Minutes of Stated Meeting  ~  October 12th

          

 

BALLUT ABYAD TEMPLE, AAOMNS, meeting in regular session on this 12th day of October AD 2009 at 7:30 PM.  It was the regular meeting for October.  The following officers were present:

Lonnie A. Hedrick, Potentate
Ray St. John, Chief Rabban
Duane Crapser, Assistant Rabban
Joe Shelton, High Priest and Prophet
Richard Almeter, Oriental Guide
Larry Bennett, Treasurer
Ronald E. Page, Recorder
Daryl Wilson, 1st Ceremonial Master
Johnnie Smith, Director
David Romine, Captain of the Guard
Bob Thornton, Outer Guard
Tom Davis, Chaplin
Adam Hathaway, Parliamentarian

 The meeting was opened in regular form at 7:30 PM.

Noble Tom Davis, Chaplin, gave the invocation;
The Colors were presented by the Legion of Honor, the Pledge of Allegiance was given;
the Band played the National Anthem and the Colors were posted.

The Potentate introduced the following Past Potentates:

P.P. Richard Driskill                                       1986
P.P. Norman C. Ribble                                    1987|
P.P. Dale G. Pipher                                         1995
P.P. Roy Patton                                                2000
P.P. Rodney Serrano                                        2003
P.P. William Mandley                                      2003
P.P. Dion Newhouse                                        2006
P.P. Wally Vigil                                               2007

The Potentate welcomed the Past Potentates.

The Potentate asked for the reading of the minutes of the last meeting.
A motion came from the floor to accept the minutes as written.  The motion was seconded and passed.

The Nobility was advised that petitions had been received from Robert C. Ramsdell, Belen, NM; and Larry L Rice, Los Lunas, NM, and both were later elected for initiation.

The Potentate then requested the necrology report.  We had three Nobles who rode the black camel. 
They were Raymond E. Baker, Albuquerque, NM;
Floyd Greenhill, Albuquerque, NM; .
McCown, Flora Vista, NM. 
The Nobility stood uncovered while the Band played appropriate music. 

There were four demits requested.  They were:
James W. Millikin, Bloomfield, NM;   
Doyle J. Randall, Roswell, NM;
Earl B. Starkey, Foster, OK; and
Jerry L. Teale, Los Lunas, NM
Since they were clear on our records the demits were granted by the Potentate.

The Treasurer presented the financial reports and asked that they be approved.  The motion was seconded and passed. Copies of the reports are a part of these minutes. 

The Potentate then requested that the Recorder read the Resolution lain over until this meeting from September 14, 2009, to amend our By-Laws and raise Ballut Abyad dues.   By letter dated September 21, 2009, all Ballut Abyad members had been advised of the Resolution.   The Resolution was then read to the Nobility:

“Resolution; Proposed Amendment to By-Laws:
This Resolution, submitted first is the Ballut Abyad Meeting, September 14, 2009, secondly laid over to the Stated Meeting October 12, 2009, and published by this notice to all Nobles of Ballut Abyad Temple, the following:

Whereas, annual Shrine dues have remained constant for sixteen (16) years (since 1993) and the expenses of operating Ballut Abyad Temple have increased substantially since 1993. 

Be it resolved that effective January 1, 2010, Ballut Abyad annual dues shall be increased by $33.00 from $47.00 to $80.00 (or an amount determined by the Nobility at Ballut Abyad Stated Meeting October 12, 2009).  Note: Hospital Assessment of $5.00 and Imperial Per Capita Tax of $15.00.  Members, except those holding Life Memberships for Imperial and Ballut Abyad would pay:  Regular Members; Temple dues $80.00, Per Capita Tax $15.00; Hospital Assessment $5.00 for a total of $100.00.

Signed by Lonnie A. Hedrick, Potentate and attested by Ronald E. Page, Recorder.”

Chief Rabban St. John made a motion that the Resolution be passed and Assistant Rabban Crapser seconded the motion.

P.P. Newhouse advised the Nobility the reason we have not had a dues increase is that one has not been needed.  The Potentate stated he had been contacted by several Shrine Clubs; Clovis (100percent) against the dues increase and Farmington, against the proposed increase but would rather have it done in steps of smaller increases.  Older members are on fixed incomes are against. 

Bob Armstrong,  from the Band related an example of an organization which kept increasing prices while losing customers and went into bankruptcy because higher prices lost them their business. 

Treasurer Bennett related our expenses have kept going up over the years and we need more money for necessary repairs and just keeping open. 

P.P. Vigil was for the increase. 

Noble Crapser advised the circus money is not there and “you need to think with your heart and do something now”.

Noble Czel asked what other nearby Temples pay and thereafter made a motion to amend the Resolution to be increased to ten (10) dollars a year for five years.  This move was seconded and defeated.

Noble Byrne requested the motion be deferred until 2011 and was advised this was not germane as amendments had to deal with money figures. 

Noble Bob Keers then requested the Resolution be amended to increase dues by ten (10) dollars a year for the next two years (for a total of $20.00).  This was seconded by Noble Denslow and two other Band members. 
P.P. Serrano spoke against this amendment. however it was approved.

The Potentate then called for a clarification of the Resolution as now amended.  The Nobility was told that as now written the Temple dues for 2010 would be $57.00 and 2011 would be $67.00.  The Resolution was then presented for a vote by the Nobility and was passed by more than two thirds of those present.

