March 2017
Acacia Creek Journal
Written by residents, for residents
www.acaciacreek.org
Editor—Lois Johnson
The history of the Siminoff building begins with a
Russian immigrant who came to San Francisco in the
late 19th century. He became a successful
businessman - suit and cloak manufacturer. He also
became a member and a Master of Fidelity Lodge
No. 120 in San Francisco. He was so moved by the
three principal tenets of Freemasonry; Brotherly Love,
Relief and Truth, that he donated $30,000 to the
Masonic Home for the construction of a lodge
building and church. The building was completely
furnished (including a pipe organ). The dedication
ceremony was in 1903. It remained in use until 1976
when state officials deemed its construction did not
meet current earthquake standards. The building was
demolished and the rubble was pushed into a pile and
left on the hill.
Plans were drawn for a new building to include a
lodge room, a chapel, and a large center foyer for
receptions etc. Our own Ron Sherod, Past Grand
Master, was on the Masonic Home Board of Directors
during the planning for construction of the new
building. He and two Masonic friends, Stanley
Channon and Henry Coit, Jr., decided to check out the
pile of rubble to see if the old bricks could be used.
The old bricks could not be used on the outside of the
building as they were not weight bearing but they
were used as part of the décor on the inside wall in the
foyer.
While sorting through the rubble, Stanley
Channon, being a metallurgist, noticed a very black
and tarnished piece of metal. When it was uncovered
they found it to be one of the chandeliers from the old
building. A search of the rubble was conducted to look
for other “treasures” and three more chandeliers were
found. Mr. Channon researched and found that these
old chandeliers had been made by U S Steel and the
510-441-3700
globes were made by Corning Glass. Both companies
still had the patterns on file. The chandeliers were
shipped to the factory for refurbishing. The thirteen
original lights have gone from candles to oil to
electricity. A very generous Mason said that he would
pay for the refurbishing but he was superstitious so the
new chandeliers only have twelve lights instead of
thirteen. After refurbishing, the new lodge room had
four very beautiful and valued chandeliers.
One of the lodges in San Francisco had built a new
lodge and they donated their old officer station
furniture to the Masonic Home for their new building.
Some of the furniture in the foyer was donated by the
(Continued on page 2)
Page 2
THE SIMINOFF BUILDING
(Continued from page 1)
family of General Douglas MacArthur. The old pipe
organ in the foyer came from the original building.
There are forty-eight stained glass windows in the
building - twenty four in the foyer and twenty four in
the chapel. The scenes on these windows were
designed to coordinate. They were sold for $5,000
each to help pay for the construction. The window that
Ron and Terry Sherod purchased is over the door at
the entrance of the building.
Ron was introduced to a couple who wanted to
donate money toward the construction costs. He was
somewhat surprised when he saw that the check was
for $10,500,000. Wow! The Freemasonry belief of
“Faith, Hope, and Charity” and the greatest of these is
Charity had definitely touched the hearts of these very
generous donors,
The new Siminoff building was completed and the
dedication date on the cornerstone is May 7, 1989.
The buildings were not chartered as lodges for many
years but were made available to other lodges for their
use for special activities. Siminoff Daylight Lodge
No. 850 was chartered in September 2007.
John R. Dahle is the current Master of Siminoff
Daylight Lodge No. 850. He is also the artist who has
painted the beautiful mural on the North wall of the
Lodge room. He is working on the South Wall mural
After Roger and
Donna Baird moved to
Acacia Creek in June
2010, Roger didn’t
waste any time getting
involved in programs
that helped secure our
recent Masterpiece
Living Certification.
When asked why he
has been so involved,
Roger replied that
when he sees a need to
support to a useful
project, he instinctively
wants to help.
Roger’s first project was organizing a current
events chat group which has evolved into the White
Board Discussion. Working with the Travel
Committee, he has organized several train trips; the
latest one to Reno over the snowy covered Sierras.
Following receipt of the Acacia Creek beer and
wine liquor license, resident volunteers were needed to
run the bar. Already successful in the development of
the discussion group, Roger was approached to
oversee this project. After developing a rotating
schedule and recruiting, training and scheduling his
“bartenders”, Roger reported back that the bar was
now a “go”.
