years. This is kind of an extraordinary time. I graduated high school in 1976. So I guess I have a bit of that patriotic bug because we had plenty of that going on at the 200th.
Paul Szmal: Oh, yeah. I vaguely remember that.
Guest: Oh, you were a little boy at the time.
Paul Szmal: Yeah. I was six years old when that happened.
Guest: Oh, I see. Okay. All right. But I still remember all the TV specials and the fireworks and everything that was happening and that kind of stuff.
Paul Szmal: So what is on the docket and when?
Guest: Well, let's start with the when first. The when. Yeah. Well, let's start with the where. Okay. The Lakefront Gazebo that is still being erected as we speak. But regardless, we will be at that location, which is right across from the Visitor Center in Geneva. It will be July 4th from 4 to 6 p.m. And we're featuring a brass band. The Andy Stobie Brass Band is a wonderful musician and bringing a nice crew of musicians to the event, playing songs throughout the history of the United States. And intermixed with that will be various historical speeches. The Gettysburg Address, for instance.
Paul Szmal: Oh, nice.
Guest: A reading of the Declaration of Independence. The entire declaration will be read. I Have a Dream will be read. The inaugural speech of JFK, ask not what your country can do for you. And many other ones will be there. The Colossus, the new Colossus from the Statue of Liberty. So it's going to be along with some sing-alongs, some patriotic songs, you know, from the mountains to the prairies. You know, all of us hopefully can refresh our appreciation for the blessed country that we live in. And that's the whole spirit of the event. It's going to be about two hours. Perfect for the family. We have some food vendors coming down. It's going to be a good time for everybody. Music, upbeat, historical speeches, sing-alongs, and a few other surprises. And it's early enough that if you want to go out and see fireworks somewhere on the 4th of July, you've got plenty of time to do that. That doesn't usually start till 9, 930. So get where you need to go.
Paul Szmal: Yeah, you can make a full day out of it.
Guest: You could, you could. Absolutely. And I want to stress this event is free, open to the public.
Paul Szmal: Is indeed, yes. Yes. And there are going to be food trucks there for food and beverage.
Guest: That's right. So there'll be lots of victuals. And Geneva Fire Department is bringing down that big flag. They're going to hang for a bit of the show.
Paul Szmal: Oh, oh, is that the one that got off the ladder?
Guest: Yes, that's right. That's right. Okay. So it's really kind of nice. It's kind of nice to see people stepping to the plate. Various businesses, sponsoring us. And, you know, it's, it is a community event.
Paul Szmal: Yeah. And because it's a community event, there's a, there's a, there's a spirit of giving and celebration. It's not an obligation for anybody to do, but it is something to reflect on. If you want to give a shout out to the businesses that are helping out by all means.
Guest: Well, Joe Hesney is one of our brothers and he's doing a big amount of work to Hesney's auction to help us out. You know, David Locke has Locke's Glen, which is one of the preeminent bed and breakfasts in the area. I have an art studio in Romulus called Hot Art Studios. I'm also sponsoring the event and we're still just getting all those finalizations of the other businesses that are going to be joining us and helping us move this along.
Paul Szmal: So how long did it take for this event to come together?
Guest: Well, it's really been kind of a rushed little timeframe here. You know, we learned about it maybe two months ago. Finally, we got a banner that's hanging across Seneca street in Geneva, of course, just in time for the tornado to come through and try to knock it down. And we got flyers that went out around the Juneteenth promotion time too. So everything was about the beginning of June. But if this is something that we repeat every year, we'll have a little bit of a headstart for next year's event. And from a logistical standpoint, if you don't realize it, two months really is not a lot of time to try to coordinate and put something like this together.
Paul Szmal: Well, fortunately, I live a 30 hour day, so I'm able to do what I need to do.
Guest: Right.
Paul Szmal: So the Masons decided to take the lead on this. Are there any other events that the Masons are planning on doing the balance of the year or fundraising events?
