October 18 — Sumner Masons celebrate 100-year anniversary

Sumner Phoenix Lodge No. 154 commemorates 100 years of brotherly love, community involvement

Roxanne Cooke / of the Herald

After 100 years, Sumner’s Masonic lodge is still home to generations of Masons.

Member H. Reid Williamson joined Sumner Phoenix Lodge No. 154 at the age of 29. His great-grandfather, grandfather and father were all Masons at some point.

Williamson said he procrastinated early in life, but decided to give Masonry a try when he found himself working among Masons at Auburn Chevrolet in 1964.

“I just got interested,” he said. “They whetted my appetite and I decided perhaps I should…carry on a family tradition.”

Williamson said he appreciates the Masons’ view of a good man and enjoys trying to better himself along with his fellow Masons.

Masonry may carry misconceptions — that it’s a secret society, a religion or a cult — but in truth, it’s an organization of men who meet regularly, enjoy each other’s company and donate to charitable causes.

During the 100th anniversary celebration of Sumner Phoenix Lodge No. 154, Sumner Mayor Dave Enslow compared the values of Masonry to those of Sumner itself.

Brotherly love is a common thread, he said. Both the city and its Masons understand that people are what matter, not the physical lodges or boundaries that surround them, Enslow added.

Phoenix Lodge has grown up with Sumner, he said.

“While you’re 100 years old, Sumner is 116 years old,” Enslow said. “You’ve done a lot to shape this city. Sumner’s a community just like the Masons.”

The community aspect of Masonry is the reason Bill Hammontree, the group’s secretary, enjoys being a member.

“The most important thing for me is the fellowship and the teachings of morality and brotherly love,” he said.

Hammontree joined the Masons in 1966 in France and then later joined Sumner’s group in 1985. He worked as a criminal investigator for the U.S. Army, working alongside a man who was a Mason.

For months, he waited for his Mason coworker to invite him to join, but it never happened. The day he asked the Mason himself was when he learned that Masons aren’t allowed to recruit members.

He learned soon after that his brother had been a member since the 1940s. Now, his son is a member and his wife and daughter are members of Guiding Star Chapter No. 99, the female equivalent to Phoenix Lodge.

Even Hammontree’s 99-year-old mother-in-law continues to take on the steep stairs leading up to the Mason hall on Main Street.

“She still makes it up those steps to get here,” he said. “My whole family is involved in masonry.”

The 100th anniversary celebration also included Guiding Star.

Before Phoenix Lodge, there was Sumner Lodge No. 70, which started in 1891 with eight members. Its charter was suspended in 1898 during a period of economic depression.

Phoenix Lodge No. 154 received its charter in June 1907 and originally met at the Fraternal Hall at 915 Kincaid Ave., which was sold in 1950. The Phoenix Temple, 1009 Main St., was purchased in 1952 and has been the Masons’ meeting hall ever since.

Sumner Phoenix Lodge No. 154 meets the second Wednesday of every month except July and August. Nine officers run the lodge for one-year terms and there are currently 72 members.

Reach Reporter Roxanne Cooke at 253-841-2481 ext. 314 or by e-mail at roxanne.cooke@puyallupherald.com.