October 2026 Trestleboard

The Trestleboard is an official publication of Twin Peaks Lodge No. 32, which is a legally constituted Masonic Lodge operating under charter granted by the Most Worshipful Grand Lodge of Free & Accepted Masons of Utah. The Trestleboard is published for the sole and exclusive use of the members of Twin Peaks Lodge No. 32, and any other use is expressly forbidden.  The editor of The Trestleboard is Glen Van Steeter.  Submissions of educational articles or other announcements may be sent to the editor at [email protected], and if selected for publication, will be given full attribution. All submissions are subject to the approval of the Worshipful Master of Twin Peaks Lodge No. 32 and the editor of the Trestleboard.

Sickness and Distress

At this time, there are no new reports of sickness and distress amongst the Brethren of Twin Peaks Lodge No. 32 or their families.

If you are aware of any members whom are in distress, please notify the Lodge Secretary using our Contact page “Email Us” form. Please put “Brother in Sickness and Distress” in the Subject line, and then provide details in the “Message” box. This information will be immediately received by multiple members of the Lodge when the “Submit” button is clicked.

Per requirement of the Bylaws and Policies of the Grand Lodge of Utah, full names will not be used in this section of the Trestleboard.

Brethren,

September was a fun one at Twin Peaks, and the highlight was raising three Master Masons. Watching a man complete that journey never gets old, and I’m proud of the work this Lodge put in to make it happen.

We’ve also got a solid list of brothers working through their catechisms, several prospects looking forward to submitting petitions, and a number of brothers learning new parts. That’s a lot of moving pieces, and it speaks well of where we’re headed.

Something has stuck with me this year, watching this Lodge operate through the busiest seasons. Life pulls everyone in a dozen directions, and rightly so. Family comes first. Work comes first. The obligations of daily life come first, and no man should apologize for tending to them. That’s exactly as it should be.

What strikes me is that even with all of that pulling at them, our officers still show up. Several of them are carrying some of the heaviest professional and personal loads in this Lodge, and yet they’re here, prepared, doing the work that keeps Twin Peaks running. I don’t take that for granted, and I want to recognize it plainly. What’s already being given deserves to be noticed.

There’s a real satisfaction in service, the kind that doesn’t show up on a resume or a paycheck, but shapes a man just the same. Every hour spent on behalf of this Lodge and the brothers in it builds a quiet dignity that comes from showing up for something bigger than yourself. That’s true whether you’re in an officer’s chair or sitting on the sidelines. Both matter, and both are part of what makes this Lodge what it is.

October is shaping up to be even more exciting. We have more degrees on the calendar, Masonicon, and the Grand Lodge Day of Service. As always, keep an eye on the calendar, because things change fast around here.

Thank you for being such an amazing Lodge.

Fraternally,
Frank Keller, PM
Worshipful Master, Twin Peaks Lodge No. 32

Greetings from the West Brethren,

This year has been a whirlwind of Masonic activity, and well, we definitely aren’t in Kansas anymore!

This Month we will be looking to do a Dual FC degree. Last Month we raised 3 new Master Masons and I would like to congratulate all 3 of those brothers for taking that step.

This year we have performed a total of 15 degrees, with at least 4 more coming, that has been a very busy year. I would like to commend all brothers that have taken part in those degrees on both their work and stamina for willing to do as much as they have. At times it has been a rough go but our dedication to the craft appears in the work we do, and I am extremely humbled to belong to such a well dedicated group of Brothers.

Fraternally,
Michael Hartman
Senior Warden, Twin Peaks Lodge No. 32

Brethren all,

My time as your Junior Warden is drawing to a close. First, I want to thank all the brethren and their families that helped with feeding us prior to our stated meetings: Lyle Miller, Sterling and Amy Petersen, Phil Lammi, Rubens Barbosa and my wife Laura. If I missed your name, I deeply apologize. I’m writing this from memory.

Secondly, we had a number of social activities.

I don’t envy the Junior Warden’s job next year.

