NEW GRAND OFFICERS

Installed at Grand Session, Saturday, April 24, 2007: R. E. Grand Commander, Sir Knight Steven C. Smith, I; V. E. Deputy Grand Commander, Sir Knight Theodore J. Johnson; E. Grand Generalissimo, Sir Knight Mervin W. Titchen; E. Grand Treasurer, Sir Knight Lawrence J. Zwart. E. Grand Recorder, Sir Knight Bruce T Anderson; E. Grand Captain General, Sir Knight Roger W. Miner; E. Grand Senior Warden, Sir Knight John T. Parsons; E. Grand Junior Warden, Sir Knight Donald E. Rife; E. Grand Prelate, Sir Knight Gail L. Twining; E. Grand Standard Bearer, Sir Knight James F. Brown, Jr.; E. Grand Sword Bearer, Sir Knight James A. Clark; E. Grand Warder, Sir Knight Mike E. Jones; E. Grand Sentinel, Sir Knight James O. Wolfe; E. Grand Tactics Officer, Sir Knight Ronald D. Grass; E. Grand Musician, Sir Knight Robert L. Ellsworth.

NEW WEB SITE
The Grand Encampment has a new web site located at www.knightstemplar.org. The next time you are on line, check out the site and let us know you visited us by signing the guest book.

FROM THE EDITOR
It's July again. What a wonderful month! Our nation's birthday month. What a celebration! The parade takes up all morning. You've got to get down town early to be sure you have a good spot along the parade route. Once you get there and get your lawn chairs set up, there's plenty of time to visit. All sorts of friends, neighbors and acquaintances - and always some new folks - stop to chat as they pass by. Maybe you get up and walk around a bit just to see who all is there. In our town, it's a long parade route. You can't cover it all, but, still, you get to share the event with a lot of friends and neighbors.
The parade is always a long one. The military is always well represented - some times with some of those fascinating new kinds of vehicles. And the local veterans are proudly there as well. We all stand and applaud as they pass by.
Just about every farm implement dealer in the county, and the surrounding counties has at least one brand new implement - sometimes more - entered. There are entries from all kinds of groups, civic clubs, youth groups, churches, businesses, churches, the swimming pool staff, the local senior citizens center, antique car clubs, antique tractor clubs, saddle clubs, and on and on. The Shriners are always well represented, too - those little model T's, the little pickups, motorcycles, ATV's, and who knows what new clever devices. Then, of course, there's the fire trucks! It seems like every volunteer fire department in northeast Nebraska has shown up with lights, sirens and horns going strong.
Everybody is throwing candy at the crowd. The kids have all brought either a bucket or a plastic bag to put it all in. There's so much candy it doesn't even all get picked up. It's better than Halloween!! The kids love it. Even some of the adults get a little candy - when nobody's looking, that is.
There's more. There's the Bar-B-Q, the firemen's water fights, the horseshoe pitching tournament, the basketball tournament, the baseball games, and all sorts of other activities in the park all afternoon. Then, that night, the fireworks. Again, you get to Veterans Field early, not merely to get a good place, but to mingle, to visit, and to enjoy the commonality of pride in community and our country.
That's what it's all about - pride in our beloved nation. The grandest nation on this earth. All the community spirit, all the fun, celebration - even the frivolity - are to celebrate one reality. By the grace of God, we have the great good fortune to be citizens of the greatest nation ever - the United States of America. "The Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave." May it please God that it be ever so.
                                              GT