By: Ryan Duey
The Clay Center Masonic Lodge #134 is currently participating in a raffle created by the Kansas Masonic Foundation. The lucky winner will take home a fully restored 1942 Packard One-Twenty Convertible Coupe with only 5,700 original miles. Community members can see this rare classic car and purchase raffle tickets at Glavan Ford in Clay Center.
The two-toned Packard will be in the Glavan Ford Showroom until Monday, December 2nd. Tracy Bloom, Grand Secretary of the Freemasons Grand Lodge of Kansas, and local Masonic Lodge member, highlighted just some of the many entities the Masonic Lodge supports.
“The Kansas Masonic Foundation was created back in the late 60s, I believe. It was basically turned into the charitable arm of the Grand Lodge system and the Masonic Lodge system in Kansas. And so, from that they developed many programs to help not only the Lodgers and the Brothers of the Lodgers, but the communities also. There are many of them, I’ll list a few of them here.”
“There’s an essay contest that goes out statewide to high schools, there’s an exemplary teacher and student program, a high school marching band program, the Kansas Masonic Foundation has donated today, somewhere over $30 million to cancer research, the Kansas Masonic Foundation supports the Next-Gen under 30. And there’s also a local community grants program here in Clay Center, and we do partner with CCARE.”
Lodge #134 is a big supporter of CCARE and what they do for the area, donating to the shelter yearly. The Lodge also supports the area schools. Bloom said for every raffle ticket sold locally, 75% of the proceeds stay in the Clay Center area.
“For five or six years now, we’ve given away a classic car. Some of them are really nice, we raffled a Corvette and El Caminos, but they’re all classic and they’re all really nice cars, as is this one that we’re giving away in 2025. So, the proceeds from the sale of the ticket cost $20, and $15 of those dollars come back to the local Lodge to help support the charities that they want to help support like CCARE. I think it’s over $3 million that the Foundation has given back to the Kansas Lodges in Kansas so far, and so that’s a lot of money pumped back into the communities for charitable purposes. So, we’re kind of proud of that. And it’s a great program.”
“You know, and honestly, these raffle tickets for the cars. I mean, I’m not a big salesman. I don’t have to sell that to you. You see that car and you’re going to want it and ask how I can sign up. The care kind of sells itself.”
Take the time to see the beautiful Packard while it’s in Clay Center. Lodge members Gary McClain and Justin Ricketts at Glavan Ford can help answer any questions and provide raffle tickets for a chance at the classic car. The drawing for this rare care will take place in Manhattan on March 25th, 2025.
