Welcome to Fall; just like that, the leaves turned and there is a coolness in the air. One of my favorite times of year. Go Bills!!!
We have had some ups and downs in the last month. We lost a great Noble, as Past Potentate Don Butcher has passed away. Our condolences from the Nobles, Ladies, and Divan of Ismailia.
We have been advised that the Town of West Seneca believes we are dumping too much grease into the sanitary sewer. We continue to research costs and whether, truly, we are the culprits. Nobles of the hospitality industry believe it cannot be us. This would be a major cost to absorb, and we will proceed with our due diligence. A much more robust camera system will be installed in the building, and especially externally. The dumpster routinely gets apartment complex (including furniture) dumped into it. Not having a system leaves us vulnerable to lawsuits without the means to counter any claims. We are also working on replacing the 3-door commercial freezer in the kitchen.
On an upbeat note, we held a Ceremonial on Saturday September 6th, making 3 new Nobles. The ceremonial was presented through the efforts of the Divan and the Directors. It was followed by an informative talk from Kerri Tichy, Director of Philanthropy at Shriners Children’s New England who discussed the many ways their facility helps our kids. I had little to do with the event but a small part in the ceremony; our Divan members organized and took active roles in the production. The ceremony was full costume and had music and video projection that conveyed a great message to the candidates. I obligated another candidate at Allegheny Shrine club meeting as he, unfortunately, could not attend the ceremonial. Great job to all that put on a great ceremony.
The Sportsmen’s raffle occurred as always on the second Saturday of September. The Divan and I would like to thank Illustrious Sir Mike Ferraro, Chairman, for another successful event. He put together a great team of Nobles, Ladies and friends to again deliver a great event.
On September 25th, it was my privilege to attend the Allegheny Shrine Club meeting. It was their annual meeting in Port Allegheny at the V.F.W. Post. It is their largest fundraiser of the year and always a good time. Thank you to President Ray Hooker, Nobles and ladies for your hospitality.
I have plans to represent Ismailia Shrine at the NYOSA in Kingston, Ontario. I will have a full report in the November Smile. Scheduled to attend is an old friend, Illustrious Sir and Hospital Trustee Ricky Arrocha and Imperial Sir Marty Bartlett. The Imperial representatives always deliver informative and inspiring messages. Any Noble and Lady can attend any NYOSA, and I recommend it whole-heartedly. In 2027 our own Illustrious Sir Mike Hackford will be NYOSA President, and we should look forward to supporting him.
October will be busy starting with the Nile Supreme Queen visit on October 4th. On October 11th we do something different and will have a Live music event with the Boys of Summer. Tickets are $5.00 and are available from Wende in the office. On October 25th is the Fall Meat Raffle – always a good time.
On October 18th, the Directors will present Comedy Night. Tickets are available in the office as well.
Finally, we are about 7 weeks from the Feztival of Trees, our biggest fundraiser of the year. Our next Feztival meeting is October 9th at Ismailia. We have been soliciting businesses to donate trees, especially those with Facebook or social media presence, to multiply our reach of advertisement. If you know of a business or if you want to personally donate a tree this year, contact our team’s Tree coordinator Assist Rabban Ted Clark.
We are in the heart of the busy season. Reach out to anyone on the Divan if you would like to help at any of these fun events. As always, lets Continue to Thrive in ’25.
Yours in Faith, James Mirusso