Honors of the Foundation Bestowed upon;
Dwight A. Hamilton, 33°
March 28, 2005

The Board of Trustees of the Scottish Rite Foundation of Colorado has unanimously elected Dwight A. Hamilton, 33°, to receive the Foundation’s highest award for 2005, the Honors of the Foundation, in recognition of his outstanding service to the Foundation as its President from November 1994 to March 2005.

Illustrious Brother Hamilton implemented a long-range and strategic planning process, leading the Foundation in a statewide expansion of programs. When he became President, RiteCare clinics were located in Denver, Grand Junction, and Pueblo. During his tenure, new RiteCare clinics were established at the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley with outreach service to northeastern rural Colorado, at Memorial Hospital in Colorado Springs, at the Children’s Speech and Reading Center in Fort Collins, and at Memorial Hospital in Montrose.

Also during his tenure, the Treasure Chest Program - a family-centered preschool reading program - was established in non-profit community organizations in Cortez, Mancos, and Dolores through Piñon, and in Grand Junction through Western Slope Head Start. Of special note is the fact that The Piñon Project received a $1.0 million Early Reading First grant from the Federal Government in 2003 primarily as a result of its success with the Treasure Chest Program. The grant extended this program to all preschool children in the local school district and their families.

During Illustrious Brother Hamilton’s Foundation presidency, more than 7,500 children received services with the Foundation’s financial assistance. This equates to 50 percent of the total number of children served by the Foundation since 1953 - a phenomenal and most significant accomplishment. At the same time, through prudent and sound financial management, the Foundation’s net assets increased 79 percent, growing from $13.4 million at the end of 1994 to $24.0 million today.

In 1996, Illustrious Brother Hamilton hosted the inaugural biennial national RiteCare Childhood Language Program conference for clinicians throughout the Southern Jurisdiction. This conference is now a popular national conference held in various locations throughout the jurisdiction every two years and attended by approximately 300 professionals.

Fund raising became a way of doing business in contrast to the years prior to Illustrious Brother Hamilton’s presidency. And, such fund raising was not limited to just the Fraternity. It also extended to the community. More than $1.8 million was raised from non-Masonic organizations during his tenure. The total amount of gifts to the Foundation during this period was $5.9 million and the total amount of Foundation grants to the Colorado RiteCare clinics was $12.7 million.

Illustrious Brother Hamilton and his colleagues on the Foundation’s Board of Trustees undertook the first major fund raising campaign in the Foundation’s history, successfully raising $2.0 million to establish the Kelley Family/Schlessman Family Scottish Rite Masons Chair in Childhood Language Disorders at The Children’s Hospital. This fund raising project was a 3-year campaign from 2000 through 2002. This endowed chair was the first $2 million chair to be established at the hospital and now serves as the standard for endowed chairs at this premier institution. It is occupied by Dr. Deborah Hayes.

In 2004, Illustrious Brother Hamilton commissioned a second fund raising campaign to raise $250,000 for the creation of a scholarship fund for graduate students pursuing a Masters Degree in speech-language pathology. The campaign successfully met this goal by the end of 2004. This scholarship program will help deserving and talented individuals to enter the field of speech-language pathology in Colorado. This profession is experiencing critical staffing shortages in clinics and public schools around the state, especially in rural areas. The first scholarship will be awarded in 2005.

During the Foundation’s Fiftieth Anniversary year in 2003, celebrations were held in each of the three Scottish Rite Valleys in the Orient with the participation of key political and community citizens including the Lieutenant Governor, the First Lady of Colorado, the Speaker of the Colorado House of Representatives, and the U.S. Congressman from the 3rd Congressional District in Colorado. The Fiftieth Anniversary was capped with a five-star performance by Illustrious Brother Mel Tillis, 33°. The then-incoming Sovereign Grand Commander, Illustrious Brother Ronnie Seale, 33°, stated this concert was the best Masonic event he had attended in his Masonic career. The anniversary celebration was especially noteworthy for the Supreme Council as the RiteCare Childhood Language Program, now located in each Orient of the Southern Jurisdiction, first began in Denver, Colorado in 1953.

As a result of the progressive work of Illustrious Brother Hamilton, his Board of Trustees, Dr. Deborah Hayes, and the professional staff of therapists throughout the state, the Scottish Rite Foundation of Colorado received two community awards for its work. In 2002 the National Philanthropy Day in Colorado, a consortium of non-profit organizations in the state and the Governor’s Commission on Community Service recognized the Foundation as the sole recipient of the Outstanding Philanthropic Organization for 2002. The second award was received in 2003 from the First Lady of Colorado, Frances Owens, and the Early Childhood Intervention Awareness Day. She presented the Foundation with the Frances Owens Communities Helping Young Children Award for its work in promoting the speech-language health of young Colorado citizens.

As a testament to Illustrious Brother Hamilton’s outstanding service to the RiteCare Childhood Language Program in Colorado, the Board of Trustees honored him on March 28, 2005, not only with their highest award, the Honors of the Foundation, but also named the graduate scholarship in his name, titling it the “Dwight A. Hamilton Scottish Rite Foundation of Colorado Graduate Scholarship in Speech-Language Pathology.”

The Foundation has benefited greatly during a period of dynamic and progressive leadership under the Presidency of Dwight A. Hamilton, 33°. For his many contributions to the Scottish Rite Foundation of Colorado and to the children of Colorado, the Honors of the Foundation are bestowed upon him in the greatest spirit of friendship and brotherly love.