Masonic Angel Fund News Articles

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MASONIC ANGEL FOUNDATION UPDATE - June 18, 2001

In this issue: "She Sings Like an Angel" * Joint Campership Sponsors *
MAF Hits the Airwaves * MAF Leads the Way * Summer Enrichment Program
Sponsors

 

"SHE SINGS LIKE AN ANGEL"
 Several months ago we reported on the Universal Lodge Masonic Angel Fund's
scholarship to a handicapped child's voice lessons at a local performing
arts program. We are pleased to report that this intelligent, talented
young lady just participated in a state voice competition and ranked near
the top of the group. 

The girl in question was confined to a wheelchair since birth.
Intelligent and "feisty", she has not allowed her disability to prevent
her doing anything she desires.

She has reached a stage in her physical development where the time had
come to teach her to walk with braces. Knowing that the music competition
was coming, this intrepid young lady made a decision that she would stand
for her performance. Through some very challenging therapy, this girl met
her goal and stood unassisted when she performed at the music competition.

By the way, in the words of the Academy's artistic director, "She sings
like an angel."

 
CAMPERSHIPS AT MARINE AND DeWITT CLINTON LODGES
 We are pleased to hear that the Masonic Angel Funds at Marine Lodge
(Falmouth,MA) and DeWitt Clinton Lodge (Sandwich, MA) have joined forces
to offer camperships to several worthy children in their communities. The
total value of the joint campership package is approximately $3,000.

Why would an MAF send a child to summer camp? For one thing, when a child
is a summer camp we know that youngster is supervised and safe. One of
the reasons that the whole "campership" concept evolved about twenty years
ago "in these parts" is because so many "latch-key kids" were literally
alone and unsupervised during the summer months. 

We congratulate Marine and DeWitt for joining forces on this important
project. Read on later in this broadcast for information about the
Universal Lodge MAF's involvement in a summer enrichment program at their
local elementary school.

 

 MAF HITS THE AIRWAVES
 Recently the Foundation's advisory board chairman, R.W. Southard
Lippincott, was a guest on the "Jordan Levy Program", an
afternoon-drive-time talk show on Worcester radio station WTAG. Southard
spoke most effectively about the Masonic Angel Fund and "threw down the
gauntlet" to the Lodges in Central Massachusetts to get started with this
powerful community service program.

Click here to hear Southard speak on MAF, as well as to hear Grand
Master Fred Bauer and others who were featured on that same program. Bro.
Jordan Levy is a former mayor of Worcester, MA and was kind enough to
devote an entire program to Masons and their charity work.

We should note here that the "webcast" of this radio program was made
possible through some very hard work on the part of our webmaster Mario
Mere. Mario has endeavored to make our web site a showpiece in Masonic
web wizardry. In the future, video and audio will be posted on the web
site from all important Foundation activities. This will include an
entire webcast of community speaking engagements by Foundation officers -
so that members of constituent MAF's can use that material for their own
public speaking events.
 
MAF LEADS THE WAY
 The Universal Lodge Masonic Angel Fund (Orleans, MA) recently received a
very special letter from the Nauset Consolidated Preschool Program.
Universal had provided the first portion of the tuition for a profoundly
disabled child and her mother to attend a program for families of children
with a particular disability. The nurse and preschool coordinated then
took Universal's initial donation and approached several other community
groups, asking if they would "follow the Masons' lead". In the letter
received last week, the program staff thanked the "Masonic Angels" for
setting the example and leading the way for other community groups to
support this very special child. 

We would like to think that deeds like this by our Masonic Angel Funds
will go a long way to making Masonry what it once was - a recognized
leader in community-based benevolence. Such recognition begets
membership...
 
SUMMER ENRICHMENT PROGRAM
 One of our Masonic Angel Funds was approached two weeks ago by the staff
of their local afterschool enrichment program. It seems that during the
summer months the afterschool program becomes the "summer enrichment
program" at the local elementary school. Essentially, the summer is
identical to the afterschool program except that it runs all day and
provides more outdoor activities in addition to the usual indoor
educational and cultural programs. The cost for this program is about $50
per week per child.

The MAF in question committed at least $1,000 to "scholarships" for
certain children to attend the summer program. In most cases, the weekly
tuition is beyond the financial reach of the parents. The MAF's
scholarship subsidizes a co-payment made by each family. The amount of
the co-payment is determined by the school staff on the basis of the
family's ability to pay.

As we said above regarding the Falmouth/Sandwich camperships, these summer
programs ensure that a child is safe and supervised. The school-operated
summer programs add a very nice educational benefit to traditional "day
camp" activities.

We encourage you to speak with your local school officials to learn if
they need your help funding summer program tuition.