Assembling a Team: Just Let the Pieces Fall In Place

Come the Spring of 2017, I started visiting Masonic Lodges in the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 6th and 18th District. Previous to doing so, I'd usually call the DDGM of that District and ask about any 'shining lights of ritual' to be aware of. My visit to Major General Henry Knox Lodge proved that while asking for recommendations is a great thing, one should always be open to 'just letting things fall into place, because they often will if you don't fight it'.

Attending a Fellowcraft Degree at MGHK, I was referred to pay attention to their then-Junior-Warden, Bro. Eric Wipfler. I attended, paid close attention to his work, and it was indeed excellent. I felt incredibly confident that he would be an outstanding member of the team. However, my attention was also caught by the Junior Deacon's excellent ritual, and even more by his VERY crisp floorwork. The member I was sitting next to didn't know his name, only that he was filling in, and not the officer installed as Junior Deacon.

Following the meeting, I asked them both to speak with me in the 9th Floor Hallway outside MGHK's social room, and my planned for, hoped for, nigh expected excellent team recruit(Eric)........said 'no'. He was dedicated to MGHK and wanted to focus exclusively there until he was out of the East, and they had a two year line, so that put him out of reach for several years. While disappointed, I certainly respected that decision, and was glad to see that he was interested by the concept.

It was at that moment that the other officer, a Wor.(then Bro.) Ken Longo, said "Hey, I love the idea, and I'd really like to be a part of setting up the floorwork." I was taken slightly aback, as through most of my life, I'd not received someone who was not only eager to participate in an idea I proffered, but also take a leadership and directional role. I'd long grown used to having to 'sell' my ideas, so this was truly perspective changing. I simply said "That's great. Let's talk about this." That conversation turned into many late night conversations following a Lexington Masonic Building 'Game Night', where from 11 PM, to sometimes 3 AM, Ken and I would adjourn to the Lodge Room, and go over ideas for how the Degree Team's floorwork would be both simple AND impressive, with plans for future additions once the team was assembled, comfortable in the work, and confident in their skills. Out of this night, I not only gained a partner in Degree Team crime, but also one of my best friends in Freemasonry.

Picking up Speed

One of my other travels within the 2nd District was to The Harvard Lodge, where I saw an excellent 1st Degree, especially performed by the Senior Deacon. That Senior Deacon was Bro. Christopher George. I had been told to look out for him, and that advice was spot on. Following the meeting, I told him of my plans to start a degree team, and he signed on promptly and wanted to help organize as well. Now I had 2 collaborators equally as motivated to see this a success I was.

Within the 8th District, I found several of my friends in the District were interested and capable and willing to take on the load of coming together, practicing our work together and then qualifying as a Degree Team. Some I won't mention out of their tendency for privacy, but some I will mention are Wor. Charles Caroselli, a Brother who signed on to qualify as JW for the MM Degree. Some might say "Well that's not a lot of work" and to that I say "Exactly!". There is nothing I appreciate more than someone who is willing to give of their time and effort, to dress up in tuxedo and travel just to play a role that has VERY few lines, VERY little attention paid, but needs to be done. That is 'yeoman work' and I refuse to let it pass by without notice.

Another 'yeoman' of the team is Bro. Andrei Zhalniarkevich, a brother originally from Belarus, speaks 4 languages, and eagerly signed on to be Inside Sentinel. That role has 0 speaking parts, and yet his extremely crisp floorwork makes it so impressive that every time the team does a degree, and he's present, SOMEONE in the lodge brings up his outstanding presence. It is brothers like this that do these parts that are not 'center stage' but make the entire team look just that much more impressive, and leaves an even more lasting impression on the candidates.

Around the same time, I was given a perfect opportunity to assess the zealous ritualists of the Massachusetts Jurisdiction. There was held a 'ritual competition' on the Senior Deacon Middle Chamber Lecture. A first round was held in several regions and the top two advanced to the finals. I applied, and did well enough to make it to the finals, and while I placed 3rd overall(and am quite proud of that), the real triumph was finding a Brother more-than-halfway across the state who had heard of my efforts and was eager to qualify for and join the Degree team. That Brother was Wor. Donald Sacco, who showed true commitment by driving from Springfield to our normal rehearsal location of the Weymouth Masonic Building for each and every rehearsal in our first years. When someone shows that level of motivation, it can't help but put some spring in the step of everyone else. That 'masochism' also shows through today for W. Bro. Sacco, in his commitment to serve as Worshipful Master of 2 separate lodges in the same year.

With this kind of motivation and commitment, we practiced 3 times and then qualified for the MM Degree(cover to cover) on December 17, 2017. From there we continued to practice throughout the 2018 spring, until we found our first few 'customers'. That turned out to be The Harvard Lodge, Weymouth United Masonic Lodge and Major General Henry Knox Lodge. For The Harvard, we worked the third of a 3 room, 13 candidate Master Mason Degree, each room doing 4 candidates in the short form 2nd section, and then reconvening in the main room for the long form and 3rd section. A perfect start before going 'cover to cover'. We then did for Weymouth United and Major General Henry Knox, and it was from a member of MGHK Lodge who praised our work with one of the highest compliments I've ever heard about floorwork:

"If you ever get a chance to see the 'Unspoken Degree Team' perform the Master Mason Degree, DO NOT MISS IT!
Their ritual is outstanding and their floor work is done with the precision of a Military Drill Team! "

From there, it was simply a matter of spreading our name and getting lodges interested in seeing us work. That's been a slow but steady process, and one hindered by COVID, but now that we're beyond all restrictions for a while, I think this team will continue to thrive and flourish. We've since qualified in doing Installation Ritual for Massachusetts Lodges, and one of our next challenges is to qualify for the Entered Apprentice Degree cover-to-cover. We've also had the opportunity to 'model' a basic set of floorwork at a Ritual Workshop, which was well received by those in attendance.

All this, and likely much more in the future, all from 'Wouldn't it be cool if......"

Unspoken Degree Team

Squared Circle

Origins: Wouldn't it be cool if...

I'm very much in favor of every great activity, idea or organization starting with a few people of good intent talking about a problem they noticed and saying "Wouldn't it be cool if....", and then simply sharing ideas to make the problem better or turning it from a problem into a victory.

That's how the Unspoken Degree Team began, in the Fall of 2016, at the front porch of the Braintree Masonic Building, following an Official Visit of the DDGM to Delta Lodge A.F. & A.M. I was standing there with R.W.(Then Bro.) Ryan MacLeod, and while the ritual that evening was well done, we happened upon our views of ritual done in some other lodges we have visited, both very well done, and those needing improvement. We talked about all the degree teams that we were aware of, and each one of them I wasn't really qualified for. The most well known, the Kilwinning Club Degree Team(which required Scottish heritage), he was qualified for, but I wasn't. There was also the Hellenic Square and Compasses Team, which installed me in the East, but also required Greek heritage, which neither of us shared. Others included a Firefighter Degree Team, a Police Officer Degree Team, a Shriner Degree Team, each of which I was equally unqualified to join, and the Colonial Craftsmen Degree Team, which dresses up in Colonial garb(certainly impressive, but not really my thing).

We switched off the list of degree team to discuss other thoughts. I noted that in my travels to other lodges, there was always 'that one brother' in the ascending line, usually new to Masonry, who took great pride in his work, and who excelled above all the other officers, sometimes including the WM of the Lodge, in terms of dedication to the accuracy and presentation of his work.

Out of that conversation, I decided to travel to the lodges nearby the 8th Masonic District(since I already knew the officers within my District), and see just how many of these 'hidden pearl' officers there were, and perhaps if a team could be formed from them.