By Most Worshipful Grand Master of Masons in Wisconsin, Brother Joseph E. Thompson
Annual Communication Address
Good Morning Brethren!
What a wonderful day it is to be a Freemason! I hope everyone enjoyed themselves last evening! It is such an honor to be stranding before you all! Words cannot express how humble I feel! This ensuing Masonic year is going to be filled with fun, education, and Brotherly Love! If you don’t know, let it be known, “I am a Traditionalist.” That being said, it doesn’t mean we are going to turn the hands of time backwards. It means we need to be inspired by our history and secure our Heritage. It is my goal to teach our newly made Brothers the basics of Freemasonry. Each and everyone of us knelt at the altar and took an obligation to become a better man. Everyone who witnessed this obligation also took an obligation to assure that we make this newly made Mason a better man. Education is the key to this success.
When I went to a training seminar sponsored by Shriners International, I remember being asked, “How many of you have ever had a box of Cracker Jacks?” I don’t know about you, but when I was a kid, I didn’t like Cracker Jacks; we only got the box of Cracker Jacks for the PRIZE inside. Please take a moment to think about this. Why are we unable to retain membership? Could part of the problem be, we are not providing them with the PRIZE inside? Could it be that we have not fulfilled our obligations to the candidates?
This is where I believe we can make a difference. We need to become better MENTORS within our Lodges. Everyone of us should be a mentor. We should not depend on certain members of our Lodges to mentor all the candidates. Educating the newly made Mason is critical! If we place that newly made Mason on a shelf and never teach him how to make himself better, he will not receive any value of what it means to be a Mason, and he will leave the Lodge.
First off, in some cases, we need to educate ourselves. We need to learn the basic information about Freemasonry and how it will assist us in forming our values to become a better man. Without knowing what our goals are we cannot achieve them.
We will be developing 3-to-5-minute educational articles to better understand our foundation of Freemasonry. Our Education Committee has done a great job with this in the past by developing a booklet called: Masonic Education in 10 Minutes. This is a great read available online at the Square Store. It is my hope by providing small clips of Education we will help members retain the message better than giving a 20-to-30-minute speech on the same topic.
With a better understanding of Freemasonry and firming our Masonic Foundation, we can hopefully ensure better retention. In as much, I have yet another proposal. Any Freemason in good standing with 50 years or more of Service to the Craft that falls upon a “hardship” and cannot pay his dues, the Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons of Wisconsin will remit that Brother’s per capita. Therefore, every Mason with 50 years or more of service will remain in good standings.
I believe with this initiative; we will help the Lodges retain their membership and not cause the Lodge a “hardship” by needing to pay the per capita for our Brother in need.
I was approached by a Brother who, along with others, requested an opportunity to create a ritual competition. Years ago, as some of you may recall, we did hold Degree Competitions throughout the state. Although this request currently will consist of just one District, we plan to expand this effort statewide. You will hear more about this from Brothers Ryan Thiele and Eric Pantano.
This is a small portion of Education, which hopefully, will develop into Lodge retention. As our Brothers learn our ritual, they will receive value in Freemasonry. Perhaps this will encourage them to learn a lecture, a charge, or take an active part in a degree. Building VALUE!
Our Membership Committee has done an amazing job over the past several years! At the Conference of Grand Masters of North America, Wisconsin Freemasonry leads the Nation in setting up online membership, education, and online petitions. Many jurisdictions are learning from us and setting up their Grand Lodge Memberships using Wisconsin Freemasonry as an example. This certainly should make you PROUD of being a Wisconsin Freemason!
But we can’t stop here. We need to refine our goals and continue to review how we can get better results at a reduced cost in doing so. It is my goal to have Membership work hand in hand with our Education Committee to accomplish this task. Imagine if you would please – “An effective Membership Program supported by an effective Education Committee!” What a concept!
Your Grand Lodge Officer Team has committed to me to work together to obtain this GOAL! We will work together to produce the necessary tools for the lodges throughout the state to better understand the foundation of Freemasonry and build better values in Wisconsin Freemasonry!
I also have a Goal to work hand in hand with our Appendant Bodies and our Youth Groups. We all need each other. If we can combine our efforts, together we will accomplish this task! Our Appendant Bodies need us for their membership and by working with our Appendant Bodies they can assist us with potential membership. Needless to say, we ALL need our Youth Groups! They are our Future! I would encourage each of you to support our Youth Groups. If your community doesn’t have a Masonic Youth Group, please look for youth groups within your community to support.
Another area we will be reviewing is our current website to enhance the ability to become more user friendly as many of us are not all that computer literate. Your Grand Lodge Officer Team has the ability to make this happen and I could not be any PROUDER of this TEAM!
In closing, my Brothers, my goal is to make this a year of fellowship, learning, and stronger Brotherly Love.
I promise, from the bottom of my heart, to do the very best I can!
Thank you,
Joe Thompson
Grand Master, 2026-2027
