Young Mason

10 December 25

by Nate Mathein, Lodge Kiama

My dad was first initiated into Freemasonry in January 2001. Family and business commitments meant that he had to step back for a while, but the values of Freemasonry – brotherly love, relief, and truth – remained constant in his life.

Growing up, Dad spoke about Freemasonry but he never pushed it on me. I could always sense the respect and meaning it held for him. It sparked my curiosity.

Fast forward twenty years. I was studying at university and working part-time behind the bar at our local golf club. One evening, I noticed a gentleman’s hat bearing the square and compasses. When I said, ‘I recognise that symbol’. He smiled and asked, ‘Oh? How do you know it?’ I told him my father was a mason.

That man was VW Bro John Cosgrove, and that conversation turned out to be a defining moment. He warmly invited me to learn more, and before long, I was introduced to the lodge and the wider masonic community.

When the night of my initiation came, Dad was there. It was an incredibly proud moment for both of us. I continued my journey in the Craft and, before long, I was raised to the degree of Master Mason. In a somewhat ironic turn, I actually became a Master Mason before my father had the chance to.

Twenty years after his initiation, my dad made the decision to return to Freemasonry. The timing was right in his life, and now that I was a mason myself, we had something even deeper in common. Watching me go through the degrees re-ignited his passion for the Craft.

He wasn’t just my dad anymore. He was also my brother.

I’m now aged 23, and Freemasonry has brought my dad and I even closer. It gave us more than just time together; it gave us shared purpose and connection. Lodge nights, long drives home, and even casual chats over dinner often turned into deep conversations about masonic values, ritual, and history. It became something truly meaningful for both of us.

And now, as brothers in the Craft, we continue walking this path side by side, not just as father and son, but as men committed to something greater than ourselves.