Ancient, Free & Accepted Masons

Grand Lodge of North Dakota

Sickness & Distress

Please respect the wishes of a brother who may not wish to have visitors while in the hospital.  Check with the spouse (is possible) before you visit a brother. 

PGM Arnie Ellingson's Wife Mary

It is with a heavy heart that I inform you all that PGM Arnie Ellingsons wife Mary passed away Sunday morning. 
The visitation will be Wednesday at Hanson Runsvold Funeral Home from 5-7 with a prayer service at 7pm. The
funeral will be Thursday morning at the 1st Lutheran Church Fargo at 10:30am.
 
If you would like to send your condolences here is his address
 
Arnie Ellingson PGM
2313 Willow Road
Fargo ND  58102
 
Please keep Arnie and his family in your thoughts and prayers.
 
Tracey

 

John Bridewell & his brother Duncan

An update as of July 10th

Brethren,

The following report of John Bridewell's condition was sent to me from Brother Mark Hoffman:
 

Here is a summary of the story of John Bridewell and his brother,Duncan and their plane crash.  Jan and I just returned from Salt Lake City (160 miles) where we picked up Renae and Granddaughter, Taylor from the airport.  We drove them to the University of Utah Hospital and we talked with John and Duncan.
 
First of all if anyone wants to send encouragement here is the address:
 
The University of Utah
University Health Care
50 North Medical Drive
Salt Lake City, UT 84132
 
Phone 1.801.585.8000
 
John and Duncan are in room 615.  As of today, there is no word how long they will be in the hospital.
 
John and Duncan are both pretty battered, but in unusually good spirits, even with some joking about their situation.  Both are very open and willing to talk about the crash.  I gave them a photo from Neal Martin of the crashed plane along with a topo print of Carbon County along the Green River, so it had to include the crash site.  The Canyon is called Desperation Canyon.
 
As John tells the story, they entered the Canyon, but found themselves losing 100 feet of altitude with each turn of the plane.  They didn't lose power, but lost lift.  Next thing, they were facing a vertical cliff so John decided to put the plane down, thinking he was in brush, but upon touching down found boulders hidden in the brush.  They hit one boulder as the news stories relate crashing the plane.  John had to crawl over a back seat to get out.  His brother was pinned in and unconscious for a moment.  John couldn't get Duncan loose until Duncan rolled into the pilots seat and John could extricate Duncans legs and drag him out.  As they left the plane, Duncan could already feel the flames, so the dragged themselves onto a rock.  The flames burned brush all around the rock and down towards the Green River an estimated 500 yards down hill.  The Green River is the same river that borders our place in Green River, Wyoming, but several hundred miles downstream.
 
All of the news stories and the videos do relate a very accurate account of the story as John told it, so I won't try to tell it again.
 
The rescuers did bring wet towels and water and hauled them down to the rafts, one at a time.  They rafter downstream a bit and put in to shore because of rapids down stream.  One of the rafters was an EMT with his kit.  They were put up in a screen tent for the night.  Apparently there was a desert cloudburst during the time.  Next morning they were visited by a raft with two nurses, one of whom had a satellite phone.  Next raft had a doctor. The rescuers had done as much as the medical professionals could have done.
 
They were air evacuated by helicopter to Salt Lake.
 
John has a banged up nose with stitches, a lost tooth, a damaged arm with a cast and a cast on his repaired foot/ankle.
 
The very best part is the sequence of circumstances that brought them aid and care......and that they are both in good spirits.
 
I will leave it to John to tell all the details at a later date.  He gave us an absolutely fascinating story with all the details.
 
Mark
 

Brethren,

Prayers are needed for Brother John Bridewell and his brother Duncan who were in a plane crash this morning in Utah.

Two People Survive Plane Crash In Carbon County

Two people survived a plane crash in Carbon County thanks to rescuers by water and by air.

The four-seat Cherokee plane crashed in a remote area about 45 miles outside of Price, Utah on Sunday.

A tour of rafters floating down the Green River saw the wreckage and took care of the men overnight until help could arrive the next morning.

Officials said the plane crash sparked a fire which caused difficulty for rescue crews. This and the rugged terrain required rescuers to get the victims out by medical helicopter. The pilot, John Bridewell of South Dakota and his passenger, Duncan Bridewell of Arizona are reportedly in stable condition at the University of Utah Hospital.

The fire has now burned about six acres and will make investigating the cause of the crash difficult.

Here is a link to that page where you may also view a video of the crash scene:
http://www.kutv.com/content/news/topnews/story.aspx?content_id=dc08339c-fe00-40bf-a439-60501f2ca799

 

Harry Meshefski

Brother Harry Meshefski, Mesa, Arizona, a member of Goose River Lodge #19, Mayville, and a Noble of both Kem and El Zagal Shrine, passed away on Monday June 23 in Arizona where he and his wife had retired. 
     A Memorial service will be held at Mayville Lutheran Church on Monday June 30 at 10:30 am.  A Masonic Memorial service will be held at Goose River Lodge in Mayville at 1:30 pm. 
     Please remember his Lady Carol and family in your thoughts and prayers. 
     Please put this on the web site.  Thanks!
Wendel A. VanWechel, PM, Secretary-Goose River Lodge #19

 

Albert P. Smith

The Forum
Published Sunday, June 08, 2008
 

Albert P. Smith, 82, of Fargo, passed away on June 7, 2008 at MeritCare Hospital in Fargo.

Al Smith was born July 19, 1925 on his parents’ farm in Cummings, North Dakota. In 1947, after serving two years in the armed forces, he married Dorothy M. Olson. They have made their home in Fargo, ND for the past 61 years. He was involved in the Dairy Queen, real estate and construction business, retiring in 1980. After retirement, he enjoyed photography, traveling, and computers.

Al was a past Master of Fargo Daylight Lodge #135, a life member and Honorary Past Master of Shiloh Lodge #1, a life member of El Zagal Shrine, and an active member of the Scottish Rite in Fargo, where he received the 33 degree Honorary Degree Award.

He is survived by his wife, Dorothy; two sons, Dale (Donna) Smith of Fargo, Wayne (Judy) Smith of Horace, ND; a daughter, Linda (Don) Covell of Hickson, ND; two brothers, Gary (Glenda) Smith of Rocherd, Minn., and Gene (Dolly) Smith of Fargo, N.D.; sister Norma Sliper of Moorhead, MN; four grandchildren: Rachel Butler, Sonia Agnew, Jason and Ryan Smith; and four great grandchildren.

He is preceded in death by his parents; two brothers Billy and Lawrence Smith.

Funeral: Tuesday, June 10, 2008 at 10:00 AM at First United Methodist Church.

Visitation: Monday, 5-7pm at Hanson-Runsvold Funeral Home.

Masonic Service: Monday, 7pm June 9, 2008 at Hanson-Runsvold Funeral Home in Fargo.

Burial: Riverside Cemetery, Fargo, N.D.

In lieu of flowers memorials can be given to North Dakota Scottish Rite Childhood RiteCare Center; 1405 3rd Street North, Fargo, ND 58102.

Please sign the online guestbook at www.hansonrunsvold.com

 

 

                                                                                                                                                       

To all Brethren from the Grand Lodge of North Dakota

The Officers of the Grand Lodge of North Dakota sincerely hope that all Brothers are in good health.   However, we all know that there are times when a Brother is in need.  We encourage you all to inform us when a Brother is in need by calling the Grand Lodge office, Phone No.: (701) 235-8321 or by email at grandlodgend@yahoo.com

 

 

We wish everyone a good day and stay healthy!