140 year of Shriners

140 year of Shriners

Friday, April 26, 2013

City Council shouldn't rush through decisions


Ed Kemmick's first sentence reporting the City Council "raced through a short agenda" to meet a plane on April 22 exemplifies poor decision making in my opinion. Former Councilman Clark is ignorant in implying a Masonic cornerstone would not represent the whole community. The Masons represent a cross section of the Billings community including teachers, private businessmen and some politicians.
A Masonic cornerstone simply would acknowledge the public library as a "unifying force and an institution that touches the life of every citizen." Basic tenants of Masonry include believing in a strong education system. A fitting way to support this is with a Masonic cornerstone on our new library.
In an address to the American people, George Washington, a Mason, said, "Promote then as an object of primary importance institutions for the general diffusion of knowledge." That sure sounds like something public libraries do. Ed Ulledalen's remark is an embarrassment in asking how the library would benefit allowing the cornerstone.
The Masons represent a group of men who have donated thousands of dollars over the years to programs benefiting the underprivileged through their shoe program, the Language Clinic and the bike program, just to name a few, and they don't ask for anything in return. The Masons vote for mill levies and public libraries.
In their rush to get through the short agenda, the council displayed ignorance and a shortsighted disregard for an organization representing the dynamic freedoms we all hold so close to our hearts and for which the Greatest Generation so bravely fought.
Kitty Field
Billings


Read more: http://billingsgazette.com/news/opinion/mailbag/city-council-shouldn-t-rush-through-decisions/article_f981878f-8707-5b64-85fc-f3485a504d6d.html#ixzz2RbcvHieB

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

One year after Erie Shriners closes inpatient unit


BY DAVID BRUCE, Erie Times-News david.bruce@timesnews.com  PUBLISHED: APRIL 24, 2013 12:01 AM EST
The former Erie Shriners Hospital for Children looks the same from the outside.

A statue of a fez-wearing Shriner holding a child still stands guard outside the two-story, redbrick building. Parents still drive hours to bring their children -- some wearing plastic leg braces or protective helmets -- for therapy, outpatient surgeries and clinic visits.

But there have been a host of changes inside the facility since it converted April 24, 2012, from a hospital to a same-day surgery and outpatient center.

"We have completed what we intended to do to ensure our sustainability," said Charles Walczak, administrator of the Erie Shriners Ambulatory Surgery Center and Outpatient Specialty Care Center, 1645 W. Eighth St. "Now we're looking at growth."

What Erie Shriners did was close its inpatient surgery unit. All patients who require at least an overnight stay are now sent to either UPMC Hamot, Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC, or Philadelphia Shriners Hospital for Children.

Concentrating on same-day surgeries, therapy and clinic visits enabled Erie Shriners to slash its 2013 operating budget to $7.8 million, down from $9.25 million in 2012 and $11.08 million in 2009 -- the year in which Shriners International delegates proposed closing six hospitals, including Erie's.

"I don't know if we would have closed had we not made these changes," Walczak said. "But this was our best alternative. We are now being used as an example for other (Shriners hospitals) to follow."

But the changes have come at a cost to some patients and employees.

After all, 86 of Erie Shriners' 134 inpatient surgeries in 2012 were actually done in Pittsburgh, while 36 were performed in Philadelphia, said Mary Jane Antoon, R.N., Erie Shriners' director of patient care services.

Only 12 were done at UPMC Hamot, though the Erie hospital also saw some of Shriners' same-day surgeries that were scheduled late in the day.

As a result, northwestern Pennsylvania families, who used to stay at home during their child's inpatient visits to Erie Shriners, now must travel in most cases to Pittsburgh or Philadelphia, and stay for up to several days.

"Shriners International provides transportation and assists patient families with other needs in these cases," Antoon said. "It could be the cost of meals or lodging."

Erie Shriners orthopedic surgeon and former chief of staff John Lubahn, M.D., said the facility works to reduce the travel time for its patients.

"What is happening is that anyone who lives north of Interstate 80 goes to Erie, or even Pittsburgh," Lubahn said. "The kids who end up going to Philly are those who live more toward Harrisburg."

Lubahn said he hopes to increase the number of Shriners surgeries performed at Hamot, where he works. It depends on recruiting at least one more surgeon to Shriners, he said.

"We're working to recruit another hand surgeon to our office," Lubahn said.

