Potentate’s Notes November 2022

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Greetings Nobles,

First of all, how about the weather in October! Shorts and T-shirts one day, then pants and a warm coat the next. Only in Ohio!

Well, the Sportsmen’s raffle has come and gone, and what a day it was. The Glass City Center was full, and fun was had by all in at­tendance. A big thank you to the committee for all the hard work they put in to make the raffle successful. If you would like to get more involved and have input, or have ideas to make the event even better, please let us know. Many hands make light work and we are always looking for Nobles to join in and get active.

Our ceremonial is Saturday, November 12, following the Toledo Holiday Parade. We will meet at Zenobia at 8 a.m. and head down­town to put smiles on all the spectators’ faces. Afterwards, we will head back to Zenobia, have lunch and get our candidates in order. Our ceremonial masters and membership chairman, along with our Dramatic Cast, have a wonderful ceremonial planned. The fezzing ceremony and new second section will be fun and exciting. Please come to Zenobia and support our new members. Wear your unit or club attire, and ask our new members to come to a meeting to find out more about your unit. If you are a Noble who has not yet joined a unit, there is no better time to see what Zenobia has to offer. Come on out and see old friends, make new friends and enjoy fellowship the Zenobia way. As always, if you know a brother Mason who can not make our ceremonial, we can adapt to do a cold sands before a stated meeting.

The Zenobia meat raffle will be held on Saturday, November 19. Doors open at 3:30 p.m., with first spin at 4. Call the office to get your tickets. This event sells out fast, as we are limited to 150 par­ticipants. Call today.

Our November stated meeting also will be awards night and vet­eran recognition. Your office staff is working diligently to go back all the way to 2020 to look for service awards. Letters were sent out and a special prize for those who bring their letters to the stated meet­ing. If you feel you should have received a service award and didn’t receive a letter, call the office immediately.

Well Nobles, get those leaves raked and enjoy some apple cider and the rest of the fall season.

A very Happy Thanksgiving to you and your families.

Potentate’s Notes October 2022

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Greetings Nobles,

Firstly, thank you to all the parade units, Nobles, ladies and friends that attended the Potentate’s parade on Labor Day in Fre­mont. The rain held off and everyone had a great time! All those on the parade route had a smile on their face and were very ex­cited to see the Zenobia Shriners! A big thank you to the Nobles of the Fremont Shrine Club for sponsoring the afterglow, and to the town crier for welcoming everyone to the party.

Our first stated meeting back from our summer break was fun and informative, and the picnic before was delicious. Thank you to the Pitmaster unit and the A-Team for preparing and cleaning up.

Firelands Shrine Club hosted their annual steak fry at Herm’s house on September 12 and, as always, it did not disappoint! If you’ve never gone, put it on your calendar for next September. Fremont Shrine Club hosted a stag party at Monticello Lodge in Clyde, and fun was had by all. Masons, Shriners and friends all enjoyed a steak dinner and fellowship with a great presentation about Freemasonry.

The Potentate’s trip, in one word, was amazing! Forty-four No­bles and guests started off the trip with a pre-party at Zenobia. We then boarded the bus and rested, then the sun rose and the shenanigans began! We boarded the Carnival Magic and traveled to ports of call in Canada and back to NYC. The scenery was breathtaking, and the food was delicious. The company was ex­cellent. Thank you to those who traveled with myself and Lady Alisha.

With the weather getting cooler, fall is definitely in the air. Fall means football and Halloween. Our adult party has been canceled for October 29. Our Safe Halloween on the 29th is still a go! Get your club or unit to hand out candy to the ghouls and goblins in our parking lot.

As always, think membership! Our fall Ceremonial is fastly approaching. Initiation for 2022 is $150. If you join at the fall Ceremonial, our new Nobles will not have to pay dues for 2023 in December. Get those petitions in!

Nobles, many great things are happening, get involved.

Potentate’s Notes September 2022

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Greetings Nobles,

Time does fly when you are having fun! What a great summer with all the great events planned in and around Zenobia. The summer started with the annual Findlay Clowns golf outing, and I am happy to say my team won the outing! Now, before you accuse us of cheat­ing, the Clowns pulled the winner out of a hat. Either way, the event was a good one and enjoyed by all who participated. Thank you, Findlay Clown unit, and especially Noble Steve Horton for chairing the event.

Myself, with Lady Alisha and Chief Rabban Todd Miller and Lady Mellissa, travelled to Shriners Erie for their open house. We spent the day with Illustrious Sir Charlie Murphy and Nobles Mark Allred and Todd Williams celebrating Erie’s milestone birthday. Even a couple of Jeepsters made the trip to see all the wonderful pa­tients and staff at Shriners Erie.

This years Imperial Session was held in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and as you imagine, it was quite an adventure, and Zenobia was rep­resented well. Old friends and new friends had a great week of fun and fellowship, along with taking care of business for both our cor­porations.

Picnics, picnics, picnics! Instead of a potentate’s youth dance this year, we went out of the box and held a youth picnic. Representatives from both Rainbow Girls and DeMolay, along with their parents, friends and possible new members, enjoyed a fun-filled afternoon and some great food off the grill. The Zenobia Patrol had a great steak fry on “old timers’ night.” What a great night! Now the big one! Our 100th hospital picnic. Thank you to all who attended. Representatives from Erie, Chicago and Ohio Shriner’s Childrens put on excellent presentations, and most importantly, some of our Shriner kids were present. The event was a great way to celebrate 100 years with stories from the staff and our kids on how Shriners healthcare has changed their lives for the better. It was a great way for our membership to see where all their hard work and dedication to the world’s greatest philanthropy has helped all the children in our charge.

No summer is complete without Fremont Shrine Club hosting their annual divan night at Ole’ Zims. If you would have told me 30 years ago, when I first started attending the event with my parents and grandparents, that in 2022 I would have the honor of being po­tentate and speaking to all who attended the event, I would have said you’re crazy. Well crazy things happen and I could not have asked for a better evening. Although the event has changed over the years, the message stays the same. Fremont Shrine Club supports Zenobia and it’s Divan. Thank you for a wonderful evening and all your sup­port over the years, it has truly meant a lot to me in my journey be­coming potentate.

Finally, what is summer without baseball! Our annual Mudhens Night with our brothers from the Valley of Toledo was, as usual, nothing short of spectacular! Also, a big thank you to Robin Hoffman for making this year’s Hoffman Memorial a huge success! The course at Heather Downs Country Club was full and even if some of us did not golf our best that day, we knew what the day was actu­ally for, raising funds for the world’s greatest philanthropy.

Nobles, as you can see this summer was action packed. As fall approaches, Zenobia will be back at full speed. Please join us at our stated meeting on Thursday, September 8. Sell those Sportsmen’s raffle tickets and keep your ears open, as I hear there might be an­other meat raffle in the works for November.