Message From the Master

Brethren, Greetings and salutations from the East

Well, Summer 2026 is quickly coming to a close. I sincerely hope that this message finds you and yours in great health and with some good summer memories. While experiencing the end of the season is sometimes depressing, the good news is that Washington Daylight Lodge will soon become light again. 

Since we have not met since June, I want to again remind everyone that we have officially terminated our lease with the Scottish Rite, and have relocated lock, stock, and barrel to the Naval Lodge Building, 330 Pennsylvania Avenue SE, Washington DC 20003. Outside of the location change, everything remains the same; Stated first Saturday of the month, Breakfast and Social – 8:30, Lodge Opens – 10:00, Lodge Closes – 12:00. I sincerely hope that those of you who haven’t been to Lodge for a while might find this venue more convenient and come and spend some time your brothers.

While we were in our annual summer hiatus, there was still a lot of activity I would like to recap.

WDL14 was most unfortunate with the passing of Worshipful Brother Edwin “Jay” Whitcomb on July 12, 2026. WB Whitcomb was an outstanding brother and a great asset to not only our Lodge but also Joppa No. 35 where he served as Worshipful Master in ’95 and ’96. Jay also served several tours with the Grand Lodge in different capacities. A memorial service is plan for September 26, 2026, 2PM and will be held at Pilgrim UCC, 2260 Briggs Road, Silver Spring, MD.

On July 25, 2026, Washington Daylight Lodge No 14 along with Almas Shriners hosted our annual summer crab feast/picnic and, as usual, was a great success. WDL14 membership was well represented but we were honored to be joined by brothers from Federal #1, The Colonial #1821, Maynilad #1521 and Naval Lodge # 4 …… Hopefully, we can improve our attendance record going forward. Along with a summer social event it is also a useful tool for recruiting.

 While our June Stated was held at the Naval Building, we still needed to relocate all our Lodge possessions and assets from the Scottish Rite to the new location. With great enthusiasm and comradery WB Carroll Collins, Bro Maurice Hill, WB Steve Baker, and myself organize, packed, and moved everything to our new storage closet at Naval. Thanks to our new “landlords” some shelving had been constructed which allowed us to appropriately store everything. While there’s some more work to be done, we’re in a good place and ready to reconvene in September without any interruptions. Also, I would like to extend a special shout out to WB Jay Emerson. Even though Jay couldn’t get up from Richmond, that day he was very helpful in logistics coordination and getting materials readied for the move. 

Well, brethren, that’s what’s been going on this summer with your Lodge and I look forward to seeing all of you in the near future as we continue our Masonic journey. May the Great Architect of the Universe continue to guide and bless us in all our endeavors.