Closing its inpatient unit has allowed Erie Shriners to reduce its staff. It currently employs the equivalent of 86 full-time people, down from 97 in 2012 and 124 in 2009.

Walczak said there have not been any layoffs in the past year.

"We have reduced by attrition," Walczak said. "There have been unfilled positions that we have elected not to fill."

Erie Shriners saw a 9 percent increase in its number of clinic and therapy visits in 2012, but a 10 percent decrease in same-day surgeries.

Part of the problem is the difference between outpatient surgeries -- which Erie Shriners performed when it was a hospital -- and the ambulatory surgeries now done there, Walczak said.

"Outpatient surgery patients in Pennsylvania can have a longer recovery stay than ambulatory patients," Walczak said. "That restricts the number of surgeries we can do here at Shriners. We have to err on the side of safety."

Erie Shriners also became a landlord in August 2012, when the Children's Hospital Specialty Care Center Erie opened in the Shriners' former inpatient unit on the second floor. The center is not affiliated with Shriners.

A medical clinic featuring pediatric specialists from the Pittsburgh hospital, the center allows area families to make preoperative, postoperative and diagnostic visits for their children without traveling to Pittsburgh.

"Having the clinic does help us because we can refer our patients upstairs for services we can't provide instead of sending them to Pittsburgh," Antoon said.

Danielle Winkler (at left), 16, of Erie has her reflexes checked by orthopedic resident Dr. Purab Viswanath (at right) at the Shriners Hospitals for Children in Erie on April 23. In the background, Sue Margraf, R.N. records Winkler's vital signs. JARID A. BARRINGER//ERIE TIMES-NEWS


DAVID BRUCE can be reached at 870-1736 or by e-mail. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/ETNbruce.

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

ABA Honors Tina Palmieri, M.D., Assistant Chief of Burns at Shriners Hospitals for Children


Dr. Tina Palmieri Honored by American Burn Association for Professional Leadership and Collaborative Research Shriners Hospital Doctor Recognized for Efforts to Forge New Alliances
in Disaster Management and Burn Prevention

(SACRAMENTO, CALIF.) – Tina Palmieri, M.D., Assistant Chief of Burns at Shriners Hospitals for Children – Northern California, will be honored for her efforts to improve patient outcomes through collaborative care and research at the 45th Annual Meeting of the American Burn Association taking place in Palm Springs, Calif., April 23 - 26, 2013.

“Being president of the ABA is an honor and privilege,” said Dr. Palmieri, who is completing her one-year term as president of the professional society of more than 3,500 burn care professionals this month. “Over the past year, the ABA has helped build bridges that will leave a lasting impact on the quality of burn care, and I am thrilled with the example set by my own Shriners Hospitals for Children network,” she added, noting that 40 of the studies to be presented at the conference were submitted by professionals at Shriners Hospitals for Children.
According to statistics published by the ABA, every two minutes a hospital in the United States cares for a least one burn-related injury, accounting for more than 450,000 burn-related injuries in a year.

Dr. Palmieri has expertise in treating both pediatric and adult burn injuries. As Assistant Chief of Burns at the Northern California Shriners Hospital, Dr. Palmieri is at the helm of California’s busiest pediatric burn center. She also is Professor and Director of the Firefighters Burn Center at the University of California, Davis, where she treats adults with burn injuries and has been honored with two prestigious awards: 1) the Dean’s Award of Excellence in Clinical Care in 2009; and 2) the Women’s Leadership Development Program Award in 2002.
During her tenure as ABA president, Dr. Palmieri worked to foster greater collaboration among health care professionals. Her efforts to forge new alliances resulted in a partnership conference that brought together representatives of the International Association of Fire Fighters, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the National Fire Protection Agency, health care professionals, hospital administrators and burn survivors. Dr. Palmieri’s collaborative approach also resulted in disaster planning sessions that may form the foundation for a national burn disaster response strategy.r. Palmieri has held leadership roles in the ABA for many years. In 2012, she led the presentation on the Anatomy of
the National Burn Repository, which with more than 300,000 records is one of the largest collections of data on burn outcomes in the world. Dr. Palmieri also chaired the Program, Education and Research Committees and was on the Steering Committee for the ABA Multicenter Trials Group, which united burn researchers to perform meaningful outcomes research.

