简体中文
EnglishHow Is Lewisville Masonic Lodge Connected to the Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children?
Updated
Lewisville Masonic Lodge No. 201, A.F. & A.M. supports the Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children (tsrhc.org) through lodge fundraisers, with proceeds going to the hospital and other charities around the Dallas area. The connection is charitable rather than clinical: the lodge raises and donates money, and the hospital provides free care to children. Families do not need any Masonic affiliation for a child to be treated.
What the Lodge Actually Does
According to the lodge's website, the Lodge runs various fundraisers that benefit several charities in the Dallas area, and the Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children is one of them. The site frames this as part of a long-standing tradition of supporting local communities, their residents, the school system, and children's health and education. The current officers are charged with continuing that tradition.
What this means in practice
- Input: volunteer time and money raised through lodge fundraisers.
- Action: the lodge directs proceeds to named charities, including the hospital.
- Expected result: financial support for the hospital's pediatric care mission.
The site does not publish a donation amount, a fundraising schedule, or a breakdown of how much goes to each charity. If you want to give through the lodge, ask a lodge officer directly rather than assuming a specific process.
Why This Hospital in Particular
The hospital's history explains the Masonic tie. It was established in 1921, when a group of Texas Masons sought a way to care for all children with polio regardless of a family's ability to pay. Two details from the lodge's account matter most:
- No Masonic affiliation required. Families then and now do not need any connection to Freemasonry for a child to be cared for.
- Free care. The hospital continues to treat children free of charge.
After the Salk and Sabin vaccines arrived in the mid-1950s and virtually eradicated polio in the Western hemisphere, the hospital broadened its focus to other orthopedic conditions. Per the lodge's site, it is a leading pediatric orthopedic center that has treated more than 220,000 children since its inception and now records more than 40,000 clinic visits and hospital stays.
What Conditions the Hospital Treats
The lodge's page describes the hospital as designed for Texas children with orthopedic conditions and certain related neurological and learning disorders. The conditions named are:
| Category | Examples named on the site |
|---|---|
| Orthopedic | Scoliosis, clubfoot, hand disorders, hip disorders, limb length differences |
| Related neurological and learning | Certain related neurological disorders; dyslexia |
The site describes the hospital as world-renowned for advanced treatment techniques and state-of-the-art procedures and equipment developed for children's care. It does not list eligibility rules, referral steps, or appointment procedures — for those, use the hospital's own site (tsrhc.org).
How to Verify or Get Involved
- Confirm current charity activity by checking lewisvillelodge.org or attending a lodge meeting; officer terms run June to June, so the people to ask change annually.
- Ask about fundraisers and which charities are currently designated — the site says "several charities," not just the hospital.
- For care questions, go to tsrhc.org rather than the lodge; the lodge is a donor, not an intake channel.
The main caveat: the lodge's page is a general welcome and history page, not a giving page. It establishes the relationship and the hospital's mission but gives no figures, dates, or application details. Treat anything beyond that as something to confirm with the lodge or hospital directly.