Walter J. Klein, 32°, K.C.C.H.
5009 Gamton Court, Charlotte, North Carolina 28226
wklein@carolina.rr.com

Brother John M. Belk, 32°, personifies the continuum of Freemasonry in America.

Brother John M. Belk's Masonic ties span 2 1/2 centuries. Photo: Bro. Walter J. Klein, 32°, K.C.C.H.

"Hey, John, why are you out here in freezing weather handing out football programs?"

"Same thing as you, Brother. Raising money for crippled and burned children."

For half a century, Bro. John Montgomery Belk, 32°, Valley of Charlotte, North Carolina, enjoyed working for the Shrine Bowl of the Carolinas, doing everything from leading the event to ushering families to their stadium seats.

Not bad for the CEO of America's largest chain of privately owned department stores, donor of $40 million to his alma mater Davidson College, son of one of the 13 founders of Oasis Temple of the Shrine in 1895, and national honoree for his unending work for the Boy Scouts of America.

But what really makes Brother Belk stand out is that he is the personification of the continuum of Masonry in America. He is a direct descendant of William Alexander, great grandfather of Hezekiah Alexander, one of the three powerful men who established and developed Charlottetown in the mid 1700s. If the title of mayor existed then, Hezekiah Alexander would surely have been its first. Two and one-half centuries later, descendant John M. Belk was indeed elected Mayor of Charlotte-and for more years than any other mayor in that city's history.

Hezekiah Alexander and many relatives migrated from Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Delaware. Undoubtedly, they had already been raised as Masons in those states. In Charlotte they met in Hezekiah's famous Masonic meeting house, the oldest Masonic building in America still standing. Their Lodge probably was the precursor of Phalanx Lodge No. 31. (See "Hez's House an Early Lodge" in the June 2002 Scottish Rite Journal.)

John's father, William Henry Belk, Sr., was a long-time member of Monroe, North Carolina, Lodge No. 244. He and his brother, Dr. John Montgomery Belk, opened their first store in Monroe in 1888. It was to be the first of today's 215 Belk department stores.

John's mother was a teacher, and one of her students was Brother Randolph Scott. John Belk and all his brothers-William, Henderson, Irwin, and Tom-affiliated with the Masonic Fraternity after World War II.

The American Freedom Bell in Charlotte, North Carolina, might never have happened without Bro. John M. Belk, 32°. Asked if he would donate 1/6th of its cost, he volunteered to underwrite 100%. Photo: Bro. Walter J. Klein, 32°, K.C.C.H.

John petitioned Excelsior Lodge No. 261 in Charlotte on January 21, was initiated March 4, passed April 15 and raised August 12, all in 1946. They were doing what their father hoped and expected of them. Affiliation with the Scottish Rite, Valley of Charlotte, soon followed, "back when they met in a wooden house on South Tryon Street next to the Masonic Temple," John wistfully remembers.

John married Claudia Watkins, a sitting District Court Judge, after he reached 50. His father also waited to marry until he was past 50. Being awarded his 50-year pin by his Excelsior Lodge Brethren was among the most moving events in John Belk's Masonic career. The one Mason he remembers best was "Uncle" Sam McCall, the coach who taught him (and hundreds of other Candidates) the catechism. Of course there have been countless Freemasons among John's thousands of employees and suppliers. John likes to compare Boy Scouts and Masons: "Both call for commitment to the brotherhood of man under the fatherhood of God and respect for all faiths." He subscribes to the truism that Masonry makes good men better, and he feels he is surely a better person for his lifelong commitment to the Order.

Walter J. Klein is a member of Excelsior Lodge No. 261 in Charlotte, N.C., and of the Scottish Rite Bodies of Charlotte. While working to create a museum at the Charlotte Scottish Rite Temple, he developed the idea that the Hezekiah Alexander House was built as a Masonic meeting hall, and he believes it to be the oldest Masonic structure in America. A member of the Scottish Rite Research Society, he received in 2000 the highest Masonic award in North Carolina, the Joseph Montford Medal, for his services to Freemasonry and America.