By Bryce L. Fransway, District 2 Deputy
I am very happy to announce that the District 2 Masonic Acts of Kindness Gala that took place on February 8 at the Historic Eau Claire Masonic Center was a massive success! We were very blessed to have over 100 people sign up to attend this year. As many of you may know we hit a slight snag with the weather and the snow accumulation that day, but so many amazing and generous people pushed through the snow to attend and have an amazing time. Thanks to the incredible generosity of all who attended and our dozens of sponsors we were able to raise just short of $8000 for Grand Master Thomas W. Stevens’ Grand Master’s Appeal and Masonic Acts of Kindness!
The evening started out with our welcoming committee greeting guests by the door and showing them to their seats and explaining all the wonderful opportunities they will have to support Masonic Acts of Kindness and the Wisconsin State Patrol. This ranged from our spread of raffle baskets, a wine pull where for a small fee you would win a bottle of wine at random, and of course a unique selection of silent auction items that included home appliances, trip packages, a custom Masonic bourbon enthusiasts kit, and sports memorabilia from several major sports teams.
We also had a special drawing for bottle #2 of a custom labeled and distilled barrel Masonic Rye Whiskey that many of the Brothers at Eau Claire Lodge No. 112 used as a fundraiser to promote their charitable goals. This bottle was very special because it was of course #2 of 214 bottles, but also because it was signed by the distiller and our Grand Master Thomas W. Stevens. Also, thanks for the sale of those bottles Eau Claire Lodge 112 was able to present our Grand Master with a check for $1500 for his appeal to equip the State Patrol with the emergency jump bags.
Pictured at the top of the article, Brother Jay Gebert, Master, presents Grand Master Thomas W. Stevens an additional check in the amount of $1500 toward the Grand Master’s Appeal from Eau Claire Lodge No. 112. From left: Grand Master Stevens, Master Jay Gebert, Grand Lecturer Lester C. Paulson, Matt Chromey, G. Flethcher Smith, Lyle Koerner, Wayne Franson, Nick Koerner, Tim Buckley, Mike Abernathy, Rod Anderson, Steve Lasure and Tim Cree.
Of course, we cannot forget the amazing meal by Brother Dave Tainter. He put together a colossal surf & turf feast, with tons of delicious appetizers and sides to be enjoyed by all. Trust me when I say that no one left hungry that night! After a short program following dinner, Grand Master Stevens was able to make a direct appeal to the crowd and educate them on all the good Masonic Acts of Kindness the Wisconsin Masonic Foundation has done in our communities, he also read a letter from the CEO of Fire Suppression Solutions, the company that makes the FSTs we donate, thanking all those in attendance and the Freemasons of Wisconsin for the good they do in our communities. The evening closed with several hours of good conversations, comradery, philanthropy, and amazing music from our live band “The Cutaways”.
I want to send out a very special thank you to all those who assisted on the committee to make this gala happen and make it an amazing success these last two years. I especially want to thank Brother Dave Tainter for all his hard work and delicious food. Thank you to the Chippewa Valley DeMolay Chapter and their advisors for their help clearing plates and washing dishes as a Masonic service project. Thank you to all who attended and I am very excited to see you again next year where we will strive to be bigger and better than ever!
