By JOSHUA THOMAS

C-S-E Editor

ST. JOHNSVILLE — As they do every third Sunday of the month, the St. Johnsville Masonic Lodge #611 held a spaghetti dinner this past weekend to bring in funds to heat the massive Bridge St. building, which contains many grand spaces, including the dining and event hall where people enjoy their meals, and a massive, opulent upstairs meeting room.

“We’re a benevolent association, and whenever someone is in need, to the best of our ability we help them,” said Senior Warden William Farber, who also acts as president of the group’s non-profit incorporation, explaining that while November’s spaghetti supper was originally slated to bring in money for heat, the Masons decided at the last minute to give the proceeds to fire victim Pat Clark, who lost his home only days before the event.

“Pat got burned out and he needed the money more,” said Farber, noting that although the Masons were thrilled to be able to help Clark in his time of need, as giving is the first order of business in their organization, the decision “depleted our funds”.

It’s easy to understand why it’s necessary to hold monthly dinners to pay for amenities such as heat upon viewing the second floor of the facility. Unbeknownst to many diners, just up the curved staircase off the center hallway, guarded over by an all-seeing-eye, is a grand meeting room lined with regal, throne-like wooden chairs for ranking officials, at the center of which is a raised pulpit where a Holy Bible sits.

The meeting space has high ceilings, which are lined with ornate stained glass windows, each dedicated in memory of an individual. At the head of the room, just over the Master’s chair, which is flanked by seats for the secretary and treasurer, is a stained glass window adorned with a capital “G”, which Farber explained stands for “geometry,” as “ancient masons considered geometry the basis of all science.”

Just outside the meeting room on the wall are antique artifacts, including a gavel, the head of which is made with stone from the quarries of Jerusalem. Adorning the wall are photographs of past Masters of the lodge, including the lodge’s first Master, Charles Buckingham, in a photo dated 1866.

Farber noted that in the instance the lodge comes up short in heating costs, the bible is retrieved from the upstairs meeting room and the group congregates in a downstairs space off the main hallway.

“We work hard, but we work through it,” said Farber of the monthly dinners. While attendance and earnings can sometimes be unpredictable during the winter months, the food, said Farber, is consistently great. “We put on good meals,” he said, explaining that each month’s meal also serves as a means for attendees to bring in collection items. During Sunday’s dinner, the Masons collected dog food for the Ayres Animal Shelter, as the need increased with the addition of dogs recently seized from an alleged Minden puppy mill. In November, the Masons collected enough food to feed 15 local families a full Thanksgiving dinner, which they do annually with assistance from the school system.

The Masons also hold weekly breakfasts, every Monday from 6:30-8:30 a.m., which are for members and invited guests of members, to raise money to put directly into the group’s 501c3 Masonic Charities Fund.

The St. Johnsville Masonic Lodge members, which currently number at 58, with the average age being 63, are already busy making plans for 2013. Aside from planning monthly meals, which are two-day affairs in terms of the preparation process, they’re planning to hold a garage sale during Springfest. They’re also hoping to acquire grant funding to help with the replacement of their current furnace, which Farber said is “old and not very efficient.”

Once the furnace has been taken care of, and depending on available grant funding, the Masons would also like to restore a four-lane bowling alley located in the basement of the facility, which Farber said they hope to open at some point for a regularly scheduled kids’ bowling day.

Plans are also in the pipeline for a 2015 celebration, which will be held in honor of the building’s 100th year in existence. “The building of a building for Masons is an important thing,” Farber commented, noting that he’s already sent a request to the Grand Lodge located in New York City for Grand Line officers to make a visit, which needs to be done about two years in advance, even though the Grand Line will contain a different lineup than the current one in 2015.

Farber also said that the lodge is hoping to accept some new, younger members into the fold, although he noted that recruiting new members isn’t always  necessarily an easy process. Potential members are supposed to approach the group, and Farber said that in recruiting new members, the integrity of the organization is top priority. “Our standards are high and we want to keep them that way,” he said, explaining that “To be a Mason, you’re judged by the man that’s within, and not the man that’s without.” The induction process includes a committee screening, and any potential inductee requires three references along with a recommendation, with signature, from a member.

When you see a Mason, you need to know you’re looking at a good, honest person, said Farber, reiterating one of the organization’s old sayings, “We take in good men and make them better.”

The next dinner at the Masonic Lodge will take place the third Sunday in February, Sunday, Feb. 17, from 3-6 p.m. A full meal is always $8, and Farber assured potential attendees, “We put out great food. There’s a good atmosphere here, and you won’t go away hungry.”