Our numbers are down, but our organization remains strong.

That was part of the message local Freemasons delivered Saturday as they opened their lodges to the public in keeping with a directive handed down by the Ohio Masonic leadership.

Masonry, along with most fraternal and civic organizations and many private clubs, has seen its numbers dwindle over the years.

"In Ohio, there are about 110,000 Masons today," said Douglas Parrish, worshipful master (or president) of the Damascus-Collingwood Lodge, 5052 Secor Rd. "Forty years ago, there were 700,000."

Nothing speaks more to this reality than the hyphenated names of merged lodges, and the fact that many share the same roof.

For example, locally, Damascus-Collingwood and Toledo-Fort Industry Lodge use the same building at 5052 Secor Rd. To the west, in Sylvania Township, three lodges - Barton Smith, Sylvania/Pyramid, and Robinson Locke - share a Sylvania Masonic Temple at 3510 Holland Sylvania Rd.

Saturday's statewide open house was intended to shine light on an organization that often feels misunderstood, said David Kevorkian, Damascus-Collingwood secretary.

Masons describe themselves as a fraternity dedicated to the betterment of self and country and scoff at the suspicion that they are some sort of secret society.

"People don't really know what we are about. They go by the building and see all these emblems and they don't know what they mean. We'd like to clear up some of that today," Mr. Kevorkian said. "We are an organization with some secrets - we have a secret handshake - but we're not a secretive organization."

Nor do the Masons consider their organization to be religious, although members are required to profess a belief in a single God.

Added Mr. Kevorkian: "In the lodge, we have members who are Christians, Jews, and Muslims."

There are about 5,500 Masons in the 22 lodges of northwest Ohio's 11th District, which includes Lucas, Wood, and parts of Ottawa and Erie counties, according to Rick Sheider, a Barton Smith member and past district deputy grand master.

And as Masonic numbers are shrinking, their members' ages are increasing.

The average age in Ohio is 66. But local lodges have had some success in bringing in younger blood, said Matt Weidel, past master of Robinson Locke, who is 35.

"A lot of them were in the military and say they find the same kind of brotherhood and fraternal feelings they had with their comrades in uniform," he said.

Masons don't recruit, but someone wishing to join can do so in as little as a day, Mr. Parrish said.

The traditional way takes months. The faster option was adopted in 2002 as a concession to today's time-pinched lifestyles.

"It has helped maintain our membership. We haven't grown, but we haven't lost as many," Mr. Parrish said.

Contact Carl Ryan at:

carlryan@theblade.com

or 419-724-6050.

First Published March 22, 2009, 6:07 p.m.