Associate Supreme Guardian

WI, MN, SD, NE, KS, BRAZIl, MI, ONT, NM, AZ, 

South Dakota 

By Janine Coley, Supreme Guardian

 After Leadership Weekend in Minneapolis, Dad Hoglund, Maureen Wise, Supreme Bethel Guardian, and I headed west to South Dakota.  Since our visit to Sioux Falls was scheduled for the middle of the week, we had a chance to explore some of South Dakota.  Our first stop was to Chamberlain where the Missouri River crosses the state.  We had our picture with a giant bison, and had a buffalo burger for lunch.  The weather was perfect and we stopped to see the Corn Palace located in Mitchell.  The first Corn Palace was built in 1892 and each year it is redecorated with corn, grasses, and grains of South Dakota.  The theme for 2008 is Super Heroes and there are several murals on the inside and outside of the building depicting firemen, teachers, doctors, soldiers, and other everyday heroes. 

On Tuesday, Brittney and Jette met us in Sioux Falls and we visited the Falls that gives the city its name.  Falls Park covers 42 acres and each second, an average of 7,400 gallons of water drop 80 feet over the falls.  After exploring the falls, we met the daughters of three different bethels of Sioux Falls in the evening for a pizza party.  We appreciated their smiles and learned hand motions for the Welcome song sung at Initiation! 

 

We had some time to explore again the next morning and visited the U.S.S. South Dakota.  While it is not the actual ship, there are parts of the ship that have been displayed as if it were the size of the real ship as a memorial.

 

In the evening we attended a bethel meeting.  I enjoyed seeing the Grand Bethel Representatives present their jurisdiction’s flag at the altar and give one fact about the jurisdiction at the beginning of the meeting.  We were also impressed with the Daughters giving the Bethel Robe Ceremony.  After the meeting we enjoyed cake and talking with the Daughters. 

 We had beautiful weather in South Dakota, learned some history, and enjoyed our time with the Daughters and adults.

Saskatchewan

By Janine Coley, Supreme Guardian

 From Manitoba we headed west to Saskatchewan past fields of sunflowers.  There was a definite feel of fall in the air with yellow leaves dotting many of the trees and the temperature in the 50’s.  The sun was bright and we decided to detour to Souris on our way to Saskatoon to see the swinging bridge.  The bridge was built in 1904 by Squire Sowden to allow him to cross the Souris River to get to his property.  The bridge is 582 feet long and has a good spring when you jump up and down on it!  We conducted some science experiments by creating waves and feeling the reflection of waves as it went back and forth across the bridge.  

We were back on the road after our break and arrived in Saskatoon in the evening.  We were met by Carole-Anne Wilson-Hough, Vice Jurisdictional Guardian and checked into our hotel.  The next day we explored downtown Saskatoon before going to a meeting at Bethel 16.  This was the first time we attended a bethel meeting in our travels and we enjoyed being with the daughters.  We appreciated the Bethel presenting the American Flag for us.  The girls showed us the Bethel Flag Ceremony and Dad Hoglund and I were privileged to install the Bethel Guardian Council.  After the meeting there was a barbeque and we played bingo.   

The next day Brittney and Jette went mini-golfing with the daughters from Bethel 16 while Dad Hoglund, Janet Dryburgh, and I met with the adults from the Jurisdictional Guardian Council.  The day ended with a delicious potluck. There were many people from the Ukraine who settled in Saskatoon, so we had perogies and cabbage rolls along with pasta and wonderful desserts.  We enjoyed being with the daughters and adults of Saskatchewan!

 We packed our things the next morning in the little trailer we were pulling for luggage and started on our way home.  As we reached the city limits of Saskatoon, we heard a thud and found that one of the tires on the trailer had blown – all the tread had disappeared and we were riding on the tire rim.  Dad Coley and Dad Hoglund changed the tire and we were once again on our way after a 45 minute delay.  

 We reached Winnipeg by 7:30 and left Dad Hoglund in Winnipeg to catch his flight back to Maryland.  Our trip was rewarding.  We felt the cool temperatures and wind of autumn, saw fields of wheat and sunflowers dotted with colorful bee hives, watched many DVD’s as we traveled, and appreciated the friendships and kindness of daughters and adults.

 

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Manitoba

By Janine Coley, Supreme Guardian

 Our trip to Manitoba found us driving.  With a newly installed trailer hitch on my car, we pulled a small trailer for our luggage in order to have enough room for passengers in the car.  There were five of us on the trip when we left Mukwonago and we met Dad Hoglund in Winnipeg.  The first night in Winnipeg we met with the Jurisdictional Guardian Council while the girls went “glow golfing.” 

The next morning we began a tour of Winnipeg.  Our first stop was The Mint.  There are two mints in Canada where coins are made for not only Canada, but also for other countries.  The tour was from a walkway around the large room where coins were being made and we peered through glass windows at the process.  In the gift shop was a bar of gold, chained to a table and guarded, that was worth about $300,000.  We each tried to lift it, some of us more successful than others.  We had our picture taken next to a large moose dressed as a Canadian Mountie, minted our own souvenir coin, and weighed ourselves on a scale that told how much we were worth in gold, platinum, silver, and other metals.  After the Mint we headed to Ruby Begonia’s restaurant at Assiniboine Park.  The Park has a zoo and an arboretum and the daughters of Winnipeg often have events at the park. 

After lunch we had some time to shop at the Polo Park Shopping Centre.  I was interested in the Bay Store, my husband headed to a sports store with the Jurisdictional Associate Guardian, and the girls were interested in finding ice cream.  A few years ago, Winnipeg had large statues of polar bears placed around the city.  Each bear was decorated differently according to how the sponsor wanted to have the bear done.  We stopped at the Grand Lodge office in Winnipeg for our picture next to the bear dressed as a Mason.  Our next stop was the Legislature where Parliament meets in Winnipeg.  As we left the Legislature, we drove through a park where many of the bears were on display from businesses that did not want them.  There were bears with northern lights on them, bears with loons, different seasons, but no bear with a Coke! 

