Ralph W. Semb, 33°
President and Chief Executive Officer The Shrine of North America
2900 Rocky Point Drive
Tampa, Florida 33607

If we as Freemasons are to survive together, then we must all work together.

Not long ago, an article caught my attention. I related it to our Fraternity since one of the lines read, "If you keep doing what you are doing, you will keep getting what you have been getting."

In 1991, I brought the meaning of paradigms to the Imperial Council. I challenged the members saying if nothing were done about the decline in Shrine membership, we would need help. Nothing was done, and our membership continued to decline. In fact, if the Shrine's Membership Committee hadn't been out there trying to accentuate the positive and bring enthusiasm and excitement to the Shrine for the past nine years, where would we be today?

Because of low membership participation, we are using outside volunteers to drive and fly patients to our hospitals, to help on our paper sales, our circuses, and many other functions. I am well aware of the "Quality vs. Quantity" issue. If our Lodges can't get the Quality, how will the Shrine?

Fran Tarkenton said, "Change is an everyday occurrence. If we do not change, we will die. If we change just for the sake of making change, we may survive. But, if we create the change, we will dominate."

Think about it. Since 1959, the Masonic Fraternity has been losing members. Since 1979, the Shrine has been losing members. When do we wake up? When do we realize we have lost our appeal to the businessman, the judge, the chief executive officer?
We are at the threshold of the 21st century, a new millennium. Time plays such an important role in our lives. We live on the Internet—be it shopping, corresponding, studying, or playing. We have become a society that moves as fast as the click of a computer's mouse. The opportunities for exploration are virtually endless and can be achieved from the comfort of our own homes, all for the cost of a local phone call. No gas, no night driving, no inconvenience at all, and with minimal exertion anytime we please.

The Shrine needs help from the Masonic Fraternity, not opposition or jealousy. In 2000, the Shrine will spend approximately $17.37 every second of every minute of every day to care for children. That's about $1.34 million each day. The entire Masonic Fraternity takes credit for that gift, while only about 20 percent of that membership belongs to the Shrine.

If we are to survive together, then we must all work together, not bar someone from becoming a member in the Masonic Fraternity because he wants to become a Shriner. We must make room for "On the Spot Masons," especially those of high caliber and high profile who would become mentors to others and influence their decision to join.

Imperial Sir Ralph W. Semb, 33°, with Shriners Hospital patient (Photo: Bro. Tom Rousseau, 32°, K.C.C.H.)

I suspect we will never go back to the horse-and-buggy days. I suspect we will continue to move forward, at the rate of 86,400 seconds per day, into a faster world—a world where we are in Boston for lunch, San Francisco for dinner, and selling a product or service in China or Africa the next day. Travel is part of our lives. We move if the opportunity presents itself. Like it or not, we need to make our Fraternity an easier place to become a member. For if we do not make it easier, we will fail.

The future is in the hands of the young leaders, those who have the innovative ideas to bring us into a new era. Let's give them a chance to lead without interference.

I have heard the arguments of time limits. I am becoming more convinced that every organization should set time limits, especially in leadership roles. To give someone a leadership role until death is no longer good for the Fraternity, if it ever was. We need to look to the youth for leadership, from our Lodges to the Rites to the Shrine.

When I was elected in 1989 as the Imperial Outer Guard of the Shrine, I said I would try my best to turn the decline in membership around. I was hoping to be Imperial Potentate of a Shrine of North America whose membership swelled to over one million members. It did not happen, not because we did not put every effort forward, but because the organization dictated different priorities. Our Fraternity did not recognize the change, and we failed to adjust.

Well, where do we go from here? Do we continue to play this game of tug-of-war between Masonic Bodies? Or do we recognize the younger generations don't like hats, uniforms, and rituals? Also, when do we admit they require the ability to join in an accelerated fashion?

Remember, Thomas Edison sold us the light bulb because he was an innovator, as well as an inventor. He said the light bulb was easy to use, just the flip of a switch. If he had tried to explain the workings of the light bulb in intricate detail, we would still be using the gas lantern.

As the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Shrine of North America, I will work for the good of the entire Fraternity, but my prime obligation is to the longevity and prosperity of the Shrine and our ability to provide expert care at no cost to children at Shriners Hospitals. Together, as Brethren united in the Craft, we can accomplish both goals!