<< Previous   of   Next >> (click to enlarge) Steve Pennington of Edmonds is Co Chairman of the Public Relations Committee for the Masonic Grand Lodge of Washington.

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Robert Frank, City Editor frank@heraldnet.com

Masons honored for their contributions

By Kristi O'Harran, Herald Columnist

Men of the Masonic Lodge don't intentionally hide their lights under bushels.

They just do good deeds with little fanfare.

The Washington State Senate and House recently unanimously passed resolutions honoring Freemasonry for many contributions to our state.

What contributions?

Who are they?

It's always been a secret society to me.

Mason Steve Pennington of Edmonds was happy to clue me in. He is co-chairman of the Public Relations Committee for the Masonic Grand Lodge of Washington. Masons support philanthropic and public service activities.

They call themselves a fraternity and accept men of good character, Pennington said.

"It is not a religion but does require initiates to express a belief in a supreme being," he said. "How they worship is their own privilege. We do not discriminate on any basis of religion, ethnicity, nationality, or political preference."

The Grand Lodge of Washington was founded 150 years ago. The state's first Masonic lodge, in Olympia, was chartered by the Grand Lodge of Oregon in 1853 after Washington became a territory. There are 194 local lodges and more than 18,000 Masons in Washington.

Their secret ceremonies are a guy thing, reflecting the deep history of the organization.

I can live without seeing their fanfare. Any group that offers so much good can run it's own show. For instance, they support Shriners Hospitals for Children.

Shriners are Masons.

"We raise hundreds of millions of dollars annually to run the hospitals and never charge a penny for the treatment of children," Pennington said. "Shrine is the fun part of Masonry."

Masons support Bikes for Books by donating bicycles as prizes for kids who read. They raise money for scholarships, too.

Pennington said he's flipped many a pancake at benefit breakfasts. Masons also offer coffee at freeway rest stops for donations.

Men who were Masons include Paul Revere, Jim Bowie, Charles Lindberg, Buzz Aldrin, Count Basie, Clark Gable and Everett's own Sen. Henry M. Jackson.

Raised in Edmonds, Pennington graduated from Edmonds High School in 1967 and went to work for Boeing as an entry-level assembly mechanic that same year.

He enlisted in the Air Force and served in Oklahoma, Vietnam, Thailand, California and Okinawa before returning to Boeing. He attended Edmonds Community College and Central Washington University.

"I went into management at Boeing in 1979 and retired as a director in 2005," he said. "I am vice chairman of the Edmonds Community College Foundation and was named a Distinguished Alumnus in 2002."

He retired from the Washington Air National Guard as a chief master sergeant in 1997. Married for 37 years, he has a son, daughter, and three grandsons.

"When I was growing up, all my heroes wore uniforms," Pennington said. "Police officers, soldiers, firefighters. Those who sacrifice to serve."

He realized in his 20s that the strongest influences in his life, with the highest character, substance and stature, were all Masons."

It's nice to know a bit about the fraternity. And it was wonderful to be tutored by someone who volunteered to go to Vietnam.

That's a hero to me.



Columnist Kristi O'Harran: 425-339-3451 or oharran@heraldnet.com.