“The main goal of my research is to improve the quality of life of people who have sustained burn injury,” says Dr. Palmieri. “Survival alone shouldn’t be our goal anymore. It should be to give people the best possible quality of life after a burn injury,” she said.
“The future of the ABA – and of expert burn care in general – rests in strategic partnerships and a commitment to innovative scholarship. These are values we embrace every day at the ABA and at Shriners Hospitals for Children,” said Dr. Palmieri.

The ABA is dedicated to improving the lives of everyone affected by burn injury through patient care, education, research and advocacy. ABA membership includes burn care physicians, nurses, physical and occupational therapists, social workers, psychologists, rehabilitation experts, researchers, firefighters, burn survivors and others with an interest in the field of burn care.

A leader in pediatric burn care and research, Shriners Hospitals for Children is devoted to transforming the lives of children through excellence in treatment, teaching and research. Located at 2425 Stockton Boulevard in Sacramento, Shriners Hospitals for Children – Northern California provides care to children with orthopaedic conditions, spinal cord injuries, burns, cleft lip and scars from any cause. There are no barriers to care as admission is based on age and diagnosis.
For further information call (916) 453-2000 or go online to www.shrinershospitalsforchildren.org.

Monday, April 22, 2013

The Grand Master's Visit-by Worshipful Brother Roger M. Firestone, 33°


Brethren,

The below article was received from W. Bro. Ed Halpaus and is such an appropiate article today, as yesterday our district held their Grand Masters Class, often referred to as the "one day class". We brought 425 new Masons into the Fraternity in the Dayton, Ohio district. So often we see visitors and Brethren that haven't been in Lodge for some time walk into our Lodges and feel uncomfortable because no one comes up and shakes their hand and welcome them to the Lodge. We are a Fraternity of Brotherhood, so if you are reading this, make a concentrated effort to be the first to welcome new Brethren and visitors into your Lodges. Sometimes it just takes one Brother to make the first move to shake a hand and others will follow. I think this would be great article to read to your Lodge Brethren as an educational program.

The following article was written by Worshipful Brother Roger M. Firestone, 33° and is reprinted from The Scottish Rite Journal, 2012 November-December issue, and used with permission.
Dr. Firestone is Past Master, A. Douglas Smith, Jr., Lodge of Research No. 1949, AF&AM, Alexandria, VA; Musician, Henry Lodge No. 57, AF&AM, Fairfax, VA; Past Master, National-Stansbury-Dawson Lodge No. 12, F.A.A.M, Washington, DC; and member of the Ancient Landmark No. 5, St. Paul, MN


The Grand Master's Visit

The Grand Master of Masons came to our Lodge the other night. You could tell from his bemused expression that it was a strange experience for him. Nobody addressed him as "Most Worshipful." He didn't wear a gold-trimmed apron of elaborate design, a chain of office, or a pocket jewel with a glittering diamond. There was no committee of distinguished Past Masters and Past District Deputy Grand Masters to present him in a dramatic, candle-lit ceremony held in an otherwise darkened Lodge room. His wife wasn't introduced, or even invited, nor was there a ladies' program during the Lodge meeting for the Brothers; the wives stayed home for the evening. The Master of the Lodge wasn't
even there to greet him beforehand, nor was the Senior Warden; the Junior Warden was in charge of the Lodge. There was no elaborate banquet before (or after) Lodge, complete with toasts and speeches and tickets sold dearly around the area with many disappointed that they could not obtain one; the Stewards had some ice cream and cookies after the communication, and one Brother had made a pot of coffee for those who had come early. Nobody received any special awards or certificates, carefully saved up for weeks so that the great man could make the presentation to the Brothers. No Brother took the man's auto to be topped off for his trip home.

What kind of sorry excuse for a Lodge is this, you must be asking. How could a Master plan so poorly or be so ignorant of the proper protocols and procedures for receiving such an important guest? The Brothers of that Lodge must be embarrassed to have acquitted themselves in such shabby fashion and to have had such feckless leadership, surely.

Nothing of the sort, I tell you! Every detail of the evening was in accord with the established customs and practices of the Craft. Not a letter or word of ritual was out of place, and all went according to the plan of the Worshipful Master, no matter how incredible that sounds.