I’d like to expand just a little on the Senior Warden’s report on degrees and ritual performance of the Lodge.

Our Lodge performs our ritual with a high degree of precision, confidence and performance in degrees as well as our stated meetings.

The sheer volume of work this year has been astounding. We held 3 EA degrees, 2 FC degrees and 5 Master Mason degrees. Wait… one of those EA degree nights was a dual degree, and one was a triple degree! We also held 1 dual FC degree. And finally, we held two dual MM degrees. That’s a total of 15 degrees conferred, and we still have just under two months left in this Masonic Year.

We also had six degree proficiency exemplifications in tyled Lodge: 1 EA, 3 FCs and 1 MM.

Additionally, we held 10 degree practices, and we also held 3 virtual meetings in August and September to help our nearly all-new degree team prepare for the September MM degrees. And on top of all that, your Senior and Junior Wardens also helped Mount Moriah Lodge No. 2 by holding several virtual MM degree practice meetings to help them out.

Add in Utah Food Bank service projects every other month, plus one weekend where we helped a neighbor of one of our members clean out his sideyard and garage, a ton of visits to other Lodges, one can only say that Twin Peaks Lodge No. 32 may be arguably one of the busiest and most productive Lodges in the jurisdiction of Utah. Oh, and yes, the October 17th Grand Lodge Day of Service, which is right around the corner.

Finally, I have completed 10 Trestleboards (including this one), with two more to go before the end of this Masonic Year. I can’t say this enough: Please let me know if these Trestleboard newslettters are worth the time investment. I get very little feedback. That’s disheartening to me, brethren. Is this effort producing the juice for the squeeze? Only you can determine the value. And only you can let me know if what we present is in a useful, somtimes entertaining, and educational fashion. Or, if this isn’t of value, I can scale this back to only a simple list of upcoming events. I’ve been your editor for five years, and I’m looking forward to several more before I hand over the reins to another worthy brother, but it takes between four to six hours to produce a Trestleboard. If you aren’t getting value out of it, I can very happly spend 3-5 of those hours doing something else. And finally, submissions, especially for educational articles, are always welcome. So far this year, I have received submissions from three brothers. Guys, are you telling me that the other 63 of you have NOTHING to contribute? NOTHING to say? NOTHING to share? I find that HARD to believe!

It’s been an honor, and if elected, I look foward to serving as your Senior Warden for the 2027 Masonic Year.

Fraternally and cordially,
Glen Van Steeter, PM
Junior Warden, Twin Peaks Lodge No. 32

Grand Lodge Day of Service – Saturday, Oct. 17th @ 12:00 pm

Thank you to those who have volunteered to help with this worthy expression of Masonic Philanthropy. Reminder emails will be sent to the volunteers a few days prior to this event.

Sadly, as of the writing of this article, news reached us that Ms. Pamela Atkinson, the “Mother Theresa of Utah” and for whom the resource center was named, passed away on Saturday, October 10th at the age of 93 year. You can read more about this remarkable woman on the Salt Lake Tribune.

Virtual Masonic Education – Thursday, Oct. 22nd @ 7 pm

Brethren, our Virtual Masonic Education meeting has been moved one week later than normal due to the fact that our presenter will be out of town the previous week.

Login information for this meeting can be found on the Calendar Page of our website.

Utah Food Bank Service Project – Saturday, Oct. 24th at 8:30 am.

Location: 3150 S. 900 W., South Salt Lake City.

Our bi-monthly service project is once again upon us. We need volunteers to help with sorting food, repacking, repackaging, or whatever else they want us to do. Contact Wor. Bro. Bob Hartman if you would like to help. Expect light-to-medium work. Dress comfortably. You will be working in a warehouse environment. Bring a few bottles of water. No sandals or open-toed shoes.

We’ve had super support this year. Let’s keep it up!

Chubby’s Cafe – Masonic Meetup – Monday, Oct. 26th @ 7 pm.

October Masonic Meetup at Chubby’s Riverton.

