Centennial Memory #76: Card Playing at Northeast Chapter

To celebrate the DeMolay Centennial, PA DeMolay will be counting down 100 memories worth celebrating that took place within the DeMolay Chapters and Jurisdiction of Pennsylvania.

I mentioned yesterday that DeMolay International kept track of some unique marathons. Another record that was held by a Pennsylvania Chapter was for card games. The Chapter from Pennsylvania that set the record for card game playing was Northeast Chapter from Philadelphia. They played 610 hours of card games. Yes, you saw that right. 610 hours, not 610 games. The total amount of games was 6,989, as you'll see in the article below.

I can say as a member of Northeast Chapter that we do appreciate our card games, but I'm not sure that the members of my generation would have had the endurance to keep this kind of record going. I'm not sure if the record is still held to this day, but there is an article from 1975 that proved it was still in place at that time, so the record was at least held for a few years.

Until next time - "Dad" Joe Pullin

Centennial Memory #77: Springfield Chapter Plays Ping Pong

To celebrate the DeMolay Centennial, PA DeMolay will be counting down 100 memories worth celebrating that took place within the DeMolay Chapters and Jurisdiction of Pennsylvania.

I was going through some of the DeMolay International Cordon Magazines, a source that has been helpful to provide some of the information you have already read. In looking into some of the issues from the 1970's, I learned that DeMolay International kept track of some interesting marathon records that chapters took place in. Almost all of these marathons took place during the summer months, due to members having more time with school letting out. A few of the marathons even involved Chapters from Pennsylvania.

In 1970, Springfield Chapter played a lot of Ping Pong. How much is a lot, you ask? Try 600 hours of Ping Pong. The picture below shows the listing of new records from 1970. The issue of the Cordon is the March 1971 edition. While you're at it, take a look at some of the other records set in 1970. This record is not the only unique record reported to DeMolay International on behalf of a Pennsylvania Chapter. Tune in tomorrow for another DeMolay Marathon, from a well known Chapter that is still active today.

Until next time - "Dad" Joe Pullin

Centennial Memory #78: Jacques DeMolay Bobblehead

To celebrate the DeMolay Centennial, PA DeMolay will be counting down 100 memories worth celebrating that took place within the DeMolay Chapters and Jurisdiction of Pennsylvania.

Jacques DeMolay is the hero and martyr that our organization is based on. What kind of special tribute can we do to recognize such a martyr? Turn him into a bobble-head figure, of course.

The first bobble-head started in 2004 by Pennsylvania DeMolay. Since then, Jacques DeMolay has traveled far and wide, visiting various well known locations in his travel. He even posed as the inspiration of a mascot, which we covered in a previous post.

The Jacques DeMolay bobble-head has had some recent traction across PA DeMolay with Lincoln Chapter selling them as a fundraiser. Thanks to many of our active DeMolays, he still continues to travel. Enjoy some photos of Bobble Jacques.

Until next time - "Dad" Joe Pullin

Centennial Memory #79: CLUE Weekends

To celebrate the DeMolay Centennial, PA DeMolay will be counting down 100 memories worth celebrating that took place within the DeMolay Chapters and Jurisdiction of Pennsylvania.

Over the years, the May weekend had become known as a Spring Leadership Weekend, filled with exciting programs and workshops to get members excited about DeMolay. One of the more popular versions of the weekend was the CLUE Weekend. The first CLUE Weekend took place in 2002, featuring all of the well known characters from the board game and movie, CLUE.

The second version of CLUE Weekend came just a year later in 2003, this time giving it a Medieval twist. For example, instead of Colonel Mustard, he was a King. The third CLUE Weekend came in 2014, when PA DeMolay was remembering its history during the Honor and Heritage Program. Each of these weekends involved mystery and fun. The members had the chance to guess the outcome, while learning various DeMolay skills in multiple workshops. As a product of the first two, I will say that they were all very successful.

Until next time - "Dad" Joe Pullin

Centennial Memory #80: Early Sighting of the term "Key Man"

To celebrate the DeMolay Centennial, PA DeMolay will be counting down 100 memories worth celebrating that took place within the DeMolay Chapters and Jurisdiction of Pennsylvania.

One of the most recognized programs in Pennsylvania DeMolay is the Key Man Conference. We will discuss the creation and evolution of the Key Man Conference at a later time. As I was going through the Keystone Crusader Archive, I found an early sighting of the term "Key Man."

Below, you will find an excerpt from the May 1980 issue of the Keystone Crusader. The description mentions an Advisors Workshop with the usage of the term "Key Man." It is important to note that the first Key Man Leadership Conference was in 1985. Although there is no way to prove that this is the first usage of the term, it is an early sighting of a term that would become synonymous with Pennsylvania DeMolay.

Until next time - "Dad" Joe Pullin