After trying unsuccessfully to convince the
Resident Council that he was way too busy with travel
and family, Roger has been managing the “Turkey
Roost” ever since. Acacia Creek management is
and has plans for murals on the East and West walls. pleased that the resident volunteers could fully take
Joel Ingram has been the Chaplain of the Masonic over this very popular amenity. Roger was also very
Home for many years. He offers non- denominational involved with acquiring kegs to serve beer and wine
spiritual support on a regular basis to all of us here at “on tap” which is seldom found in small bars.
Acacia Creek since we first started moving here in
Roger worked with Gene Gire and Doris Chow in
March of 2010. There are church services each
justifying the need for appropriate resident gym
Sunday from 10:00 am to 11.00 am in the Siminoff
equipment. Following approval, he assisted in the
Chapel.
selection of the proper equipment.
My thanks to Ron Sherod, Richard Fiechtner and
Acknowledging the need for exercise that’s fun,
Roger organized and promoted Pickle Ball. Not only
John R. Dahle for all of their assistance in gathering
the information for this article.
(Continued on page 5)
Wilma Grice
Page 3
RARE BIRDS AND WINTER VISITORS
Birds from other parts are visiting us now. We
can see more species at this time of year than any
other. Bob Baird spotted a pair of red-shouldered
hawks hunting on the grassy slope across from the
south side of the building. They are monogamous,
solitary nesters who like the more forested areas north
of us to raise their families. They resemble the redtailed hawks that are with us year round, but they have
a dark and white barred tail instead of dark and red
barred tail. The breast of the mature red-shouldered
hawk, seen from a distance, appears white. Norma
Crummey who is a bird whisperer reports that
someone has seen a Golden Eagle on the property.
This is quite possible since they have a winter roost
nearby. To see such a bird is a memorable experience.
Kestrels are also here at this time. They are
hunting the sufficiency of small birds from the Sierras
such as juncos and chickadees that are here now. They
are the smallest hawk and fly with great skill. They
have two distinct black facial stripes. I spotted a pair
of kestrels flocking a red-tailed hawk suggesting they
are breeding at this time. This is not mentioned in
books, but nature is full of surprises and more
intelligence than we choose to believe.
The flicker is here at this time of the year. It is a
large flashy ground feeder with a red mustache and a
black crescent on its breast in the male. It’s eastern
cousin has a black mustache and a red crescent on its
breast in the male. Where their ranges overlap in
Colorado, one can see birds with a red mustache on
one side and a black mustache on the other. They are
the same species and are all called the Northern
flicker.
The most exciting bird sighting for me since I
have moved here occurred on the south-facing side of
the building in January looking at the green hills
behind the Appian Way suburb. I spotted three sandhill cranes. The only other time I have seen these
magnificent birds was in the Great Central Valley of
California decades ago. Their courtship dances are
famous. They mate for life and are much more
constant in their monogamy than we are. When we as
a species only lived in the wet tropics we couldn’t see
much of the cosmos because of the forest canopy.
Fruit came into season all year long. The biggest
temperature change occurred when day became night.
It was cranes migrating from northern Europe to
tropical marshes at the same time every year that gave
our ancestors the first inkling of a seasonal climate,
the idea of a terra incognita. The crane migration
represented the big hand on the annual clock. Cranes
are thought to bring seven kinds of good luck in
China. Seven is the sacred number of the Big Dipper,
the northern seasonal clock.
(Continued on page 5)
Page 4
When this jovial and
popular resident is
anywhere within your
hearing range, you
will hear calls of “Hi,
Joe!”, the greeting to
which he readily and
enthusiastically
responds. Joe Elleard
has led a very active
and somewhat
transient life. Born
in Billings, Montana,
he was raised by his
homemaker mother
and father who
worked in
construction. His
father suffered with lung problems as a result of
mustard gas which he encountered during WW I.
Joe’s family moved often. From a ranch in
Wyoming, they traveled to many cities in Colorado
and then California and Salt Lake City. Along the
way, a brother was born. Back in California, a sister
joined the family. In Compton, California, the family
lived in a 16 ft. trailer, so small and crowded Joe had
to sleep outside under an awning. Mill Valley was the
next venue and Joe got a job as a carpenter’s helper,
working on a huge government concrete project near
the Golden Gate Bridge.
