Potentate’s Notes November 2023

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I can’t believe I have 11 months under my belt as Potentate, the time has flown by quickly. Another Grand Lodge has passed us and I enjoyed seeing all those who at­tended and the great brotherhood that was experienced. Winter will soon be approach­ing and so will elections, so please be sure to attend December’s stated meeting to ensure your vote counts on driving our leadership.

For the first time I am truly disappointed with Zenobia after hav­ing to cancel the Meat Raffle and Friendship Night this past month, due to no reservations. It also is highly likely that the Fall Cere­monial will be cancelled, as there are no candidates. I do not know how may times I need to say this, we are now below 1,000 members. It has to be members that bring in new candidates and not the Divan. I am truly blown away that we can’t find more candidates for the Ceremonial. We did, however, bring in a new Noble this past Oc­tober with a Cold Sands Ceremonial, and welcome him with open arms. Please greet PJ Wilson, when you see him at events.

I would like to take this time to thank Dave Coy for making another profitable Sportsmen’s Extravaganza. I also would like to thank the Pit Masters for supplying the food at another successful fez burning to remember those who were wearing them. A great time was had by all at the adult Halloween party; thank you to those who came and to Adam and Alyse for hosting. The following day was the kids trunk or treat in which many children walked through and fun was had by all. Thank you to Troy Hawkins for organizing this event.

At this time I would like to thank those clubs and units that have donated some money to the new sign fund. We are still looking at new ideas and getting quotes on different options. More information will be coming soon. I would like to thank our lodges, appended bodies, advertisers and everyone that uses our Masonic Bulletin for working with Zenobia and fixing those last few kinks in our system. If any other questions remain, please reach out to myself or the office so that the issue can be resolved.

On Thursday, November 30, there will be a Euchre Fun Night that is open to all Nobles and ladies. Please come out and support the Pa­trol Unit and this event. Do not forget to RSVP for the Kid’s Christ­mas Party, as the committee has been working very hard to make this a great event. We will be looking forward to Christmas parties this year. Tiffin Shrine Club will be having a Christmas party on Sat­urday, December 16, at the Tiffin AmVets dining hall with prime rib dinner and cash bar for $30. This event is open to all Zenobia members, so please come out and celebrate with your Nobles.

On a personal note, Joe, I will truly miss you.

Potentate’s Notes September 2023

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Greetings Nobles,

Welcome back!! Another summer has come and gone. As many of you might be aware, our Shrine dues are increasing $20/year for the per capita increase of Shriners International that was voted on at Imperial Session. With that being said, dues can be paid for 2024 now with the option to make installment payments.

I would like to thank everyone who has taken time out of their summer to help sell Sportsmen’s Extravaganza tickets at the Riboff, tractor pulls and scrap. Another big THANK YOU to those of you who helped drive golf carts at the tractor pulls. Please keep selling tickets, as this event will be here before we know it and is a big fund-raiser for our Temple. I also would like to personally thank Bob Young for organizing the Mud Hens event, as a great time was had by all!.

We will be hosting Cigars Under the Stars on Saturday, September 9. It was a great event last year and we plan to have a bonfire this year. On Sunday, October 15, the Fall Meat Feztival will return with the Fez Burning Ceremony after this event. We also have a Friend­ship Night scheduled for Friday, October 20, allowing you the op­portunity to bring friends who may be interested in our fraternity and seek out more information. We need to bring in members, if we want to stay above 1,000 members and maintain our number of del­egate votes allotted for us at Imperial. If we go below this number we will lose one of our current delegate votes.

We need many of you to help with planning of several of our events, especially the Sportsmen’s Extravaganza. This was a suc­cessful event previously and is now struggling. We are asking for anyone who is interested in any capacity to please reach out to us and help make this event a success again. This event takes the hands of many and we need you.

If there is anyone interested in being a dispatcher to find drivers to take children to the hospitals, please reach out to me directly. This is done remotely by computer and does not involve having to be at the Temple. On average, this requires < 5 hours/week. This is the reason we are Shriners.

Potentate’s Notes Summer 2023

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Greetings Nobles,

Are you ready for summer like I am?? As you are reading this, we are probably having the Pote’s Party and if you are not here you have missed a great event. I want to thank those who showed up and made the event a great time. Lady Melissa and I personally want to give a HUGE THANK YOU to the committee for all their hard work. We have the Pote’s Parade coming up on Saturday, June 10, in Whitehouse at the Cherry Festival. We hope you will all come out and watch or participate in the parade, and then join us after the parade at the Progressive Fishing Association on Schadel Road in Whitehouse. I promise you it will be a time full of fun and fellowship with your fellow Shriners. We also will be kicking that weekend off with the Tabloid sales. Please pick them up at the Shrine for your clubs/units to disperse. While there, also pick up your plaques and stickers.

On Saturday, June 17, the Zenobia Clown golf outing will be at Birch Run Golf Club in North Baltimore. Please see the enclosed flyer to register with Steve Horton. On Saturday, June 24, we can enjoy golfing again with Dendarah Court at Hidden Hills Golf Course in Woodville. Please come out to support them as they sup­port our organization. June 30 to July 7, your Divan will be in Char­lotte for Imperial Session. At this session, we will be voting on per capita increase of dues that has failed the last two years, but I expect in the next year or so it will pass, so be aware that dues MAY be in­creasing. On the same note, I cannot express enough the need for membership, as we are bordering on the line of 1,000 members. If our member count is below 1,000 at the beginning of the year, we will lose a voting delegate at Imperial Session. The Divan is working very hard to prevent this, but we also need your help to get new members into our great organization.

In the Calendar Book on July 22 we had a scheduled Family Pic­nic Day, but are replacing it with the Mud Hens game event on Fri­day, July 21. Get your kids, grandkids and come enjoy a baseball game with the Shrine. Please see the enclosed flyer and register at our website for your tickets. Saturday, July 29, is the Potentate’s Youth Picnic, in which all are invited to learn more about the Rain­bow Girls and DeMolay.

In August, we will be having our annual fund-raiser for Shriners Children’s Hospital with the John Hoffman Memorial Golf Outing; please register your team with Robin Hoffman. Let’s make this a great event in memory of John to a great philanthropy. Patrol will also be having their Old Timers Steak Roast at Zenobia; please con­tact Bernie Welniak for more information. The National Tractor Pulls are in August, if you are interested in helping out with this event, please contact Illustrious Sir Tom Binder or Illustrious Sir Ty Stout for details. At the end of the month, we will visit the VFW in Port Clinton and collect pop tabs. We attend this event as they collect two, 55 gallon barrels of tabs to help support our hospitals. If you are interested in coming to this event, please contact Randy Sikorski.

We have plenty of events scheduled over the summer for you to enjoy and will be glad to see all of in our stated meeting in Sep­tember on the first Thursday of the month vs the second Thursday, as GLSA is the second Thursday. In regards to the kiosk sign at 795, we are in the process of getting quotes so we can present more de­tailed information to the Nobility. We have the Divan and some Past Potentates currently working on this project. On a last note, if there is anything that you think needs attention or needs to be done around Zenobia, please bring it to the attention of the trustees or Divan, as this is your Temple, not ours. Hope you and your family have a great summer and enjoy some or our activities that are planned.