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Cornerstone Initiative: A Cooperative Masonic Membership Plan
William C. Jacobson, 33°
Iowa’s Cornerstone Initiative was a unique five-year, cooperative effort that brought in over 2,000 new Master Masons and 532 new Scottish Rite Masons.
Throughout its history, Freemasonry has changed to meet the needs of each new generation of Masons. Membership during the last forty years suggests that old Masonic “recruitment” methods no longer produce the desired results. During the 1999 Iowa Grand Lodge session it was obvious to several Iowa Masons that significant changes needed to be made in the way new Iowa Masons were created.
Ill. Harry Barrows, 33°, then SGIG in Iowa, noticed the problem, and decided the time was right to develop new strategies to attract younger men to become Masons. He called together representatives from the five Iowa Scottish Rite Valleys to develop a plan to promote Masonic cooperation and to increase membership in all Masonic bodies.
Successful change begins with a goal in mind. After much discussion and a thorough analysis of membership data on new Masons, it was decided to set five-year membership goals for the Grand Lodge and the appendant Masonic bodies. During the five year period from 2000 to 2005, the Grand Lodge of Iowa would strive to initiate two thousand new Masons. Likewise, each appendant body would try for 550 new members. When the program started in 2000, these figures appeared unreachable based on new Masons created during the previous five years. If this goal were to be realized, there would need to be some major changes in the ways Masonry connected with the world of non-Masons.
The committee decided to hire the Flynn Wright Agency to help understand the marketing difficulties in attracting generations with different core values. We wanted an objective “outsider” to diagnose the problem and prescribe some solutions.
This was a serious project and required serious funding. The major Masonic bodies of Iowa agreed to support the initiative, as all would benefit. The final budget was $115,000.
The “Cornerstone Initiative” was created and funded by Masons to create new Iowa Masons. It was significant that this was the first cooperative financial effort focused on membership for all Iowa Masonic bodies.
The Flynn Wright agency’s research quickly revealed that Iowa Masonry had fallen victim to changing times, new generational values, and the different definitions of manhood that emerged in the last thirty years of the twentieth century. By the year 2000 Iowa Masons no longer presented a recognizable image in the minds of the general public.
The plan to enhance membership growth emerged with several important developments. Iowa Masonry had been slow to adopt technology to connect electronically with the outside world. The first step was to create an interactive website that became known as the “Cornerstone Initiative” (http://www.cornerstoneinitiative.com/). A brochure was created to explain Masonry and inform prospective Masons of the web site.
Ill. Tom Eggleston, 33°, PGM, led the development of new legislation to permit a Grand Master’s One-Day Class as an alternative way to create Masons. He also introduced the “invitation to petition” that allowed a lodge to elect and then invite worthy men to join the fraternity. The Iowa Masonic definition of solicit was changed to overcome the past custom of never asking a friend to become a Mason. After considerable discussion, the Grand Lodge decided it was alright to ask, but not to pressure a man to become a Mason. Proficiency through memorization was replaced with a Masonic Enlightenment Program to help the candidate understand the initiation process of each degree. These changes modernized and streamlined the process of becoming a Mason in Iowa and were possible only because of the persistence of Iowa Masonic leaders. Since these changes were approved, 1,100 new Masons have been created in these special classes.
The “Cornerstone Initiative” also affected the Iowa Scottish Rite, York Rite, and Shrine. During this five year period, the Shrine removed its requirement that Shriners must belong to the York or Scottish Rite. That was a wake up call for the rites. The Shrine reached its goal of 550 new members by 2005, Scottish Rite had 532 new members, and the York Rite made significant progress toward its goals. Presently both rites are searching to find better ways to attract members. With more new Masons, a larger recruiting pool now exists.
Masonry’s role has always been to transform men. It teaches its members how to be better men who bond together and create high levels of trust. Men are measured by the values that define what they believe and do. These values ultimately make a Mason worthy of respect.
The “Cornerstone Initiative” focused Iowa’s Masonic bodies on membership development. It coincided with other changes that made its goal accomplishable. It succeeded because men became Masons to fulfill basic internal needs. Masonry is all about men teaching and mentoring each other to understand the challenges of being a Man in today’s society.
The “Cornerstone Initiative” was a proactive approach to Masonry’s membership decline. Its intent was to help create new Masons and thus sustain Iowa Masonry for future generations. The men who participated made a difference. They opened Masonry’s door to men who needed and benefited from the experience. It was designed to launch Iowa Masonry into the 21st century, and it has done that.
William C. Jacobson, Ph.D., 33°, is the Personal Representative to the Cedar Rapids, Iowa. His biography is in the July-August 2006 issue of the Scottish Rite Journal.
