Sixto Lopez (Batulao) Lodge No. 129
The Name
Name in honor of Don Sixto Lopez, an outstanding son of Balayan, Batangas. Lopez defended the Philippine cause through the press during the revolutions of 1896 and 1898. He was a long-time secretary of Don Felipe Agoncillo, the special envoy and Minister plenipotentiary of Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo.
During the revolution, Lopez and his comrades in arms established their headquarters at Mt. Batulao, a mountain with an altitude of 693 meters situated in the towns of Balayan and Tuy. When Lopez joined Masonry he chose Batulao for his Masonic name.
The Lodge
Nineteen Masons headed by Saturnino David, the Provincial Treasurer of Batangas from 1945 to 1950, organized this lodge in 1950. Those who assisted him were members of Batangas Lodge No. 35 and other brethren residing in Balayan and Nasugbu. Grand Master Clifford C. Bennett issued a dispensation authorizing them to organize the lodge in Balayan, Batangas. Named as dispensation officers were: Venancio Duarte, Worshipful Master; Ceferino Dequito, Senior Warden; and Agaton Salazar, Junior Warden.
On January 24, 1951, during the annual communication of the Grand Lodge, the lodge was granted a charter as Sixto Lopez (Batulao) Lodge No. 129. On April 7, 1951, at 9:00 a.m., Grand Master Cenon S. Cervantes opened a special communication of the Grand Lodge in Balayan, Batangas and with the assistance of Masonic dignitaries, constituted the lodge and immediately thereafter installed its officers.
For years Sixto Lopez (Batulao) Lodge had no Temple of its own. Fortunately, Doria Maria J. vda. De Lopez, widow of the late Bro. Sixto Lopez, donated a lot on which the members could erect a Temple. On December 13, 1997, they caused the cornerstone for the Temple to be laid. RW Enrique L. Locsin, Deputy Grand Master, representing Grand Master Leon Angel P. Bariez, Jr., presided over the ceremonies. After the ceremonies, a brief program ensued. Hon. Benjamin E. Martinez, Mayor of Balayan delivered an inspirational message. He expressed his wish to see the lodge in the forefront of many services for the community. Sixto Lopez III, the grandson of Sixto Lopez, then gave a brief history of their family, while another grandson, Richard Lopez, gave a special message in behalf of Doria Maria, who at that time was indisposed.
RW Locsin enjoined the officers and members of the lodge to continue the administrative program of Grand Master Bañez, the focus of which was "Freemasonry: Brotherhood for Peace, Unity and Human Progress."
Sixto Lopez (Batulao) is now the proud owner of a beautiful Masonic Temple.
Location: Balayan,Batangas.