MW Grand Master Ridge, MW Past Grand Masters, Right Worshipful Grand Wardens, Worshipful Grand Officers, Worshipful Masters, Wardens, Brethren and Ladies. My talk this evening is entitled Masonic Customer Service. At the 131st or 132nd Annual Communication of the Most Worshipful Grand Lodge Free and Accepted Masons of Utah, a visiting Grand Master addressed our Grand Lodge from the perspective of a small businessman. He noted that if his small business was to survive, he had to concentrate on customer service and make it the best he possibly could make it. He stated that we as Masons didn’t realize that our customers were men who were not Masons, and we sure weren’t giving them good customer service. This commentary from a visiting Grand Master has stuck in my mind since that day. Tonight I would like to discuss Masonic Customer Service in Utah and suggest ways we might improve it. To do this, you must agree to accept the premise that our Masonic customers are men who are not Masons. I will assume that you will accept that premise for the length of my talk.

In my opinion, Masonic customer service can be broken down into two parts; recruitment and retention. Let’s talk about recruitment first. Over the past several years we have heard a litany of woes about the decline of membership in Masonic as well as other Fraternal organizations. Many good and interesting methods have been advanced to attack the problem such as open houses, friendship dinners, web sites, one day classes, and a host of others. But I believe that we are missing one of the best ways to begin the recruitment process. Each of you sitting here tonight is a Masonic Recruiter. How is that so you ask? First, each one of us should be talking to our friends, our co-workers, and our relatives about the fun we are having as Masons. My brethren, we must talk about our Masonic activities at work, at the gym, wherever we encounter men of good character. My experience tells me that some of these men will inquire about what Masonry is about. You need to have a short list of the benefits of Masonry you have experienced and how they have influenced and improved your life. You need to tell them about the many facets of Masonry, the Rites, the Shrine, Job’s Daughters, DeMolay. You ladies should be telling your friends and their children about the great things taught in the Masonic organizations. Tell them how nice the Masonic people are, how cordial and pleasant they are, how they make you feel welcome, how you enjoy spending time with them, especially because of the wide range of backgrounds and interests you encounter. Encourage them to consider having their children petition a Job’s Daughters Bethel or DeMolay Chapter so that they might expose them to God-centered life skills. Our Masonic Youth organizations teach love of God, responsibility for one’s actions, respect for parents and adults, give them confidence to speak in public, teach them leadership skills. If you want a good demonstration of these teachings, just watch a Bethel that serves at Masonic banquets. Pay particular attention to the youngest Jobies. At the end of a year, you will notice a vast improvement in their social interaction skills, their self confidence. It will greatly impress you. This approach to recruitment using the Brethren and their Ladies is like a military pincer movement. The men approach the men from one side, the Ladies come in from the other side through the wives and the children. We are told that many families are looking for good and wholesome things for their family and we have it for them in spades. Something for everyone. And we have room for those who don’t have a lot of time as well as those who want to be overachievers. So - - - if you take one thing away with you from this evening, let it be that you are a star recruiter for Masonry and you are doing your part to improve Masonic Customer Service.

Now let’s talk about the retention piece. It is one thing to get a man through the degrees and get him proficient. It is another thing to get him to become a fully functioning member of our Lodge. We know about coaching, we know about mentoring, at least intellectually. The coaching piece is actually rather easy compared to the mentoring piece. Coaching generally consists of teaching the new Mason what he needs to know to be proficient. That is rather cut and dried in terms of what is required. What we do not do so well is nurture and support him as he begins to understand what we do and how we do it. He has a lot of questions and many times we have few answers. What a wonderful dilemma; here we have a chance for the young Mason and his mentor to learn more together. We have to make this interaction an exchange of knowledge that leads to a greater feeling of brotherhood and a deepening friendship. The young Mason and his Mentor need to feel like a pair on a Masonic quest for “more light.” We have discussed the many qualifications needed for good mentoring at our Regional Masonic Workshops, but more than anything else, it requires an investment of time over a long period; a couple of years at least. Tonight I want to suggest that our Ladies are also an important part of this process. This is more than a man to man effort if we are to do it right. This needs to be a family-to-family effort. We Masons all acknowledge how important our wives are to our enjoyment of Masonry, why would we not involve them in this mentoring process as well. Of course, we need for our lodges to plan and conduct more family activities, more community involvement that requires the whole family to make it work. That sets the stage for more chances to involve the families in our activities and lets the families feel like they are a part of the Masonic experience. As the families interact more often and get to know one another better, they will discover common interests that will lead to additional sharing experiences and expand the possibility for joy in their life. If you want examples of what this experience has been like for many in the Masonic Family, just ask the ladies of the Order of the Eastern Star, Ladies of the Nile, Ladies of the Oriental Shrine, and other Masonic ladies organizations how valuable their participation in these oraganizations has been to their personal happiness. I don’t know about you, my Brethren, but when my wife’s happy, I’m happy. We need to make the Masonic experience for our young Masons such that their wives are happy. That means that this mentoring piece of customer service is a family effort and we need to do it with vigor and cheer.

So what should we expect if we adopt this view of Masonic Customer Service? First, we would notice that the lodge is suddenly energized and eagerly seeks new Masons rather than waiting for them to “knock on the door.” Secondly, we would notice that new young Masons “catch the fever” and tell their friends about their positive experience. The next thing you know, petitions start arriving at your door and you have degree work to do. Because of the renewed interest in things masonic and because of the many questions that come from the younger Brethren, more socializing occurs before and after lodge meetings, everyone begins to enjoy their Masonic associations more and become more actively involved. Success breeds success, Brethren.

I would suggest to you that several Utah lodges have found the secret of Masonic Customer Service. Wasatch No. 1 comes to mind, along with Damascus No. 10, Story No. 4, Mt. Moriah No. 2 and Acacia No. 17. These lodges are enjoying explosive growth. They are holding day long degree meetings and the Brethren are showing up willingly to maintain the momentum. It is up to the rest of the lodges to follow their example. Perhaps my suggestion of Masonic Customer Service is a construct that more lodges can adopt. If so, I predict a bright future ahead. Just remember, Masonic Customer Service starts with you, and you, and you, and you. It takes each one of us to make it happen.