1 week Ago
UTICA — The Utica-based Mohawk Valley Chapter of the Order of DeMolay marked its centennial year with a banquet and awards presentation recently at Hart’s Hill Inn in Whitesboro. The local group was chartered May 24, 1924, five years after the establishment of the national organization in Kansas City. The event featured addresses by national and New York State Masonic and DeMolay officers and officials of sponsoring groups, including the Yahnundasis Bodies of the Scottish Rite Valley of Utica, the Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons of New York and local lodges.
These included local official Dennis Davis, of Camden, and William R. Sardone, a state official. Entertainment was provided by “The Charming Deceptionist” Shaun Robison.
The Order of DeMolay describes itself as a “premier international youth leadership organization, striving to shape young men into leaders of character. By epitomizing timeless values and accepting the challenge of leadership — both of character and of action — the young men of DeMolay transform themselves into citizens of the highest caliber.” It offers membership to boys aged 12-21, and noteworthy DeMolay members include Walt Disney, President Bill Clinton, astronaut Frank Borman, John Wayne, broadcast journalist Walter Cronkite, and author John Steinbeck.
The organization’s namesake, Jacques DeMolay, the last Grand Master of the original Knights Templar was burned at the stake in March 1314 for refusing to admit to false charges of blasphemy, even though doing so would have earned him his release and a pardon, local officials said, adding that DeMolay’s bravery in the face of death and refusal to compromise his integrity are the keystone of the Order’s teachings..
