The Little Lodge that Could and Did!

Over the years, Milford Lodge No. 344, nestled in rural Pike County, Pennsylvania, has had its share of ups and downs, splinters and mergers. In 2010, facing dwindling numbers, empty chairs and little hope of revitalization, the lodge hit rock bottom. As the only Masonic lodge in the county, this could have marked the end of Freemasonry there.

But people like Brother Mark Gualandi had other plans.

Mark was instrumental in the lodge’s comeback. His father had been a Mason in Connecticut, and he had a good friend who was a member of Milford Lodge. He decided to join the lodge in 2011 when it was on the brink of closure. There were maybe six to eight people attending every meeting, he said. He sat on the sidelines for one meeting before becoming a lodge officer.

At the time, merger committees had been formed in both Waymart and Milford lodges, but thankfully, cooler heads prevailed. Led by Brother Wendell R. Hunt, P.M., Waymart Lodge No. 542 and future District Deputy Grand Master (D.D.G.M.) of the 14th Masonic District Charles W. Grimm and the officers and members of Milford Lodge approved the “Milford Lodge Renaissance,” which coincided with R.W. Past Grand Master Tom Sturgeon’s “21st Century Masonic Renaissance.” The plan called for members from other lodges in the district to continue assisting Milford’s officers with ritual work, member development and presenting a full slate of officers. During this period, Brothers Fred Cron, Randolph “Skip” Gregory, Michael Weinstein and Jon Stierle, all Past Masters of Milford Lodge, played key roles in its revitalization.

In September 2012, the lodge held its 150th anniversary celebration, continuing its growth and improvement through 2013 when the merger committees were officially disbanded.

“All of the Masons who weren’t necessarily active, but still paying dues showed up [to the anniversary],” Mark said. “The Grand Master came. This helped get us in the eye of the community.”

By 2013, their efforts had paid off. Lodge membership increased and inactive and absentee members reengaged; the lodge became visible and active in the community once again; and the officer lineup stabilized, as Past Masters were no longer needed to step in as Worshipful Masters.

“We had some younger Masons come in for a one-day class,” Mark said. “It helped us, and we went through a growth spurt where we were doing 13 to 15 degrees a year for six years straight. That was a big deal.”

At one of the last meetings of the year, over 60 people gathered in the small lodge that night.

“To go from barely being able to fill chairs to not having enough chairs to seat everyone, was actually pretty awesome,” Mark said.

The renaissance of Milford Lodge represents the mission of brothers helping brothers, banding together to save the fraternity.

Today, Milford Lodge has continued to grow, welcoming about 10 new members per year. The current membership stands at 166, and the lodge enjoys its most diverse group ever, comprised of all ages, racial, ethnic and religious backgrounds, and coming from all walks of life.

In addition to the monthly practices, rehearsals, stated and extra meetings, it is commonplace now to see Milford Lodge members out and about in the community.

They’re together at picnics and hockey games and enjoying riding motorcycles through Pike County. They provide holiday celebrations to local nursing homes, dole out candy to children in town for Halloween and stock local food pantries. They have sponsored a local youth soccer team, a baseball team and a choral program; adopted a two-mile stretch of US Rt. 6 just outside of Milford to clean up; and provided scholarships to graduating high school seniors in local schools. They have been invited to march in the Memorial Day parade in Milford for the past three years, and they had a Liberty Tree planting in town in 2024.

“I believe the collective effort, as well as a little luck, made things change,” said Brother Don Roa, D.D.G.M. “There seemed to be a greater interest in Freemasonry in this area. Younger people got involved. A lot of it was the fellowship. They started doing things to save the lodge, which really got them together and out in the community.”

Don joined Milford Lodge in 2015, when it was “just starting to bang on all eight cylinders,” he said. He served as Worshipful Master in 2020 and 2021 before being installed District Deputy Grand Master at the end of 2021.

Today, Milford Lodge has its own website, in addition to a robust Facebook page started by Mark six years ago. Currently, there are 1,500 followers of the page.

Milford Lodge celebrated 160 years of Freemasonry in 2022, and thanks to the rebirth brought about by a dedicated few, can look confidently forward to many, many more in the future.