Rajah News - June 2022

Duane Dellecker,
Chief Rabban
Larry Christman
Greetings from your String Band! Hope everyone had a happy Easter. Our first event was the Girardville
St Patrick’s Day Parade on March 26th and it went off as planned, even though Mother Nature threw
everything she could at us. Cold, wind, sleet, snow…but the parade must go on and the sun was shining
bright by the end of the parade and all went well.
Upcoming events include The Parksburg Anniversary Parade on May 21st. This is a new booking and
we are adding new music to play for the Concert in the Park. The Lititz Parade is July 1st, and Glenside is
July 4th.
The following information was provided by master musician, Mike
Gubish. Watch for more from Mike in future articles.
Regarding the subject of Chord Progressions.
Melody lines are supported by a chord progression. The chord progression, most times, is
written above the melody as letters, fingering diagrams or both.
A typical 3-chord progression in the key of C is C, F & G. For the key of B-flat it is B-flat,
E-flat, F. You may see these chords represented as numbers, rather than letters. In these examples,
the numbers are 1, 4 & 5. Or Roman numerals may be written I, IV & V.
The chord sequence is determined by the melody. Note; the chords may not all be major
chords. Minor, Diminished, Augmented and other chords may be written. The numbers are
derived from the scale degrees: For example, in the key of C, C is 1, D is 2, E is 3, and so on.
Thank you, Mike, for your expertise.
As always, there is an open-door invitation for musicians to play in the String Band. If you
play an instrument, come out to a rehearsal on the second Wednesday at 6 p.m. at the Complex.
If you need to brush up, we’ll help you get started. Just come with your instrument to rehearsal.
With the support of our Ladies, our purpose is that we might play our instruments so that
some day a physically challenged child may walk and play again.
See you at the parades!
MEMBERSHIP COMMITTEE
How Can We Help?
The membership committee has been meeting diligently to come up with new ideas to retain and
expand membership. Under the leadership of Illustrious Sir Marvin Miller in 2020, the committee was
directed to come up with ideas to improve membership participation & increase membership. As a result,
we put together an orientation program to help educate new members on what the Shrine has to offer. In
the last 2 years, many nobles have gone through this program.
Next, as we are all Shrine Masons, our membership comes directly from the Masonic Fraternity. With
this in mind, Illustrious Sir Joe Hagan has asked the committee to come up with short messages for
members to share with their Blue Lodges that may spark interest in joining Shriners.
So, what message can we take to the Blue Lodges? How about simply sharing stories with your brethren
that embody the true fun & philanthropy of Shriners International and Shriners Children’s Hospitals. At
the end of the meeting, when the Master asks if you have anything to offer, simply share a few words
like… “Blue Lodge is great, we have lots of fun together as Masons. But, as Masons, we have the opportunity to join with Shriners
International to benefit the world’s greatest philanthropy… Shriners Children’s Hospitals. In this organization, you and your lady
become part of a team that helps children with very specialized needs such as spinal/muscular disorders, burns and cleft pallet. As
you must be a Mason to join the Shriners, we invite you to sign up.”
If you would like to become a part of this committee or learn more, simply show up at 6:30 p.m. on the 4th Wednesday of the
month. The committee meets just prior to the Clubs & Units meeting. We are all ambassadors for this great philanthropy, so please
help share this message with all who will hear.
STRING BAND
Mike Gubish with banjo
at a parade.
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