Date and Time: Monday, October 26th @ 7 pm
Location: Chubby’s Cafe, Riverton located at 1276 W 12600 S., Riverton, Utah.

Come on out and enjoy some good diner-style food with good company. Members, family and friends are welcome and those interested in learning about our Fraternity are always welcome!

Officer’s Virtual Meeting – Wednesday, Oct. 28th at 7 pm.

All current Lodge Officers are fraternally invited to attend the end-of-month Lodge Officer’s meeting in preparation for the November Stated Meeting. Non-officers are welcome, but please keep your contributions concise. Login information can be found on the Lodge Website Calendar Page.

Fellow Craft Degree at the Salt Lake Masonic Temple on Monday, October 19th at 7 pm.

Brethren all, we will be passing Brother Starik to the Fellow Craft Degree on this evening at the Salt Lake Masonic Temple in the Moorish room. Degree team members should have already received notifications of their parts. Officers and degree team members are requested to dress in either tuxedo or dark suit and white shirt. Sideliners should be similarly attired. Please arrive by 6:30 pm in order to setup the Lodge Room for the degree. We will be meeting in the Moorish Room.

Any degree team member who cannot perform their assigned part should notify the Senior Warden as soon as possible in order to give him time to find a suittable replacement.

Take due notice and govern yourselves accordingly.

Happy Birthdays!

The following brethren were born in the month of October. Make sure and reach out to them and wish them a “Happy Birthday!”

Masonic Anniversaries

The following brethren were raised to the sublime degree of Master Mason in the month of October.

Thought for the day

“Brother, I, too, own a television set, but that does not keep me at home on lodge night. I have never yet had one of the characters on television come off the screen and shake my hand. They have never offered me the warm friendship that my lodge brothers do. They have never handed me a cup of coffee or a doughnut. No! Never!”

Fraternally submitted by WB Bob Hartman

The Square

It matters not whate’er your lot
Or what your task may be,
One duty there remains for you,
One duty stands for me.
Be you a doctor skilled and wise
Or do your work for wage,
A laborer upon the street
An artist on the stage;
One glory still awaits for you,
One honor that is fair,
To have men say as you pass by:
“That fellow’s on the square.”

Ah, here’s a phrase that stands for much,
‘Tis good old English too;
It means that men have confidence
In everything you do.
It means that what you have you’ve earned,
And that you’ve done your best,
And when you go to sleep at night
Untroubled you may rest.
It means that conscience is your guide,
And honor is your care;
There is no greater phrase than this:
“That fellow’s on the square.”

2025-02-17 The Square (Poem)
And when I die I would not wish
A lengthy epitaph;
I do not want a headstone large,
Carved with fulsome chaff.
Pick out no single deed of mine,
If such a deed there be,
To ‘grave upon my monument,
For those that come to see.
Just this one phrase of all I choose,
To show my life was fair:
“Here sleepth now a fellow who
Was always on the square.”

I found this poem, uncredited, in the book “Short Talks on Masonry,” written
by Worshipful Brother Joseph Fort Newton in 1928 for the Masonic Service
Association of the United States.

Fraternally submitted by WB Bob Hartman

The Moral Teachings of Ancient Operative Masonic Lodges

Across the long story of Masonry we see that expert stonemasons first banded together into
tightly knit societies or guilds. Within those associations they labored side by side under the
direction of a Master — an experienced foreman who guided the work — and by offering
mutual aid and cooperation they were able to complete the large stone monuments and
buildings that still draw admiration and wonder, whether encountered in person or through
pictures and descriptions. As time passed, those practical working groups developed into
lodges; many of these lodges came to possess permanent rooms or halls where members
could meet regularly to exchange knowledge, study methods, and train together.

The head of such a lodge — the Master mentioned above — was not an autocrat who
appointed himself, but was chosen by the Craft, the body of working members, to fill that
office. How long he served was determined by the Lodge’s customs or rules, and during his
term he named the subordinate officers needed to carry out the lodge’s work. This is
necessarily a brief summary of a complicated development, but it outlines the basic
arrangement by which authority and responsibility were organized.

