For nearly 40 years, residents of Macon’s Masonic Home of Georgia (MHG) have been visiting Lake Sinclair for a day of fun at the beach. They returned this past Saturday at Oconee Springs Park as guests of Eatonton’s Rising Star Lodge #4, the fourth oldest continuously operating Mason’s lodge in the country.
Each year, all Georgia Masons and their respective lodges contribute financially to the operations and upkeep of the Masonic Home of Georgia. Established in 1905, MHG has helped more than 2,200 children since that time and presently houses 17 young residents from early grade-school students to seniors in high school on its 650 acres.
Among them is Ted (not his real name), a 17-year-old boy, currently the home’s oldest resident. His mother dropped him off at MHG the day after his seventh birthday.
“My mom, from what I’ve heard from my family, couldn’t really take care of me. She couldn’t send me to school and stuff like that or feed me or buy me clothes, so my uncle was a Mason and she talked to him, and he said something to her about this place and so she sent me here,” Ted explained.
It was a dark November night when Ted arrived at MHG, probably eight o’clock or later, he said. His mother had just told him they were going “somewhere,” and he remembers walking into the main building with her, not through the front entrance, but a small door on the side.
He recalls meeting the “house parent” he would soon be living under, though with no realization of what was going on as his mother spoke with the man. Ted was told to go sit and wait in the living room, where he distinctly remembers watching SpongeBob SquarePants on TV.
“Then I remember her coming in there and saying goodbye to me and I was kind of a little confused,” Ted admitted, though in a very matter-of-fact manner. “I was like, okay, and I was just thinking I’m going to stay here for a little bit. And then she left. It wasn’t until later on that night that I kind of realized, hold up, she’s probably not coming back. And my house friend kind of explained to me what the place was and what everything was about. And that’s really how my first day went.”
Since that day, Ted has gone through grade school and is poised to graduate next year from high school, where he’s in dual enrollment taking both high school and college courses. Kids housed at MHG typically attend Tatnall Square or Mount de Sales academies for their high school years, he said.
Ted also said he’s enjoyed the opportunities and structure that living at MHG has given him. He insists it’s not a bad place to grow up – so long as you can follow the rules.
“I feel that the home helped me a lot because if I would’ve stayed with my mom then I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t be the way I am right now,” he said. “They have got a lot of rules, so yeah, they keep you in a straight line, but as long as you stick with them, there’s no problem. Overall, it’s okay. I know a lot of kids don’t like it, but I’m pretty sure most of them do because they know that it really helps them.”
He added that all MHG kids have the option and opportunity to join extracurricular school sports and activities, with the staff even prepared to make arrangements for residents to participate in programs beyond the school’s boundaries. Ted, for instance, participates in a local Macon boxing program.
He singles out Masonic Home of Georgia Director of Home Life Chris Babcock as the authority who most helped in his personal MHG journey.
“Mr. Chris is the main person I really look up to,” Ted said. “He’s friendly and he’s good to talk to. He understands you, stuff like that. So to me, it just feels comforting to have someone to go to. But if you do something bad, he’ll get mad. He just doesn’t want you to do bad stuff. He always wants you to succeed in life, so he wants you to always do the best things for you.”