Our final stop before dinner was The Forks, a crafty, boutique place with several different shops.  For dinner we met with about 45 people from the bethels in Winnipeg including several Past Grands.  Our dinner was at the Spaghetti Factory, an Italian place with delicious food.  The night was not over yet as they wanted to take us to see the fish at Club Regent, a casino.  The two girls were excited to go because they are able to go to a casino in Canada at age 18.  They couldn’t wait to be carded!  The fish were in a tunnel that you walked through to get to the gaming machines.  We had our picture taken by a guard in front of the fish, as no pictures are allowed anywhere in the casino.  The girls had a lot of fun with a talking skeleton who was really someone hidden from view.  We stayed for about an hour because we were leaving in the morning, and no, I did not lose any money because it takes playing the machines to win.  We were back to our place by midnight. 

We enjoyed our stay in Winnipeg and meeting with dedicated daughters and adults.  We wish to thank them for their wonderful hospitality! 

 

Wisconsin’s Jobie Jamboree

by Mike Hoglund, ASG

Our first trip was to Wisconsin for the Jobie Jamboree.  This is at a retreat on a lake in central Wisconsin.  They have fun activities as well as their Pageant during Jamboree.  I was asked to be a judge for their Pageant.  This was the first actual trip and my flight to Milwaukee was cancelled due to the lack of a flight crew.  I ended up having to fly to Chicago via Boston.  The people who were going to meet me in Milwaukee were nice enough to drive an extra two hours to get me.  The drive through Chicago during rush hour made the trip to Wisconsin an extra hour longer.  The result was that I arrived at Jamboree ten hours late.  Brittney and Jette immediately decided that anyone arriving more than ten minutes late had to buy the rest of the Supreme Team ice cream.  So I did.  During my absence, they were able to do the Interview portion of the judging for Pageant.  The Wisconsin Pageant is similar to the International Pageant with one difference.  The combined point total for interview, written test, Ritual and robe judging and stage presence are used to get the five finalists.  It is then out of the Judges control.  The finalists are asked the “Question.”  Each Bethel has ten minutes to decide which contestant will get their Bethel’ vote.  A Bethel representative casts the vote.  The votes are counted and the Finalist with the most votes is the new Miss Wis.

After Minnesota’s Camp, Jette and I flew to Washington, D.C. for the Joint Biennial Session of the Northern and Southern Jurisdictions of the Scottish Rite.  This is the first time the two jurisdictions have ever meet together.  As SBHQ, Jette was asked to speak to the 3500 Scottish Rite Masons and their ladies during the opening session Monday morning.  She did an excellent job and received many compliments during the Session.  Monday afternoon, we went to many of the monuments in D.C.  We also drove through Georgetown and saw Great Falls, Maryland on the Potomac River.  Tuesday morning, Supreme Second Messenger Dianne Regner took Jette to Arlington Cemetery while I was receiving my 33^rd Degree.  In the afternoon, we went to the National Zoo.  That evening, Jette and I attended the formal banquet where former astronaut and Senator John Glenn was the keynote speaker.  Wednesday, I returned to work and Jette flew home to Wyoming.

Minnesota Camp

By Janine Coley, Supreme Guardian 

One of the first trips on the road was to Minnesota for Camp.  Each year there is a different theme and for 2007 it was “Musical Magic.”  We arrived on Thursday, August 23^rd and was greeted by Pam Leech, Grand Guardian.  The Camp is located near Brainerd and is at Camp Lake Hubert in the beautiful north woods.  We arrived just in time for dinner and were escorted to the head table.  This was the only time at the head table because at each meal the head table changes with different daughters sitting at it. 

After dinner there was a Variety Show.  Each Bethel performed a skit from a scene of a musical.  Performances included Grease, High School Musical, Annie, Sound of Music, and the Wizard of Oz.  It was difficult to be a judge, everyone was wonderful! 

The next day we were up at 6:00 a.m. for the polar plunge.  Brittney, Jette, and Dad Hoglund took the plunge!  I did not!  It was fun to watch.  At every meal, Daughters and adults wait outside the dining hall for the bell to ring to enter the building.  I was asked to ring the bell that morning.  Each Bethel has an assigned table that gets changed for each meal.  We were asked to sit with a Bethel wherever we could find an extra place.  We were able to meet many Daughters and adults.  Meals were served family style and whoever was lucky enough to sit at the end of the table, was responsible for having all the dishes passed to them to be scraped and stacked for the server to pick them up at the end of the meal. 

The days at Camp are filled with activities for the Daughters and adults.  We went to the archery range, the craft building, played kickball, baseball, and volleyball, watched the kayak and canoe races, tug of war and volleyball in the water. We enjoyed a cookout for one of the lunches and one night watched an outdoor movie. The last night we were at Camp we participated in the Wishes on the Water ceremony.  Everyone wrote a wish on a piece of paper and placed it in the fire.  An Indian legend tells that the smoke takes the wishes to the sky and then the wishes return to earth.  After putting the wish in the fire, we were given a candle and walked to the beach.  Our path was lit with fire buckets and adults with flashlights.  Once at the beach, we placed our candles in one of four triangles and after all candles were placed in the triangles, canoes silently took them out onto the lake.  After singing several songs, with the stars twinkling brightly and the almost full moon peeking between the trees, the candles were extinguished.  We sat for a while on the beach putting the scene into our hearts forever. 

Minnesota Camp was a wonderful experience and I would like to encourage everyone to attend.  It is a special event where everyone has fun and gets to relax for a long weekend.