In 1944, the family moved back to Compton and
Joe moved in with the family of his friend, Carl.
There, he lived in the backyard in a tent and took his
meals with that family. He attended school there and
in summer he worked at many jobs including selling
newspapers, magazine subscriptions, digging
potatoes, picking fruit and being the draftsman at a
local lumber yard.
At the onset of WWII when Joe’s friend, Carl, was
drafted into the Navy, Joe tried to enlist but because
of his age (he was only 16) he was refused admission.
So, what did he do? Well, just tell the US Maritime
Service that you were 18 and they sign you on! After
training, Joe received an Ordinary Deck Seaman‘s
certificate and was assigned to a troop ship carrying
Marines to war. His ship stopped at many Pacific
Islands and off–loaded Marines at Saipan. One of
Joe’s favorite duties was steering the ship which he
did on troop ships, tankers loaded with aviation fuel
and cargo ships loaded with bombs. During these
runs, they encountered storms, near collisions, air
raids and gunnery practices, all of which “kept things
interesting”.
After his service, Joe met and married his first
wife with whom he had two children. The fifteenyear marriage ended in divorce but Joe stays in
contact with his children.
Joe became a Mason n 1956, joining Castro
Valley Lodge #713. He became very active in
Masonry and became master in 1965. That same year
he met and married his Gladys “a wonderful wife and
helpmate who changed my life for the better”. They
bought property in Clearlake, California and both took
jobs. Weekends were spent with their family water
skiing and motorcycling. (Gladys brought two
children to the marriage from her previous one.)
When they retired, they moved to Yuma, Arizona,
having previously traveled in their RV to every state
except Alaska. They also toured almost everywhere
in Hawaii.
Joe’s accomplishments are many and varied.
Besides having a private pilot’s license, he also holds
a radio license, a locksmith’s license and a wastehazard removal license. His affiliations and offices
include: President of the Clearlake Kiwanis Club and
charter member of the Radio Club.
He joined Aahmes Shrine in 1964 and was Sultan
of the Oriental Band and on Ritualistic Cast for 20
years, Past Master’s Club, RV Club, Ambassador,
President of the Lake County Shrine Club and
Treasurer of the Foothills Club in Yuma. The
Foothills Club is made up of “snowbirds” from the US
and Canada and with its Shriner Dinner Unit they
were able to donate about $14,000 annually to the
Shrine Hospital. And, he has personally sponsored 30
youngsters into the Hospital. Back in 1987, Joe
joined the Hillbilly RV clan in Las Vegas, Nevada.
He chartered a clan in Aahmes territory in 1988 which
eventually grew to include 300 couples. Clans can be
(Continued on page 5)
Page 5
RESIDENT LEADERS
(Continued from page 2)
does he regularly engage his fellow Pickle Ball
players, he is actively involved in upgrading the court
conditions, including securing the nets in a safe and
more efficient manner.
Following a generous donation of spirits from
residents, Roger conceived and oversaw the recent
Manhattan cocktail fundraiser. The generous
donations went to the Shiners Hospital and the Staff
Appreciation Fund. More such events are planned.
As would be expected, Roger also volunteers his
time outside of Acacia Creek. After realizing that it
would be nice to maintain contact with former fellow
GE nuclear workers, he personally gathered over 400
names from the past 36 years and established an
ongoing internet blog. He regularly alerts the
participants of the illness and death of group members
and posts news articles about nuclear energy.
Acacia Creek is much better for having a resident
go-getter like Roger. One cannot help but wonder
what he will take on next!
Mary Lou Bales
RESIDENT SPOTLIGHT
(Continued from page 4)
found in many States and Joe was Ambassador for the
States of California, Nevada and Arizona.
Joe’s story would not be complete without a word
about and a tribute to his beloved wife, Gladys, who
was also a resident of Acacia Creek until her death in
2016. She was an active and popular participant in
activities here and took on the leadership of the Hand
and Foot card game, which Joe now leads. She is also
fondly remembered by the “99”card game players for
having coined the expression “boom, boom, boom”,
referring to the rapidity by which one can quickly lose
at cards in only three hands.
