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THE
STORY OF OMALA GROTTO
from the September/October
1981 (Volume 11, No. 1)
issue of "The Grotto" magazine
See
also: GRAND
MASTER JACK BALL MADE PROPHET ON SIGHT
Omala
Grotto of San Antonio, Texas, was instituted April 29, 1948,
chartered July 27, 1948, and held its last meeting December
18, 1962. Its charter was formally revoked June 18, 1963. From
institution to revocation of charter, only 311 Prophets were
initiated into Omala Grotto. The 311th Prophet was initiated
August 31, 1960 (the only Prophet initiated during the year
1960) and no more Prophets were initiated into Omala Grotto
after that date.
By comparison, Alzafar Shrine Temple (instituted, 1916) of San
Antonio, Texas, initiated 477 new members in calendar year 1960.
While Omala Grotto accumulated only a total of 311 members between
1948 and 1963, Alzafar Shrine Temple grew from a membership
of 4,368 in 1948 to a membership of 6,180 at the end of 1962.
On June 1, 1979, an organizational meeting of five Prophets
(one of whom was Prophet No. 311 in Omala Grotto; three Prophets
who were members of Chinar Grotto of Houston, Texas, and resided
in San Antonio, Texas; a demitted Past Monarch of Omala Grotto;
and eighteen Freemasons) was held at Alzafar Shrine Temple in
San Antonio, Texas, for the purpose of ascertaining if there
were Freemasons interested in restoring the charter of Omala
Grotto.
At this initial meeting, it was generally agreed that a restored
Omala Grotto would not attempt to compete with Alzafar Shrine
Temple. Instead, the social program of the Grotto would be to
complement and supplement the social program offered by Alzafar
Shrine Temple, acknowledging that a newly restored Grotto of
fifty members could not compete with a Shrine Temple of 6,000-plus
members and strong financial resources.
it was decided that the Grotto would not have units which characterize
the Shrine, since unit compartmentalization tends to isolate
one Freemason from another. The Grotto would not attempt to
have a social every month as practiced by the Shrine, but would
limit its social activities to approximately one every two or
three months and be elegant social affairs. The social activities
of the Grotto would be those not engaged in by the Shrine, but
desired by the Freemasons of San Antonio. The activities would
be distinguished social affairs in which a Freemason would be
anxious to attend and participate. The Grotto would be characterized
by intimacy and not distant relationships among the members.
Without this unit compartmentalization, the Grotto could indeed
merit the title of the "fraternity that friendship built".
It was and is the consensus of opinion of those who comprise
the Grotto that those Freemasons who would be solicited for
membership in the Grotto would be serious Freemasons. The Grotto
would search out and bring to the attention of its members the
leaders of all branches of Freemasonry and its appendant and
allied orders. It was recognized that the old adage "If
you want a job done, ask a busy man" should apply to the
Grotto - "If you wanted an active participant in the Grotto,
then ask a busy Freemason to join the Grotto."
 To
that end, the leadership of Freemasonry in San Antonio was solicited
and became members of Omala Grotto. This has continued to this
day. Present at the second organizational meeting which occurred
on June 23, 1979, was the Chairman of the Inspector General's
Advisory Conference for the Scottish Rite Valley of San Antonio,
the Presiding Officer of one body of the Scottish Rite Valley
of San Antonio, the Worshipful Master of the Mother Masonic
Lodge of San Antonio, a High Priest of the Royal Arch Chapter,
the Treasurer of the San Antonio Scottish Rite Bodies, the Secretary-Recorder-Registrar
of the San Antonio Scottish Rite Bodies, the Secretary-Recorder
of the San Antonio and the Blue Bonnet York Rite Bodies, the
Potentate, two members of the Appointive Divan, and a Past Potentate
of Alzafar Shrine Temple, the Chief of Staff, the Commander
of the Heroes of '76 of National Sojourners, the Eminent Commander,
Generalissimo, and Captain General of the San Antonio Commandery
No. 7, Knights Templar, two District Deputy Grand Masters of
the Grand Lodge of Texas, a member of the Committee on Work
of the Grand Lodge of Texas, three 33rd Degree Scottish Rite
Masons and two who would receive the 33rd Degree in October,
1979, and six KYCH members of the York Rite. Additionally, there
were others included in the initial assemblage who were past
or present Presiding Officers of Symbolic Lodges, York and Scottish
Rite Bodies, and various allied and appendant bodies of Freemasonry.
