The May 2023 Trestleboard is available here:

May 2023 Trestleboard

The April 2023 Trestleboard is available here:

2023-04 AFL Trestleboard

The March 2023 Trestleboard is available here:
2023-03 AFL Trestleboard

The print-ready Trestleboard for February, 2023, is available here:

February 2023 Trestleboard

Brothers and friends, our Masonic year is now well underway, and we find ourselves in the honored position of conferring the Degrees of Masonry on several brethren. Already this year, we have initiated three new Entered Apprentices in Brothers Robert Kaleta, Mark Collins, and Igor Drizik; and raised two brothers – Christopher Benz and Robert Seitelman – to the Sublime Degree of Master Mason. It has been an extremely busy January, and I could not be prouder of the work our officers and degree teams have done. In addition to that, I’m quite proud of the hard work our Fellowcrafts have put into their proficiencies to qualify for their Third Degrees.

In the month of February, we will continue to raise Master Masons, as Brothers Mick McNulty, Weston Wheatley, Cody Wilbur, and Raymond Franklin will all be ascending to the Third Degree in their turn. Please keep an eye on the lodge calendar and join us if you’re able. 

Please don’t wait to register for the Crab Feed, happening Saturday, February 18, at 5pm! Registration ends February 10, so sign up while you can! And if you have donations to offer for our Silent Auction, please contact Bro. Mark Williams, Sr. Deacon, at srdeacon@acalanesfellowshiplodge.com. Your donations are sincerely appreciated.

Next month, the events keep coming. At our March 7 Stated Meeting, we will be honoring two worthy brothers with the Golden Veterans Award, celebrating 50 years of Masonic service. Join us as we present this well-deserved award to Worshipful Jay B. Williams, Past Master of this lodge in 1975, and Brother Richard Snowden. You can RSVP to join us for dinner that evening at AcalanesMarchGoldenVeterans.eventbrite.com.

On the evening of Saturday, March 11, we will be hosting a Master Masons Festive Board in collaboration with our brothers from Orinda Lodge. This will be a great opportunity to focus on the unique work of the Third Degree with fellow Master Masons.

Finally, please don’t wait to register for the Crab Feed, happening Saturday, February 18, at 5pm! Registration ends February 10, so sign up while you can! And if you have donations to offer for our Silent Auction, please contact Bro. Mark Williams, Sr. Deacon, at srdeacon@acalanesfellowshiplodge.com. Your donations are sincerely appreciated.

Fraternally yours,

Bob Strohmeyer, PM
Master

The print-ready January 2023 Trestleboard goes out today. Check your email or download it here:

2023-01 AFL Trestleboard

Happy New Year, brothers and friends. I hope the holiday season has treated you all well, and that the new year brings you prosperity and good health. 

We have a big year ahead of us at Acalanes Fellowship, and we’re already well into the swing of Masonic activity, preparing to confer degrees, getting ready for our annual crab feed fundraiser, and looking forward to a calendar full of great events.

Among all the things we’ll be doing this year, we’ll be celebrating the 70th anniversary of one of our three constituent founding lodges: Acalanes Lodge #723 was formed in 1953, and held its first meetings at Acalanes High School here in Lafayette. So, while our original charter as Fellowship Lodge #480 is now 103 years old, it is good to remember the history of all the lodges that came together to create Acalanes Fellowship, and mark this particular milestone with pride.

On the morning of Saturday, January 7, we’ll initiate three new brothers into our Craft. We sent out an invitation to all Masons on our mailing list, but if you would like to join us, please RSVP here beforehand. 

As soon as we finish this weekend’s initiation, we’ll transition to conferring Third Degrees upon six brothers who made tremendous progress in their Masonic journey last year. Look for announcements of these degrees in the weeks ahead, with the first of them happening on Saturday, January 28th, and a steady cadence going into March. All Master Masons in good standing are encouraged to attend.

On Saturday, February 18th, at 5pm, we’ll have our annual crab feed fundraiser, to be held at Orinda Masonic Center again this year. Space is limited, but tickets are available now. Don’t wait to register and join the fun! (And as ever, we’re looking for volunteers to help with everything from setup to cooking to running the front of house. So please reach out to me if you’re able to help.)

We’ve come a long way since the quiet, online-only days of the pandemic, and our lodge is now active and vibrant again. More than a dozen new members have joined our ranks since the pandemic began, and more than half of them have progressed in their degree work already. It’s truly a pleasure to see Acalanes Fellowship so vibrant and full of activity. If you haven’t made it to lodge in a while, I hope you’ll come join us for a meeting or a degree soon.

Robert S. Strohmeyer, PM
Master

Brethren, I am pleased to share with you our fraternal committee appointments for the 2023 Masonic Year.

Executive Committee
Bob Strohmeyer, PM, Master – Chair
Brad Rupert, PM, Senior Warden
Pete Peterson, HA, Junior Warden
David L. Kreutzinger, Treasurer
Randy Tolerton, PM, Secretary

Charity Committee
Brad Rupert, PM, Senior Warden – Chair
Bob Strohmeyer, PM, Master
Pete Peterson, Junior Warden

Auditing Committee
Adam Hanin, PM – Chair
Terry Killgore, PM
Marion Rogers, PM

Member Retention Committee
Randy Tolerton, Secretary – Chair
Tom Riley, PM, HA
Fred Lezak, HA, Marshal

Hiram Award Committee
Brad Rupert, PM, Senior Warden – Chair
Pete Peterson, HA, Junior Warden
Marion Rogers, PM, HA
Fred Lezak, HA, Marshal

Sunshine Committee
Frank Shoffner, Chaplain – Chair
Tom Riley, PM, HA
John Minagro

Dining Committee
Pete Peterson, HA, Junior Warden – Chair
Christopher Benz
Rob Seitelman
Mark Williams, Senior Deacon

Life Membership Committee
Randy Tolerton, PM, Secretary – Chair
Rider Brose
Mark Williams, Senior Deacon

Thank you to all who joined us for our annual Installation of Officers on Saturday, December 3. Despite the rain, it was an evening of warmth and brotherhood as we celebrated the installation of our 2023 officers.

Master: Robert S. Strohmeyer, PM
Senior Warden: Bradley O. Rupert, PM
Junior Warden: Peter Peterson, HA
Treasurer: David L. Kreutzinger
Secretary: C. Randall Tolerton, PM
Chaplain: F.H. “Frank” Shoffner
Marshal: Frederick T. Lezak, Jr., HA
Senior Deacon: Mark A. Williams
Junior Deacon: Kaveh Astaneh
Tiler: Chandler S. Eason, Jr.

Above: A very special thank you to our installing team: Marion P. Rogers, PM (left), Master of Ceremonies; Robert A. L. Whitfield, PM (second from left), Installing Officer; Phillip L. McAllister, PM (far right), Chaplain.

Our incoming Worshipful Master, Robert Strohmeyer, PM, with Inspector of the 305th Masonic District of the State of California, the Worshipful Michael Tagulao, PM.