Joe has a multitude of friends at Acacia Creek,
many of whom are his dining companions. He vows
to become more active in exercising, working in the
model/workshop and in the Radio Control Air Club.
In the meantime, he keeps busy with “Hand and Foot”
cards and serving as driver of the six-passenger golf
cart which takes residents around our campus. Joe
loves the sound of its horn! Once you get to know this
gentleman, you will find him to be a good friend and a
lot of fun.
Carol Hough
Masonic Home Pharmacy: Your physician can fax
(510-475-5697) or phone (510-429-6426) prescriptions directly to the Masonic Home Pharmacy.
When ready, the AC staff will pick them up and
bring them over to our Concierge Desk for you to
pick up after dinner. In addition to prescription medicines, the Masonic Home Pharmacy stocks many
over-the-counter (OTC) items you find in a drug
store–such as ointments, eye and ear drops, bandages, antibiotics, toothpaste, etc. Call to ask them (Ext.
6426), and even if not in stock, an item can usually
be ordered for you. Also they will try to match prices you are charged on your prescription insurance.
Contact Yvonne Wong, the Director of Pharmacy at
Ext. 6426 if you have any questions, including information about coverage for Kaiser patients.
(Pharmacy hours are 9:00-12:00 and 1:00-4:45 Monday through Friday.)
Marilyn Jensen
RARE BIRDS & WINTER VISITORS
(Continued from page 3)
Other signs of the season came on Valentine’s
Day when the Tom Turkeys began to fan their tail
feathers and strut their stuff. When they reach their
peak of masculinity their head color has changed
from red to blue to white hot. Was this why Ben
Franklin thought they should be the national bird?
The most spectacular natural history event so far this
year occurred at 6:00 am the morning after
Valentine’s Day. A coyote began a hair-raising call
with the first glimmer of dawn. Each call was
responded to by a group gobble by Toms still at
roost. It went on for a few minutes. It was joined by
my phone ringing from a well-meaning resident
making sure I was awake. The Big Dipper was just
rising, but it was overcast and could not be seen.
Another storm is about to blow in during this, the
rainiest season we have seen for awhile.
Cj Becker
Page 6
Michael Sullivan, the new Acacia Creek sous
(under) chef, is very experienced. He has lived
around food service all his life.
Born at Ford Ord, he has lived around the Bay
Area and many other places. His dad was a chef in
the Army and in charge of the mess halls in Oakland.
Michael began cooking in his teens. His father is the
retired manager of the Oak Knoll Officers’ Club.
For over the last satisfying four years, Michael
was the chef instructor at the Episcopal Community
Services in San Francisco. The 6-month program was
available and free to low income and/or homeless
people to be able to return to work. The classes taught
basic kitchen skills: cooking methods, sauces, baking,
safety, and sanitation. About 20 people graduated in
each class, and were then placed in jobs.
He graduated in 1995 from the California
Culinary Academy in San Francisco.
Now in a change of
direction at AC, he
follows Fernando’s plan
for the day. When
Fernando is away,
Michael is in charge
and about 3-4 people
work under him.
Michael is married
and lives in San
Lorenzo. He has played
golf for 35 years,
bowled for many years
and now a pro bowler
for seven.
After 6-7 years, he
wants to retire.
Clarice Hill
He was a caterer for about 20 years, managing
large events and parties.
New housekeeper, Robert Santillan, was born and raised in Manila, Philippines. He studied at
the Philippines Christian University where he received a degree
in business administration. Robert had a successful career in
sales in the Philippines working
for companies such as SaraLee,
specializing in product lines such
as Kiwi shoe polish. He decided
to retire from sales and followed
his son (Rafael – 22) to the United States arriving last year. As
Robert explains it, selling is very
demanding and stressful, and he
was looking for something different and less demanding. Hearing about the housekeeping position at Acacia Creek, he decided to give
it a try. Although Robert would eventually like to
have his own business, he feels that he needs to learn
American culture as well as the marketplace before
venturing out on his own. Robert chose the Bay Area
for the climate and to be near other relatives, plus it
gives him a better opportunity to indulge his interests
such as trying new foods and restaurants.