Guest: Well, I believe that we're really doing a lot of things at the lodge right now. We just got a grant. We're working on our library and we want to dedicate it most likely to DeWitt Clinton, who was a very famous Mason in New York state, responsible for the Erie Canal, which really brought so much economic benefit to the Finger Lakes as well as to the state entirely. He was the governor of the state and a great Mason. So we're trying to get that library together and we're putting in hopefully a pavilion at our location also with a nice fire pit. So these are things that we're going to do and hopefully have a public event in early September at the anniversary of our organization.
Paul Szmal: Yeah. How many years?
Guest: 207.
Paul Szmal: Wow. I know. Just getting started. And for people that don't know, where is the Masonic Lodge here in Geneva?
Guest: We're on North Exchange Street, 94 North Exchange Street. Okay. Plus we're just, again, getting together some website presence. GenevaMasons.org will bring you into our current world of information.
Paul Szmal: Excellent. Excellent. Now, if somebody wants to become a member of the Masons and join the fraternal order, how does that process work?
Guest: Well, basically, if you're over 18 and believe in God, then find a Mason and ask.
Paul Szmal: Okay. All right. So we're going to be at that event. You can go to our GenevaMasons.org and ask and say, you know what? This sounds interesting. I think it's really worthwhile. To familiarize ourselves with the principles and the history and, frankly, the men that make up the Geneva Lodge, because it's a great group of people, doctors, lawyers, mechanics, firemen, the full spectrum. And the type of fellowship is kind of unique. It being a fraternal organization, man to man, you know, keeping each other's secrets, knowing each other's problems and successes, sharing that information with each other. It's very, very rewarding and kind of unique in this world where there's so many activities that pull us away from genuine fellowship. And then there's the component of the events that you do, the fundraisers that you do and those type of activities. And because you're drawing such a wide variety of people in, that really, I think, makes it, I don't know if it makes it easier, but certainly having that wide variety of people involved, you know, does it make it easier to do community events?
Guest: Well, you know what it is? The Masonic way are these principles and concepts that are centuries old. And what I find is it increases my capacity to do many things. The more time I spend involving myself with the various memorizations or activities associated with Masonic activity, the more time I seem to have in the day. That's why I say I live a 30-hour day because there's a lot of time that's redeemed. How much time do we waste? You know, you think about it, the game shows or who knows what, and we're sitting around. And the neat thing is, I mean, a lot of our members are older. These guys, some of them are 80 years old and up and doing things and active and relevant in the community. It's fantastic. And for younger men, it's more of a challenge than people think. You know, this is not a gimme. This is an organization that does scrutinize the people that apply for membership. We do a background check and all that kind of stuff. But then we do require certain things for people to do. You know, we require them to memorize certain principles and to recite them, you know, because there is a moral component. There's a building character component, redeeming the day, in essence, being useful to God. You know, and we refer to it as a stone, as a rough ashlar, we call it. So when they used to do buildings, they would have to smooth off the surfaces so that the stone could be used properly. And all of us need to get some of our edges knocked off. And I imagine that's probably where the name Masons comes from.
Paul Szmal: It does. It comes from the operative Masons. The operative Masons were the guys that built all the cathedrals. And it goes all the way back to King Solomon's time. So the medieval guilds have a rich history in Masonic lore, and they had certain ways to secretly know what someone's rank was in the Masons. And then it became speculative from operative to speculative of more of a philosophical moral building than actually working with mud, working with stone, and working with chisels. And that was in the early 1700s in England, where it became more publicly known. There are some times when, you know, Masons were completely secretive, and you weren't quite sure who a Mason was and who wasn't. But over time, now it's become more and more of a public organization. We still have our secrets, and those are beautiful, you know. In other words, that adds value to relationships, to be able to speak to each other in confidence.
Guest: The event again is coming up on the 4th of July. It is at the Gazebo on the Geneva Lakefront from 4 until 6, free and open to the public with a little bit of music and a little bit of history. Gonna be a blast and a half.
Paul Szmal: Yeah, absolutely. Casey, thank you so much for coming in and sharing with us. What a joy, Paul. Thank you, brother.
