Fueling an Entrepreneurial Spirit
Running a small or family business is filled with daily challenges that test knowledge, abilities and patience. Entrepreneurs are often responsible for managing everything in front of and behind the scenes, while ensuring they’re surrounded by people they trust. The satisfaction of doing it their way and growing as a businessman and Mason makes the hard work worth it for several brothers across the state.
Brother David “Ringo” Roseman, Shekinah-Fernwood No. 246, Philadelphia, spent more than 20 years in the restaurant industry. While he always said a person would have to be nuts to want to own a restaurant, with their typically low profit margins, it was a calling he couldn’t ignore.
A bagel and sandwich lover, Ringo didn’t see the type of bagel or bagel shop he was looking for, so he answered the call by opening The Bagel Place on Queen Street in Philadelphia.
“I have a romantic notion of what a bagel shop can be: a place of community, comfort, family and, of course, great food,” Ringo said. “We do this because we care about the work we do and providing our guests with a truly great experience.”
While he has a supportive crew working for him, Ringo finds it challenging to be “an expert at every facet of life and business.” Small business owners need to be repairmen, financial and legal experts, accountants and human resources personnel all in one. There is also a sense of freedom, though, knowing they answer to themselves.
“People don’t realize just how much goes into running most businesses, certainly restaurants, or at least what goes into running them well,” Ringo said. “I love that at the end of the day, I have to rely most upon myself. When I know something needs to be taken care of, it will be, because it’s on me.”
Ringo wanted to do something for himself beyond owning his own business. Both of his grandfathers were Masons, and knowing it was important to them, he wanted to feel closer to them and focus on growing within himself. Since he joined the fraternity in 2021, he’s felt embraced, supported and encouraged to learn and participate.
“Like my business and my industry, in Freemasonry we always have more to learn,” Ringo said. “The most important thing is to surround ourselves with people who are going to lift us up and support us, instead of trying to break and beat us down. With Freemasonry, we know we have that, and I’m glad to be a part of it and to try and help support others.”
Brother Ringo Roseman at his shop
Brother Nate Storck, Lodge No. 43, Lancaster, spent more than a decade creating basic illustration and art for medical and science textbooks. In 2014, he made the decision over lunch one day to follow his dream and signed up for barber school.
“Barbering was something that was in the back of my mind in my later years of college,” he said. “It’s a trade first and foremost. I wanted something that would allow me to be able to travel anywhere and still be marketable. It’s also recession proof.”
After completing school, Nate worked at a popular shop in Lancaster before opening the Keystone Barbershop in Easton, PA, in 2020. He passed his inspections on March 16 and was shut down the very next day due to COVID-19. His business survived the pandemic, and while he’s still figuring out time management and how to say “no” sometimes, he enjoys the freedom of being his own boss.
“I can make my own hours and take a day off here and there if I am burned out,” Nate said. “I felt like I did hard time sitting behind a desk in a cubicle for all those years prior, so being able to have the freedom of being on my feet and having amazing conversations with my clients is a huge perk, too.”
Like barbering, Freemasonry had also been in the back of Nate’s mind for years. He was always fascinated with the history of the fraternity and had avoided researching it on the internet, as he wanted a genuine experience. After speaking to a few of his customers he knew were Masons, he decided to join in 2018.
“I’d have to say the most enjoyable part of Freemasonry for me is the relationships – the bonds you create with your fellow brothers near and far,” he said.
“Just knowing that we are working on ourselves together is a refreshing feeling. I have also helped a few others out in their journey to find a local lodge and become brothers in our great fraternity.”
Brother Nate Storck
Photo credit: Adam Naples
Brother Greg Sutliff’s last name has been synonymous with car dealerships in Central PA since the 1930s. Although he’s semi-retired, you can still find him in his office at the Sutliff Volkswagen in Harrisburg, which is owned by his daughter and son-in-law. His road to running car dealerships started right after the Great Depression, when his father and his father’s cousin started Sutliff Chevrolet together. The cousin had worked as a bookkeeper for a Chevy dealer in Wyoming and brought his skills and knowledge back to Pennsylvania.
Greg began working for the family business in 1947. In 1953, he graduated from Brown University on a Navy scholarship with a bachelor’s degree in economics. He served in the U.S. Navy for three years before attending Dickinson School of Law and earned his Juris Doctorate in 1959. In 1962, he became General Manager and part owner of Sutliff Chevrolet and went on to run more than nine auto dealerships.
Among his proudest career accomplishments was when he was recruited by General Motors as one of 11 dealers (out of 18,000) in the country to help create and launch the Saturn brand. His dealership was the second largest in the country, selling more than 48,000 cars across Central PA.
Greg received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Pennsylvania Automobile Dealers Association in 2013.
“It was a matter of ethics,” he said. “I consider myself pretty ethical, but sometimes car dealers aren’t known for that.”
Greg’s honest and ethical life lined up perfectly with the values of Freemasonry. His father and his cousin were Masons, and Greg was initiated into West Shore Lodge No. 681. After Lowther Manor Lodge No. 781 opened in Lewisberry, Greg, his father and his father’s cousin joined. Greg is now the oldest surviving charter member of Lodge No. 781. He also belongs to the Zembo Shrine and Valley of Harrisburg Consistory.
“I regard Freemasonry as patriotic, and I’m a military veteran, too. I’m proud to be a participant,” he said.
Greg’s heart is in his community and with his family, which includes his wife, six children and 13 grandchildren. He still makes some time every day to spend in the office, a place where years of hard work paid off for him.
“I enjoy having a place to go,” he said. “Plus, my wife likes me to be out of the house.”
Brother Greg Sutliff – Photo courtesy of Penn State Dickinson Law
Brother Richard (Dick) Knoebel, Elysburg Lodge No. 349, is president of Knoebels Amusement Resort. The park is known for affordable family fun, and while Dick and his brother, Buddy, and sister, Leanna, have made lots of changes over the years, a few things remain steadfast.
“At the forefront, we’re going to give people great quality at the lowest possible cost, and make it all fun,” he said.
The Knoebel family has been hosting guests on their property since the turn of the 19th century. Their grandfather opened the park in 1926, and Dick started working there at the age of 5. In the beginning, families took a dip in the swimming pool and had a picnic in the woods. The resort has since grown to include more than 60 rides, an 18-hole golf course and two campgrounds. Keeping true to its original mission, Knoebels is the largest free-admission amusement park in America.
One of Dick’s priorities is keeping the park bright with new flowers every season and more than 100 new trees planted in each of the last two years. “People love the flowers, and the trees for the campers,” he said. “We’re always looking for new ideas.”
The biggest challenge Dick currently faces is finding qualified electricians and carpenters. “We have enough staff to operate rides and flip burgers, but otherwise, it’s a tough job market,” he said.
The challenges never interfere with Dick’s mission to bring joy to families. The best part of his job is riding around the park on his scooter greeting guests, especially those who come from out-of-state, passing other amusement parks along the way.
“I like seeing everyone having fun,” he said. “People will stop me and ask, ‘Are you Mr. Knoebel? Can I take your photo?’ I always take photos with the kids.”
Dick employs several Masons, and as an almost 60-year Mason, he uses the lessons he’s learned through Freemasonry to manage people. Much like his job, what Dick enjoys most about the fraternity is socializing with other people. Whether filling lodge chairs or a ride operator position, he knows what it takes to keep a legacy going.
Running a small or family business isn’t always a walk in the park, but the passion to succeed keeps Masonic entrepreneurs going full speed ahead. Rather than spinning their wheels, getting sandwiched or letting a few split ends deter their dreams, these brethren have demonstrated how to Ignite the Light Within.