One of our newest housekeepers
is Jainendra (Jan) Singh, a
recent arrival from Nadi, on
Fiji’s main island. He studied
at the SVH college with an
emphasis in housekeeping,
mechanics and agriculture. Jan
lives in Hayward with his wife,
Sageeta, and their 2 daughters,
Navita (17) and Jasmita (11).
Because all of his wife’s family
lives in the USA, his mother-inlaw has wanted to bring them
here for the last 20 years, and
they finally arrived in June
2016. Jan applied for the
Acacia Creek job online, and
was pleased to have an opportunity to work in
housekeeping. His Fiji experience in housekeeping
is helpful, but some aspects of the work are
different, so he has been learning the American way
from his supervisor. Soccer is his favorite sport,
and he used to play on a team in Fiji with his
brother-in-law. He hopes to get more involved with
American soccer.
Sophie Hudnut
Page 7
PLANET EARTH
AND HER FUTURE
Our travelers participated in a return trip to one of
our favorite places, the California Academy of Science
in Golden Gate Park, this time with a little different
perspective. We had purchased a lunch along with a
docent to explain the various scientific programs and
projects of the Academy. This was followed by time
to explore the museum on our own and ending with a
trip to the Planetarium.
The Academy is one of the largest natural history
museums in the world. The museum houses over 26
million specimens. The Academy began in 1853 just
three years after California became a state. The first
location was on what is now Grant Avenue and
Chinatown. From there it moved to Market Street in
1891. This was funded by the legacy of James Lick
who, when he died in 1876, left the bulk of his 3million-dollar estate to social and scientific causes. It
resided there for fifteen years until the 1906
earthquake destroyed all but a handful of specimens
and some library books and papers. It found its final
home in Golden Gate Park in 1916 opening what was
called the North American Hall of Birds and
Mammals. This is still part of the exhibits in the
museum section. The current museum re-opened its
fully re-built facility in 2008.
For those old timers of the Bay Area, we
remember the Steinhart Aquarium which opened in
1923. There the scientists have created a coral reef
representing the Philippines marine life. In 2011 they
added and catalogued 300 new species found during
an expedition to the Philippines. The aquarium
section is in the basement; lower section of the
building and is still called the Steinhart Aquarium.
The academy is a world class research facility in
the field of Biodiversity Science and Sustainability.
They conduct systematic conservation research around
the world. As our docent explained they are very
concerned about the sustainability of our oceans. The
major problem being the increase of carbon dioxide in
the atmosphere which, when it drops into the ocean
waters becomes carbonic acid. Though it is a
relatively weak acid, it is believed to hinder calcium
which is needed for the development of shells to house
the mollusks of the ocean. This in turn leads to a
breakdown in the eco-chain.
Dear Residents,
It is always great to hear from you regarding
things you like about Acacia Creek and things that
you could do without!?! Most always, positive and
negative comments swirl around our food served and
our menus. Well, we would like to introduce a few
new lunch menu items but to do so we need to
eliminate a few of our least favorite items. We are
tallying the last 6 months’ worth of orders so we can
see which menu items were served the fewest times.
Most likely, these will be the items we will drop from
the menu. This seems like a fair way of doing it. My
apologies in advance if YOUR favorite lunch item is
cut and eliminated from the menu.
Other items of discussion include programing
(activities), landscaping and of course housekeeping.
For now, I’ll address housekeeping and save
programing and landscaping for a later time. I know
that Emma and Josephine were great housekeepers
and they did an excellent job. Heck, you’ve been
training them for over 6 years. Practice makes
perfect… I’ll ask at this time to give our new
housekeepers a bit more time and patience. I think
with time our new guys will learn and get better at
their jobs. Thanks to many of you for offering to train
them but, I am asking that we leave the training up to
Thys and Maria for now so they don’t get confused
on what their duties are and we have consistency
throughout the community.
Happy Saint Patrick’s Day! Cheers,
Martin Herter
PLANET EARTH (Continued)
Along with research the Academy is a great
resource for education and community outreach.
A visit to the Morrison Planetarium with its’ featured
program “Planet Earth”, the Rainforests of the World
Exhibit, with birds and butterflies and the Living
Roof which has many environmental features provide
a walk not only through history but a glimpse into the
future and choices man must make to preserve our
small blue planet.
Sally Ward
Page 8