Lincoln Poll in USA TODAY

[Laurie Verge]

I come from a family that had Masonic and Eastern Star ties up until it hit my generation. I am an only child with no cousins on that side of the family, so the ties have stopped with me. As for joining the Eastern Star, I have always had commitments to other things that cut into my time.

I can assure you that it has been a well-respected institution for hundreds of years and many of our Founding Fathers and leaders in commerce, industry, and society have been Masons. On the local and state level that I am most familiar with, the Masons and their higher ranks (such as the Shriners - who fund many reputable burn centers in the U.S.) as well as the Eastern Star do many charitable things.

I think there has been a resurgence of questioning about the Masonic lodges thanks to Daniel Brown's novels - The DaVinci Code and Angels and Demons - over the past decade.