José J. De Luna, 33°
Scottish Rite Masonic Center
1895 Camino Del Rio South, San Diego, California 92108-3683
A boy of Mexican-American heritage decides
to be a Freemason because of incidents in his childhood and
his grandfather's example.
Drawing:
Bro. Thomas Parker Emery, 32°
As a small boy, I would sit for hours watching my grandpa,
Francisco Tudon, repair shoes in his two-room cottage. It was
really a shack that he rented. A cobbler, he used hand tools
to repair shoes for the neighbors. He would attach the soles
with tacks and a cobbler's hammer. After the soles were tacked
on, he used a special knife to cut the excess leather around
the edges. When he finished with the shoes, he would say to
me, "See, mi hijo, these shoes will last for years."
The words "mi hijo" mean "my son."
That was how he addressed me.
My grandfather was a very dignified and gentle man. I never
saw him get angry nor say anything negative about his being
poor, his uneven health, or that he was barely making a living.
He always had happiness in his eyes as he went about repairing
shoes and, especially, when he talked with me.
Initially, as I sat for hours on end watching him carefully
repairing shoes, I noticed that he wore a ring. It had a black
onyx stone with a strange symbol on it. One day while on the
city bus on the way back across town heading home, I asked my
mother if she knew anything about his ring and what did the
symbol signify. She informed me that the ring meant that he
was a Mason. She also said that, when she was child, her godmother
took her to Detroit, Michigan, to live for a while because my
grandpa was struggling as a single parent in raising three girls.
This godmother proved not to be a good person. So when my grandpa
became somewhat financially stable, he sent for my mother, but
was unsuccessful. This wicked woman was using my mom for cleaning
and cooking in her boarding house. His being a Mason, he contacted
a Masonic Lodge in Detroit for assistance in locating my mother.
After considerable effort, she was located, even though her
godmother would hide my mom when the Masons came to inquire
about her. The Brothers eventually succeeded, and my mom was
finally united with her father, my grandpa.
My mom told me that once when my grandpa moved to a small town
to establish a shoe repair shop, he was quickly told that the
townspeople there did not like him because of the color of his
skin. They told him to leave town or something bad would happen
to him. When he ignored them, a mob of men broke into his home
to run him out of town. As my grandfather hastily gathered his
things, the local sheriff arrived and noticed Masonic paraphernalia
among my grandpa's possessions strewn about the house. At that
point, the sheriff ordered the mob to stop and get out of grandpa's
house. The sheriff was a Mason. He cautioned grandpa that, for
his own safety, he should leave town because next time he won't
be so lucky to have him there to save him. Grandpa left the
next day.
These sad stories, together with my observation of my grandpa
as I was growing up, made me decide to become a Mason. I knew
in my heart that my grandpa was a good man who had never asked
for a handout but struggled to provide for his family. I wanted
to emulate him. I wanted to be able to wear a Masonic ring proudly,
like my grandpa. The pride he had in the ring was even more
evident as he aged and the flesh on his fingers shrunk so much
that his ring would not stay upright so that people could notice
its Masonic symbol. He then would wear a handkerchief about
his neck and tie it so that the ring hung in front. This would
allow him to display his ring for everyone to see.
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José
J. De Luna graduated from the University of Texas
at Austin with a degree in Political Science. He served
in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and was honorably discharged
in 1964. He served as Master of Yokosuka Lodge No. 20, Yokosuka,
Japan, in 1976, and as Master of Far East Lodge No. 1, Yokohama,
Japan, in 1978. After fulfilling many officer roles in the
Valley of Tokyo, Bro. José became Venerable Master,
San Diego Lodge of Perfection, in 1999. He presided as head
of Chapter Royal Arch Masons, Cryptic Council and Knights
Templar. He is past presiding officer of San Diego Priory
No. 79 Knight York Court of Honor and was received in the
Order of the Red Cross of Constantine. He is a member of
the San Diego York Rite College. In 2000, Bro. José
served as Master of Joseph L. Shell Daylight Lodge No. 837
in San Diego, California. A member of the Scottish Rite
Research Society and the Royal Order of Scotland, he received
the K.C.C.H. in 1979 and 33° in 1999. Bro. José
is married to the former Maria Guerrero. They have six children
and six grandchildren. Bro. José currently serves
as General Secretary of the San Diego Scottish Rite Bodies. |