Committee Reports were called for and Parliamentarian Hathaway advised we will (after several tries) have an Outreach Clinic on October 24, 2009.  He apologized to the Scottish Rite for the conflict but added it could not be prevented. 

Assistant Rabban Crapser told the Nobility we are awaiting estimates on re-roofing the south side of the auditorium and the House Committee would act on the estimate when received.

The Potentate and Queen’s Ball is on Saturday Night, November 7, 2009.  It is to be a Bobby Socks Ball and all are requested to wear appropriate era wear.

The Potentate announced that on October 10th, The Grand Lodge of New Mexico had continuation degrees at Carlsbad and Temple 6.  26 were raised at Temple 6 and 23 were raised at Carlsbad.  The Potentate and three other members of the Divan were in Carlsbad and performed a “Cold Sands”, taking in seven new Shriners.

P.P. Patton advised we are in danger of losing Warren and Doris Miller from Wednesday Night Bingo and we need volunteers to help. 

The Potentate stated we need a Bingo Manager to replace Warren, but there could be several assistants as the Manager handles the paper work.  He also advised we had had 15 RVs from California using our facilities during the Balloon Festival. They had a great time and donated $700.00 for further development of our RV parking area. He also extended many thanks to Noble Burgess and his wife Kathy for working with our guests.

P.P. Ribble then related his recollection of the Ballut Abyad Shrine Officers coming forward and getting Sage Volkman transported to the Shrine Hospital in Galveston, Texas, to be treated for life threatening burns over nearly all of her body.  He then read, to the Nobility, a letter of appreciation from Robert DeBuck, Edgewood, NM., dated Sunday, August 2nd.  The letter is as follows:

“Ray, please share this with your Shrine organization, and express to them my deepest and long overdue gratitude.

I have never written this before, but have always intended to.  It’s about Sage Volkman and the Shriners.  It’s been almost 23 years so I get a minor detail wrong so be it.

We were in the UNM burn unit, Denise Volkman (a close friend), her daughter Sage, my wife Ruth and Myself, along with a few others I don’t remember.  Sage had been admitted into the Burn Unit, she had 3rd and 2nd degree burns over 80% of her body.  She had been caught in a camping trailer that exploded and burned from a propane leak. Seems no one at the propane plant had added the chemical that gives gas its distinct smell.  The leak went unnoticed until the exposion.

This first day none of us had any idea how bad she really was, but that information came in small amounts over the next 3 or 4 days, might have been weeks for all I remember now.  1st it was her finger, then thumbs, toes, ears, lips, nose, feet, chest, legs, throat, lungs, perhaps even her eyes.  Seems about the third day she started to go into convulsions, and organs started shutting down.  Bandages became hard to keep on, etc.  Prayers were said, blessing given (a Morman thing) at some point she seems to have stabilized, but was still in a very deep coma.

Once she was stable (an hour by hour situation) we started realizing the scope of the whole situation.  Without going into detail and simply stated the Volkmans world was upside down and in a thousand pieces.  None of us had any idea how or where to start.  At this point the best any of us could do was put a small piece of food in our mouth and chew.  If anyone has ever been through an similar experience they understand how we felt, but all the more so for the Volkman family.  Michael, Sage’s father and the one who pulled her from the burning trailer was in the same hospital on another floor recovering from burns on his face and hands…. A thousand questions, and every answer seemed to seed and create a hundred new questions.

What about work? Where will we live?  If she survives how will she be cared for?  Words cannot express what we felt at that moment. God, above how do we do this, and where do we start?

It was sometime during this that a nurse indicated that three men wanted to help.  I remember seeing them for the first and last time standing at the end of the hall, shadowed by the light coming through the door behind them.  The introduced themselves as from the Shrine organization, they told us a private jet, an air ambulance was at that very moment waiting at the airport ready to fly Sage and her mother to the Shriners’ Burn Hospital in Galveston, Texas.  A home had been made available, stocked with food, furniture, linens, with a car in the garage.  Avery, Sage’s older brother had been registered in the local school, every detail had been covered, were they ready to go.

As I write this tears are flowing from my eyes.  I cannot remember their faces, but as long as any of us walk this earth we will never forget those 3 men.  May God bless them forever.  Shriners is a name that is almost sacred.

Sage did survive, and is now working on a Doctorate Degree in Child Trauma Psychology some where in Utah.  Her parents and brother all live in the Bernalillo NM area and are doing well.  For my part I have never really told Sage this part of her story.  I tried once but started crying and never could get it out.  Perhaps her mother or someone else did, I don’t know.  There have been perhaps thousands of articles written about “Sage’s Story” but none I have ever read spoke of the real hero’s, those men of the Shrine.  I guess that is often the case of Unsung Hero’s.

I have often thought of writing a letter to express what I have said here in this note.  Meeting Ray Cohen the other day has given me the opportunity to do so.

May God bless all of you in everything you do to serve your fellow beings.

                                                            Thank You, Robert DeBuck, Edgewood, NM”

Noble Carlile then advised the annual Halloween Party, hosted by the Young Guns will be on October 31, 2009, in the ballroom starting at 6:00 PM.  Cost is $5.00 per person, the nursery will be open for your children, your grand children or the children of your neighbors.  Finger food will be available.  There will be a Disc Jockey and a costume contest. 

The Potentate closed the meeting in short form at 8:55 PM. 

Submitted by
Ronald E. Page
Recorder