On Thursday, I toured the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences in downtown Raleigh. The museum spans two buildings, with exhibits covering coastal ecosystems, prehistoric life, and statewide natural habitats. It combines immersive natural history displays, live animal encounters, hands-on learning, and cutting-edge scientific research. The rest of the day was spent catching up with old friends and making new ones.
Friday morning, I visited the Duke University Chapel, known for its soaring tower, Gothic interior, and exquisite stained-glass windows. Located on the highest ridge of Duke’s West Campus, it was the university’s first planned and last constructed major building, intended by benefactor James B. Duke to “dominate all of the surrounding buildings” and deeply influence the spiritual life of the campus community. The chapel stands as one of the final great collegiate Gothic projects in the United States and was built using locally sourced stone from a quarry near Hillsborough.
The chapel tower rises 210 feet, making it one of Durham's tallest structures. Inside, the sanctuary spans approximately 291 by 63 feet and seats around 1,500 visitors. Its 77 stained-glass windows depict biblical scenes from both the Old and New Testaments.
Between the chancel and the south transept lies the Memorial Chapel, which houses the Carrara marble sarcophagi of the university’s namesakes—Washington Duke, James B. Duke, and Benjamin N. Duke.
From there, it was a short bus ride to the Sarah P. Duke Gardens. Established in the early 1930s, the gardens began as a memorial inspired by the generosity of Sarah P. Duke. The 55-acre site features four distinct areas: the Historic Terraces (including the Mary Duke Biddle Rose Garden and Roney Fountain), the H.L. Blomquist Garden of Native Plants, the W.L. Culberson Asiatic Arboretum, and the Doris Duke Center Gardens. These areas are connected by roughly five miles of winding pathways.
After returning to the hotel, I attended candidate orientation. Later that evening, I joined my Grand Governor and his wife at the Associate Regents Dinner, where a friend presided over the Council of Associate Regents.
Saturday morning began with the opening of the General Assembly and the introduction of distinguished guests. I then moved to another room for preparations to receive the Order of the Purple Cross. This is not an actual degree within the traditional York Rite system, but rather a prestigious honorary distinction conferred within the York Rite College of North America, an appendant body of the York Rite.
The ceremony was conducted with great dignity and solemnity by a skilled team of ritualists. I was deeply honored to be invested with my ring by my Grand Governor and to receive my patent of membership in this order. With this honor, I now hold the title of Associate Regent of the York Rite Sovereign College of North America.
My class included approximately 115 candidates and was dedicated to W. Berry Rigdon, a living legend in the York Rite, particularly in North Carolina. In attendance were several sitting Most Excellent Grand High Priests, Most Illustrious Grand Masters, and Right Eminent Grand Commanders, as well as both Sovereign Grand Commanders of the Supreme Councils of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite, Southern Jurisdiction and Northern Masonic Jurisdiction.
