By Nicole Falco
Why does he want you to know he's a Mason? For too long, Masons, considered the largest and oldest fraternal organization in the world, have been seen as secretive. One of Fitje's goals as the newly elected Grand Master is to lift the veil and let others know and understand exactly what the Masons are all about, thus increasing membership. Prior to World War I there were over 200,000 Masons in New York.
"That way of doing business, so to speak, created a void in membership. ... We are now turning it around and saying, 'Hey look, we want you to know what we do,'" Fitje said.
Fitje's theme for his term is "Brotherhood and Patriotism," which is a theme Fitje said was decided prior to Sept. 11, but turned out to be even more fitting for these times.
Fitje's son-in-law, Lee Fehling, helped Fitje design a logo pin representing his theme. Fehling, a New York City firefighter, was killed on Sept. 11. His wife, Danielle, Fitje's daughter, was eight months pregnant with their second child at the time.
In response to Sept. 11, the Masons organized a fund on Sept. 13, and have donated $2.7 million to victims' families. The Masons absorbed administrative costs so that the money donated would go directly to those in need, Fitje said.
Masonry or Freemasonry is believed to have risen from the guilds of stonemasons who built the castles and cathedrals of Medieval Europe. At that time, workers didn't carry union cards, so a series of secret handshakes were developed to determine who was a mason and what skill level he was at. Those handshakes are about the only things about Masonry that remain a secret to this day.
"Everything we do, you can find in a local public library," Fitje said, except the handshakes.
Fitje is a retired New York City police detective and next month Fitje is scheduled to retire from the United States Army National Guard where he currently holds the rank of Sergeant Major, the highest rank attainable by a non-commissioned officer.
As a Mason, Fitje is in good company. Fourteen United States Presidents have been Masons, including George Washington and George Bush, numerous signers of the Declaration of Independence including Ben Franklin, actors John Wayne and Clark Gable and numerous other notable names in history. Fitje recently asked Governor George Pataki to become a Mason and he accepted, although the governor has yet to be conferred.
Following in his father Soren's footsteps, Fitje became a Mason in 1980 in Ridgewood Lodge No. 710. The Ridgewood Lodge is scheduled to merge with Valley Stream Lodge No. 1143 on Sept. 1. Fitje's three brothers are Masons as well as his brother-in-law. His son, Eric, who lives in Pennsylvania, told Fitje exactly what he had told his father years ago.
"He's at the same time in his life that I was at when my father first asked me to become a Mason. He told me what I told my father, 'When I'm ready I'll let you know," Fitje said.
As Grand Master, Fitje spends four or five days a week in his office at the Masonic Hall in New York City. The Grand Lodge of New York was built in 1910 and is home to numerous Masonic artifacts including the Bible on which President George Washington took his first oath of office.
As the story goes, on the day of Washington's April 30 inauguration, someone forgot the Bible. St. John's Lodge No. 1 was right down the street from Federal Hall where Washington was sworn in, so someone ran and got the Bible. Since Washington, four other presidents have been sworn in using the same Bible, including George Bush. Each April 30, the Masons reenact Washington's inauguration of the steps of Federal Hall.
Fitje's duties also include traveling to the 630 Masonic Lodges and Temples in New York to attend various dinners and functions.
Besides being a fraternal organization, Fitje said the Masons are a community organization. Among the programs sponsored by Masons within their communities is the Beacon Project, which is set to kick-off in September. Statewide, Masons have pledged at least 100,000 hours of volunteer service to their local schools to be spread out over the next two years. The Masons also sponsor a retirement home in Utica, New York, a medical research facility and have bestowed over $3.4 million in scholarships to students statewide in seven years.
The Masons are also affiliated with a number of youth organizations for boys and girls including Demolay, Rainbow Girls and Triangle Girls. Youths are invited to Camp Turk, located in Upstate New York, for a summer program run and organized by New York's Masons.
"I am looking forward to getting Masons more involved in their communities and to have very successful programs," Fitje said.
