Mario S. Garcia Lodge No. 306

The Name
            Named after a brother who was an Assemblyman and Mayor of Cabanatuan Garcia was a Past Master of Cabanatuan Lodge and a charter member of Manuel L. Quezon Lodge.

The Lodge
            At a meeting held on December 10, 1991, a group of Master Masons agreed to form a new lodge to be located in Aduas, the biggest barangay of Cabanatuan City. They also decided to name it in honor of the late Mario S. Garcia, a former Mayor of Cabanatuan City and Assemblyman. He was an active and
sincere Mason who served for a time as Master of Cabanatuan Lodge No.53. Some difficulties were encountered, however, and it was only after a full year that the plan of the organizers materialized. On January 13,1993, a petition for dispensation, signed by sixty-five Master Masons was sent to the Grand Lodge. On February 11,1993, Grand Master Agustin V. Mateo issued the requested dispensation authorizing the petitioners to form a lodge in Aduas and named Jaime Austria to be the first Master, Isidro Yee to be the first Junior Warden, and Dominador Nisperos to be the first Junior Warden, of the new lodge. The following February 24, MW Mateo motored to Cabanatuan City and formally
instituted the new lodge.

            At the annual communication of the Grand Lodge held in April 1993 it granted a charter to Mario S. Garcia Lodge and assigned number 306 to it.

            On June 10, 1993, Grand Master Rizal D. Aportadera opened a Special Communication of the Grand Lodge at the Cabanatuan Masonic Temple and, with the assistance of Masonic dignitaries, formally constituted the new lodge. Thereafter RW Danilo D. Angeles, with the help of VW Rodolfo C. Beltran who acted as Master of Ceremonies, installed the charter officers using the Tagalog ritual. RW Angeles is recognized throughout the jurisdiction as the best ritualist in Tagalog and, as usual, the audience listened to him with rapt attention as he flawlessly installed the officers.
 

            Location: Cabanatuan City, Nueva Ecija