“You can say my Masonic career started over a catered dinner,” begins Mick, a fifth generation Freemason and a current member of Point Loma Masonic Lodge #620 of California. He’s recalling the first serious conversation he ever had about joining the fraternity. It was during a stated dinner at the lodge he became a member of soon after that he learned about the community that would soon become a major part of his life. Mick and his long time friend Mike, both curious, had decided to check out their local lodge and get more information. “That’s when I decided to ask them for more detail about Freemasonry,” Mick says. Other Masons have a similar story: Mike, a recent 2nd Degree Mason, followed Mick's lead. And Brad, a member from Norfolk Masonic Temple. One of oldest institutions in the USA, decided after moving to San Diego that he’d be a member for life after visiting Point Loma Lodge as well.

For many, the most cherished parts of Masonry exist outside the formal boundaries of the craft— and often over a drink and something to eat. Indeed, once lodge meetings are adjourned, a familiar custom ensues: Glasses clink. Mirth swells. The lodge is “at refreshment.”

That state encapsulates much of what Freemasonry is all about here at Point Loma Lodge 620: fraternity, camaraderie, and friendship, all of which point back to the core Masonic tenet of brotherly love. After a year during which that kind of close, interpersonal connection was sorely missed, it’s a reminder that Masonry is more than just monthly meetings and ritual practice. It’s raising a glass with a lifelong friend—or making a brand-new one. If the lodge room is where the connections of Freemasonry are formed, it’s often at the “afters” that those bonds are cemented.

That’s certainly been the case for our lodge here in Point Loma says Mick, now a four-year member of San Diego–based Point Loma Masonic Lodge No. 620. “Being at refreshment really goes beyond the walls of the lodge,” he says. Together with Conrado, Brad, Mike, and several others — the group greets the "at-refreshment" hour with a customary cold beverage, and a nod to their friendship and respect. Theirs is a friendship that extends beyond the lodge. “These are the guys I talk to several times a week,” Mick says. “It’s a special experience as an adult to find people you can relate to and forge a deep personal friendship with.”

“It’s a great way to be in a non-ritualized, non-stuffy setting with your fellow lodge members. It helped pull me into Masonry’s particular brand of friendship.”