[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 5]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 6212-6213]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




  IN RECOGNITION OF THE 150TH ANNIVERSARY OF EASTERN STAR LODGE NO. 13

                                  _____
                                 

                     HON. ROBERT C. ``BOBBY'' SCOTT

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, April 28, 2017

  Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to call attention 
and recognize the Eastern Star Lodge No. 13 in Hampton, Virginia. 
Eastern Star Lodge No. 13 is celebrating its 150th Anniversary tomorrow 
and has worked in continuous and faithful service to the Commonwealth 
of Virginia over this time.
  Prince Hall Masonic lodges have a long history in the Commonwealth, 
tracing their history to 1775 when Prince Hall and fourteen other free 
blacks joined a British army lodge of Masons stationed in Boston, 
Massachusetts and, following their departure, formed their own lodge: 
African American Lodge No. 1. Prince Hall became the lodge's first 
Grand Master.
  By establishing this organization, Prince Hall and his compatriots 
were, in 1775, taking some of the first steps to form one of America's 
first formal African-American institutions.
  Organized in 1866 and charted a year later in 1867, Eastern Star 
Lodge No. 13 was placed at the forefront of growth and development of 
Prince Hall Masonry in the Commonwealth of Virginia, and in our nation. 
For 24 years, Eastern Star Lodge No. 13 was one of the only Prince Hall 
Masonic lodges in Hampton Roads, before helping to expand Prince Hall 
Masonry throughout the Tidewater region. More recently, resulting from 
a number of lodge mergers, Eastern Star Lodge No. 13 is one of the 
largest Subordinate Prince Hall Lodges in Virginia.
  I have heard the question asked: ``when is a man a Mason?'' According 
to Joseph Fort Newton's ``The Builders,'' a man becomes a Mason when he 
has sympathy for others, the ability to empathize, when he looks for 
the upside in things, and when he keeps faith in himself, in his fellow 
men, and with his God. The real secret to Masonry, Newton writes, is 
the ability to give all to the world.

[[Page 6213]]

  In this spirit, countless members of Eastern Star Lodge No. 13 have 
served in their community and in leadership positions. Through their 
service and through their commitment to their community, members of 
Eastern Star Lodge No. 13 have done their part to provide mentorship, 
dispense charity, and ``aid in the uplifting of humanity'' through 
their charitable endeavors.
  Mr. Speaker, I would like to extend my enthusiastic congratulations 
to Mr. Antonio Hinton, Sr., who currently serves as the leader of 
Eastern Star Lodge No. 13 and all the members of this historic lodge on 
the celebration of 150 years of continuous service to Hampton and the 
Commonwealth of Virginia. It is my profound hope that through their 
work, members of Eastern Star Lodge No. 13 continue to provide support 
and service to their community.

                          ____________________