You see, this was not the sitting Grand Master, nor a Past Grand Master, nor one of the line officers of the Grand Lodge acting as Grand Master or soon to be Grand Master. No, this man is the Grand Master of Masons some twenty-three years from now, and he was receiving his first degree in Masonry at our Lodge. None of us knew, as we prepared him for his first experience in Freemasonry, that he would be Grand Master in somewhat more than two decades. Surely, he didn't know himself—in fact, he probably didn't know that there _was_ such a thing as a Grand Master, and may not even have been clear on the idea of the Master of a Lodge, especially since the Jr. Warden was acting in that role.

His father was a Mason (how often we hear that!), but never spoke to his son much about Masonry (that too!), leaving him uninformed of what Dad did those three or four nights of the month when the rest of the family ate dinner without him. His grandfathers, too, were Masons, but our initiate was too young when they passed to the Celestial Lodge to have learned much from them about the Craft. So his initiation was an entirely strange experience, unlike anything he had encountered before.

A strange experience, but not an unpleasant one, because the members of the Lodge went out of their way to make the new Brother's first night as a Mason a welcoming event. Just as they have done for many another Brother and fellow before this one. No one left him alone in the fellowship hall before or after the Degree while they talked with
Brothers they already knew. No one made him feel that the ritual of the Degree was simply a long, boring ceremony to be gotten through. Rather, he was made to feel the center of the experience, and that a score of men had taken time away from their families, the work brought home from the office, the latest "reality" program on TV. The members of the Lodge gave him the impression that they were truly glad to have him become a Mason and that they expected him to be just as pleased to join them in the greatest organization in their corner of the world.

When a candidate presents himself at Lodge for his Entered Apprentice degree--or a sojourning Mason from some other jurisdiction who has moved to your neighborhood shows up at a stated communication and requests an examining committee--how do you treat him? Is he really a friend you haven't met yet, or are those merely words on a dusty and slightly crumpled placard tacked on the Lodge bulletin board? Every one of those famous Masons on the lists we post around the World Wide Web was once a "nobody" being prepared by a Steward to knock at the door of the Lodge.

Masonic Education by Grand Lodge Sword Bearer


Please come and join us this Wednesday, April 24 at 7pm, for our Masonic Education with our guest speaker WB Marc Newman, Grand Lodge Sword Bearer 2012-2013.

The presentation is partly Informational, Educational, and Motivational. It is an interactive power point presentation that is not boring.

It is a review of our Fraternity's Strategic Plan, Our Fraternity's goal, and our Fraternity's project. It is intended to inform our craft of the obligations and commitments we all have made and how to continue improving ourselves as well as our community.

The presentation has been approved by The Grand Master and Grand Lodge.

Applicants, candidates, Entered Apprentices and Fellowcrafts are encouraged to attend. Our ladies are also welcome. Following the Masonic Education is our monthly fellowship/ get-to-know-a brother night. 

Attire is Casual.

Thank you my brother for supporting our lodge. And hope to see you this Wednesday.



Sincerely and Fraternally,

Wilhelm B. Adoremos
2013 Master
Granada Hills Lodge 378

Wednesday, April 3, 2013

El Zaribah Child ID Program


On Saturday April 6th, 
 Chandler Police are doing 
Child ID Program where the parents can bring their children to be electronically fingerprinted, have an audio/video tape of the child and a DNA swab taken for free, donation gladly accepted.  
 
 
T
he Chandler Police and some 
m
ason
 typically do this activity, but the
 several
m
ason
s
 that normally work events like this
  
have other York Rite obligations and they reached out to me for assistance.

The information of the child gathered is NOT held by police or any other agency but given to the parents or guardian of the child.  ALL information gathers is deleted from the computers within a day or less of the event.  The parent or guardian keeps the DVD, finger prints and DNA for if - GOD Forbid - the child is taken.  To be put out on AMBER ALERT.   As a worse case scenario the DNA can be used to ID the remains of a child

If you remember the group we had at the Temple for a presentation, BACA (Bikers Against Child Abuse), I have also requested their assistance with this event. 
 
The event is on Saturday April 6th
 9 AM until 12 Noon
  (c
ome early to help set up
)

Mayor Jay Tibshraeny’s Health Connect Expo

Tumbleweed Recreation Center 745 E Germann Rd Chandler, AZ
 We will be inside

Any Noble or their ladies interested in helping with this can contact JC Reece