HONESDALE, PA — Honesdale Lodge No. 218, Free and Accepted Masons, now offers the Working Tools Scholarship, a new annual scholarship recognizing Honesdale High School students who pursue the skilled trades and technical arts. 

The scholarship will award $3,000 across three prizes this year: $1,500 for first place; $1,000 for second; and $500 for third. Applications, which are composed of a completed project to the specifications below, are due to Matthew Rickard at Honesdale High School by Monday, November 30.

The scholarship is open to current Honesdale High School students working in metalwork, woodworking, stonework, machining, welding, sculpture, CAD, 3D printing, and related hands-on fabrication and technical arts. Each student should submit one completed work of their own making that thoughtfully and respectfully incorporates the Square and Compasses, the traditional emblem of Freemasonry, the lodge said. No written statement is required; the work itself is the application.

Entries are judged on craftsmanship; design and originality; appropriate difficulty for the student’s level of training; and the quality of the incorporation of the Square and Compasses. 

Each submission must include a brief signed confirmation from a teacher or program supervisor that the work is the student’s own. 

Winners will be honored at a reception on December 10 at Honesdale Lodge No. 218, Ninth and Main streets in Honesdale, where the winning works will be displayed.

“For generations, Freemasons have used the tools of the builder’s craft as symbols of character,” said Vincent Benedetto, Master of Honesdale Lodge No. 218. “This scholarship builds on that tradition by supporting those who will be tomorrow’s builders. The young people of Wayne County who are creating the things that will endure deserve our recognition and our support.”

The scholarship is made possible by lead sponsor Wayne Pike Workforce Alliance, sponsor Roots + Canopy, and founding contributor Honesdale Lodge No. 218.

Full submission details are available at honesdalelodge218.org/working-tools/ or by contacting the lodge at davefaux@dhf-law.net.

About Honesdale Lodge No. 218

Honesdale Lodge No. 218, Free & Accepted Masons, has served Honesdale and the surrounding Wayne County community since 1843. The lodge meets monthly at Ninth and Main streets in Honesdale.