Newsletter from the Grand Secretary
Hollis G. Dixon, Grand Secretary
February 2007
PROPOSED 2007-2008 BUDGET: Enclosed with this Newsletter is a copy of the proposed Grand Lodge Budget for 2007-2008, as approved by the Grand Lodge Finance Committee. This proposal includes a 10% increase in the Per Capita Tax. This budget will be presented at the 188th Annual Session of the Grand Lodge of Maine in May of 2007. Please provide copies of it to the top three officers of your lodge, as well as the Proxy when he is elected in April, for their perusal. You should also ensure that the members of the lodge have an opportunity to review it in order that they may have input to your voting members prior to the Annual Session.
CANDIDATES FOR GRAND LODGE OFFICE: Any Brother that is thinking of submitting his name as a candidate for an elective Grand Lodge office should be aware that the deadline for submitting his intent to run for office is March 15, 2007. Should you decide to run for office you must submit a letter of intent to the Grand Secretary by March 15th. If your Blue Lodge endorses you as a candidate, they should provide you with a letter to that effect. The letter should contain your Personal and Masonic Biography and should be mailed by you or your lodge to all lodges, Grand Lodge officers and Permanent Members of Grand Lodge. To do this you can order a set of mailing labels from Grand Lodge. As a candidate, the expense of the mailing is entirely yours.
COMMITTEE REPORTS: Every Grand Lodge Committee is required to submit a report annually. The deadline for that report is April 1st each year. Grand Lodge does provide the Chairman with paper for the report to be drawn on. However, I would highly recommend that the Chairman arrange to have the report done on a computer in a Word Format and submit it either electronically or on a Floppy Disk. If we receive the report in written form we will scan it into our computer for the Annual Proceedings. If we receive it on a disk we can download it and it saves the Staff at Grand Lodge a great deal of time.
APPRAISALS: Appraisals of the Josiah Hayden Drummond Library and the Maine Masonic Museum here at Grand Lodge have been completed and will be utilized by our Insurance Committee to make sure that Insurance coverage for all Grand Lodge property is adequate. Additionally, that Committee is negotiating with at least two Insurance Companies for a new Blanket Liability Policy to cover all Masonic Lodges in Maine. It would replace the current policy, which covers only activities that take place during tiled Masonic meetings. The goal is to provide a policy, which would cover all of the activities that our lodges now allow in their lodge halls. It would eliminate the necessity for lodges to carry their own Liability Policies. All they would need is property coverage. Separate Insurance Coverage for activities involving liquor consumption on lodge premises would probably be made available to interested lodges for a reasonable amount.
Hollis G. Dixon
Grand Secretary
[Home] [Welcome] [Grand Lodge] [Maine Lodges] [Resources] [Joining Freemasonry] [Search]