Operative masons learned through experience that harmony and a spirit of cooperation were
indispensable if a lodge was to finish its commissions efficiently and to the demanding
standards required. Every man in the lodge, from the newest Entered Apprentice to the most
seasoned Master, had clearly defined duties; each person’s effort was a necessary element in
producing a flawless result. When a brother failed to meet expectations — whether because
of inadequate instruction, weak resolve, or simple mistake — he was not ostracized. Instead
he received patient, firm correction and practical help until he could return to his proper and
productive place in the work.

Arrogance had little room in those workshops. No craftsman assumed he alone possessed the
right way or exclusive skill; the prevailing attitude favored cooperation and mutual
advancement. There was, however, a form of rivalry — what was called a “noble contention”
— a constructive emulation of skill and behavior meant to encourage each man to raise his
standard while maintaining good relations. In this manner the lodge combined high standards
of workmanship with social discipline, teaching that the highest aim was not personal glory
but the collective accomplishment of well-executed work and harmonious fellowship.
So ought it to be with us, my Brothers, as we labor within the Lodge to instruct, counsel, and
help one another in both Lodge affairs and private pursuits. Let us embody the standards set
by the Masons of old: to cooperate peacefully, to strengthen and support one another in
pursuit of the common good, and to show those outside our circle that people of goodwill can
come together despite minor differences and act as friends and brothers should to better
themselves and the world around them.

Operative Stonemasonry – A 20 Minute Elevator Speech on How it Relates to our Craft

My friend, in Speculative Freemasonry, we have three degrees: The Entered Apprentice, the Fellow Craft, and the Master Mason. These DO NOT correspond well to the actual “titles” of operative masonry. And I should also inform you at this point that what I’m about to discuss is very generalized. Stonemasonry as practiced in England or Scotland was quite distinct in the details from what was practiced in Germany, France or Italy. If I were to elaborate on the differences between the operative guilds of the medieval and renaissance periods of different nations, we will never get done, and I have only a few minutes to spend with you before our Stated Meeting starts. So I hope you’ll forgive my “generalities”.
First, mankind has been building stone structures since ANCIENT times. Consider the Pyramids, the Hippodromes, the Theaters of Greece and Italy, the Parthenon, and particularly, the First Temple of Jerusalem. Most of these were constructed before the Common Era. And we would surely love to have more historical records regarding who built them and how they were built. So we will focus on what I refer to as the “great age of Cathedrals”, which is when the Romanesque and Gothic holy cathedrals were fashioned.

By this period, which runs from roughly 1100 to 1517 (which is the first year of the Protestant reformation), stone masons were the principal players in the constructions of these buildings. Apprentices were essentially indentured persons, usually, but not always, coming from good families, who would serve for a period, most commonly identified as seven years at least, wherein the apprentice would be bonded to a master. The apprentice, being on the lowest rung of advancement, is functionally a common laborer; He cleans up the workspace, he is a bearer of burdens, he carries messages, he cleans and repairs tools, and performs duties as assigned by his Master, who is also his mentor. And THIS IS IMPORTANT –> The master has obligations laid upon him. He promises to instruct the apprentice with the goal of advancing him. He teaches him how to cut stone, how to identify good rock, or how to shape timbers. He teaches him the rudiments of mathematics with a critical eye cast towards identifying if the apprentice can digest higher forms of math like geometry. A senior apprentice may be placed in charge of juniors on work teams. The point I’m making is that the stonemason guilds had a strong, vested interest in providing an on-the-job training experience or practical education that will make him useful on future projects, holding greater responsibilities. Please bear in mind this is hideously simplified.

It is important here to clarify that the education being received by the Apprentice would not be in some kind of classroom setting. This was all “on-the-job” training.