A number of those in the initial group that restored the charter
of Omala Grotto had served in official positions in the Grand
Lodge, Grand Chapter and Grand Council in the York Rite.
The Monarch at restoration of the charter was the Potentate
of Alzafar Shrine Temple. The remaining elective officers of
the Grotto included a Grand Lodge Official, a 33rd Degree Scottish
Rite Mason who is also a KYCH in the York Rite, the Treasurer
of the Scottish Rite, the Membership Chairman of the Scottish
Rite, and a District Deputy Grand Master of the Grand Lodge
of Texas. The present Monarch is both a 33rd Degree Scottish
Rite Mason and a KYCH in the York Rite, and has been a District
Deputy in Grand Lodge, Grand Chapter and Grand Council. At the
present time, the four presiding officers of the San Antonio
Scottish Rite Bodies are members of the Grotto, including one
who serves as Master of Ceremonies. Additionally, Grotto membership
includes the present Commander of San Antonio Commandery No.
7, Knights Templar, and several presiding officers of other
York Rite Bodies, two members of the elective Divan of Alzafar
Shrine Temple, and the three District Deputy Grand Masters of
the Grand Lodge of Texas.
At the June 1, 1979 organizational meeting, it was also decided
that the ladies of the petitioners should be encouraged to form
a Caldron of the Daughters of Mokanna. That goal was realized
in February, 1980, with the formal institution of Omala Caldron
No. 99, Daughters of Mokanna. Both the Grotto and the Daughters
of Mokanna continue to meet on the same night and in the Shrine
Temple. Much of the success of Omala Grotto must be attributed
to the Omala Caldron.
As Omala Grotto continues to grow, the emphasis continues to
be on quality and not quantity and the selection of the Masonic
leadership of San Antonio as petitioners for the Grotto, the
practice of good fellowship by stressing the intimacy of friendship
in the Grotto, and the holding of distinguished and elegant
social activities.
GRAND
MASTER JACK BALL MADE PROPHET ON SIGHT
From
the Omala Grotto "Record", February 1954
Past
Monarch Struwe, Chief Justice Jay Johnson, Dr. Carr and your
Monarch took a journey to Houston to meet our Grand Monarch
on his annual visit over the realm. Prophet Nicklas sent his
regrets to the prophets of Omala, that he was unable to visit
our city. He is making a hurried trip due to his brother being
in serious condition in Pennsylvania.
We attended the Installation ceremonies of Chinar Grotto Saturday
evening, This was an open installation and a full house was
present at the Scottish Rite Cathedral. The Ladies Of Chinar
were installed first, after which Grand Monarch John Nicklas,
acting as installing officer, duly installed the officers of
Chinar. The installation completed, we were entertained by some
of the acts from the Teen-age Review.
The Ladies Of Chinar served refreshment in the banquet room.
Sunday morning your officers attended a breakfast, as guests
of Chinar Grotto, to hear the Grand Monarch's message. The meeting
was also attended by Past Grand Monarch Carlyle Brock (Ed:
Carlyle Brock is the only person to have served both as Grand
Monarch of the Grotto AND as the Imperial Potentate of the Shrine)
who was entertained by us last year. The Grand Monarch gave
a brief outline on what he expected this year and the rest of
the morning was spent with questions and answers. The meeting
adjourned about noon.
PGM Jack Ball |
At the
meeting with the Grand Monarch at Houston it was decided to
make Grand Master of the Grand Lodge Of Texas, Brother Jack
Ball, a Prophet on sight. Grand Monarch John Nicklas deputized
Past Grand Monarch Carlyle Brock to act on his absence to confer
the honors on Grand Master Ball. Past Grand Monarch Brock arrived
in San Antonio Tuesday morning and was taken to the office of
Brother Ball, where the Grand Honors were bestowed, in the presence
of Prophets Struwe, Johnson, and Nichols. We are proud to welcome
Brother Ball into our Realm and look forward to seeing him at
our meetings.
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