2011 Annual Communication Opens in Winston-Salem

WINSTON-SALEM — Grand Master Lewis R. Ledford will preside as 2011 Annual Communication opens in Winston-Salem. The 224th annual meeting of the Grand Lodge of Ancient Free and Accepted Masons of North Carolina is scheduled for September 23–24. The communication will be at the Twin City Quarter here, the same hotel we have used last few years. It will be the headquarters hotel, the site of all committee meetings, and Grand Lodge business sessions. The hotel is large enough to house all delegates to the communication. Participants at previous communications held here enjoyed having everything on one site. It will be a great chance to enjoy a classic convention atmosphere, with everyone spending a couple of days in close proximity. You are encouraged to bring a large delegation from your lodge, share a suite or two, and enjoy the fellowship and fun.

While every Mason in the state is invited, only the master and wardens of your lodge, or their official proxies, may vote during business sessions. They’ll join the same officers of the other lodges around the state. The other votes come from committeemen and officers of the Grand Lodge and its districts.

Workshops and committee meetings held before the official sessions will be at the Twin City Quarter on Thursday, September 22. The Lodge Secretary’s Workshop will be held there that Thursday afternoon at 2:00 P.M.

All voting sessions will be held in the Twin City Quarter’s Grand Pavilion Friday and Saturday, September 23–24. Lodge officers are asked to bring and wear their aprons for all business sessions. Your dues card and the pass will be necessary to enter business sessions.

Please do not mail your credentials to the Grand Lodge office. You must present them at the registration desk to receive ballots and other essential information. You may register at the main lobby on Thursday and outside the Grand Pavilion on Friday and Saturday mornings. In order to vote, you must have your credentials, and you must register. Again, do not return your credentials to the Grand Lodge office.

Grand Master Ledford will open the first session at 10:00 A.M. on Friday morning. That’s when you’ll see the formal opening and welcoming of special guests. Grand Orator A. B. Swindell IV will make the keynote address. The rest of the morning, a number of reports will be read and others submitted for the record without reading.

Downtown Winston-Salem has lots of restaurants, so you can find a place you like for the lunch break within easy walking distance of the hall.

A memorial service for those Masons who died in the past year will follow the call from refreshment to labor. The Grand Master’s Report is next. Other reports will also be received. Some voting will take place on Friday afternoon.

Plan to spend Friday evening with friends and Brothers. Grand Master Ledford and his wife Susan are hosting a charity fundraiser one block from the hotel at the Millennium Center. There, you can enjoy barbecue from five-time Pig Jig People’s Choice winners Big Boy BBQ and bluegrass music. Any profits from the casual event will go to the NC Masonic Foundation which supports Masonic charity in the state. For you late-night types, there are several restaurants and night spots along the streets around the hotel to spend your evening.

Business resumes on Saturday morning at 9:00 A.M. when the last day of the session opens. That’s when more proposed amendments and resolutions will be considered. An analysis of those proposals starts on page one of this issue of The North Carolina Mason. We will also adopt a budget for the year. We will elect Grand Lodge officers. Business is generally concluded around lunch time.

To reach the Twin City Quarter take the Cherry Street exit off I-40 Business and go four blocks north. The hotel is taking reservations now. Their toll-free reservation number is (800) 320-0934. Be sure to specify that you are with the Masonic Grand Lodge so you may get our special rate.

Come to Annual Communication this year for the fun of it. Bring a Masonic buddy with you. We hope to see you there!

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