As the apprentice gains experience, he approaches the end of his indenture. Mind you, this period was quite different in length according to the culture or nationality. For our discussion, we will use seven years. The apprentice has gone from being a “bearer of burdens” to a highly skilled craftsman, and probably specialized. He could be a quarryman, a stone cutter, a stone fitter, a foundryman (yeah, don’t you think that somebody had to create the metal fittings to hold the timbers together?). Hopefully, you get the idea. About this time, he is recognized as having learned all the fundamentals of his craft/speciality, and the guild recognizes his skill by advancing him to a journeyman. This an important step. Up until now, he’s been essentially working for the following payments: Room and board, and KNOWLEDGE. As a journeyman, he can collect pay. He is freed from his bond with his master, and he can travel from his master’s lodge to others to perform work. During his period as a journeyman, his attainment of new skills or the refinement of existing skills is put into high gear. Regionally or nationally, journeymen traditionally could not establish their own workshop or chapter/lodge.

Have you ever heard of a masterpiece? Would you be surprised that this term is generally, but not universally agreed, to have originated from the guilds. At some point, probably a number of years after a man has achieved the “title” of journeyman, he eventually aspires to become a Master Mason. Remember that one or the generally accepted distinctions is that a journeyman cannot establish his own workshop. Well, now, he wants to. So, he needs to do the following:
• He must create a “master’s piece”: A work that is essentially flawless and prominently displays technical mastery and technique.
• He then submits it to a Jury of guild masters who will rigorously judge the piece.
• He must pay the Entry Fee. This was often to fete the guild masters (bribery <– haha) or essentially, to pay for a “franchise”. <– Not entirely unlike buying a McDonald’s restaurant franchise.

At this point, the Master Mason can then setup his own workshop, develop his own “rules of thumb”, hire or train his own apprentices and journeymen, etc. Keep in mind that he is now seeking patronage from local nobility and ecclesiastical sources. So, on top of everything else relating to planning, designing, and actually building structures made primarily of stone, he also needs to either master some knowledge of accounting, the structure of contracts, etc., or hire/train people to do that for him.
So I now need to talk a little about the diminishment of the great Stonemason guilds. The Reformation, which began in 1517, along with the adoption of less expensive methods of building construction (timber frame, daub and wattle) completely changed the landscape concerning the construction of magnificent and awe-inspiring Cathedrals or other places of holy worship. By this time, the stonemason guilds had an excellent reputation for providing an excellent practical education, quite frequently in disciplines which had nothing to do with the designing and construction of such structures, but which were entirely relevant to the MANAGEMENT of those projects.

As the need for cut-stone buildings diminished, the prominence of the stonemason guilds also declined… but for one thing: They provided an excellent education that could be argued to be on a par with that provided in the ecclesiastical spirituality. “Reading, writing, arithmetic”. And now we move on to how “Free and Accepted Masons”, or speculative masonry, came to be called that.
Operative Lodges needed to maintain membership and collect membership fees in order to maintain revenues for operating expenses related specifically to the maintenance of the Lodge. The decline mentioned above made it difficult to receive fees for actually constructing cut-stone buildings. However, during this same period, Masonic tradition informs us that these operative Lodges provided an excellent opportunity for the second sons of nobles, who up to this point really had only these options:
• Strike out on their own in foreign lands. Risky.
• Join the military. Risky, but the potential for glory and honor were high.
• Become a member of the clergy, which arguably offered the best opportunity to receive a high-level education. It helped if these “spare sons” had some natural inclination to this choice.
• Become an administrator in the medieval chancery, such as a tax collector or auditor for the chancery. However, this kind of occupation required an education.

Masonic tradition again informs us that the noblemen sought an education for their “second sons”, and the Masonic Lodges provided just such an opportunity. However, a nobleman’s son was not likely going to accept doing the menial labor that an Apprentice was customarily assigned. And they were also not inclined to become indentured. These Lodges were quite happy to accept these sons as long as their fathers were willing to pay the Lodge for the education, and since they were not going to be assigned directly to a master, they were considered free. But, they would still be obligated to keep inviolate all secrets of the Lodge that were entrusted to them.

These members were known as “Free and Accepted”. And thus is a possible and defensible argument for how “Free and Accepted Masons”, of “Freemasons” first came into the world.