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BOSTON – Alfredo Jorge Rodrigues Canhoto of Framingham was installed Junior Grand Warden for 2023 in a ceremony at the fraternity’s Boston headquarters. Junior Grand Warden is the third highest elected officer of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts.
The Grand Lodge of Masons in Massachusetts was chartered in 1733, following the establishment of the Grand Lodges of England in 1717 and Ireland in 1725.
Massachusetts is the third oldest Grand Lodge in the world and the oldest in the Western Hemisphere.
2023 marks the 290th anniversary of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts.
A Grand Lodge is the governing body of Freemasonry in its jurisdiction.
As Junior Grand Warden, Canhoto will assist the Grand Master, George F. Hamilton of Westborough, for the coming year. He also serves as Grand Master Pro Tempore in the absence of the Grand Master, Deputy Grand Master, and Senior Grand Warden.
Canhoto lives in Framingham with his wife, Laney, and their two daughters, Carolina and Ellie.
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Originally from Saint Michael Island, Azores Portugal, he received his Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry from the University of Massachusetts Amherst. He holds a PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from the University of South Carolina. His thesis title is “Retinoic Acid and Transforming Growth Factor-beta modulation of the Upstream Regulatory Region of the Human Papillomavirus Type 16”.
He completed a Post-Doctoral Fellowship at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute with a joint appointment to Harvard Medical School working on Cell Cycle regulation for which he received a Damon Runyon Fellowship Grant. He is the Senior Manager of External Quality Assurance at Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Cambridge. He had authored 13 peer reviewed studies and numerous industry publications.
Canhoto was initiated in Middlesex Lodge, Framingham, in 2005. He served as the presiding officer, or Worshipful Master, in 2011. Masons use the original definition of the word worshipful, meaning “honorable”.
Even today, English mayors and judges are addressed by the title of “Worshipful”.
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As Junior Grand Warden, members of the fraternity call him “Right Worshipful”. He became the Lodge’s Assistant Secretary in 2009 and has been Secretary since 2019. He is a member of The Masters Lodge, Needham; The Scouters Lodge, Holden; and an honorary member of Charles A. Welch Lodge, Concord. He is also a charter member of the Massachusetts Lodge of Research.
He began serving Grand Lodge in 2012 as Grand Steward. A Grand Steward is the Grand Master’s aide. That same year, M.W. Richard J. Stewart, Grand Master, presented him the Joseph Warren Distinguished Service Medal. Named for the Patriot killed during the Battle of Bunker Hill, Warren was the presiding Grand Master at the time of his death. The medal recognizes exceptional service to the fraternity. In 2013, M.W. Brother Stewart named him Grand Representative near the Grand Lodge of Florida.
In 2017 and 2018, Canhoto was District Deputy Grand Master of the 15th North Masonic District. The 21,000 Freemasons and 207 lodges in the jurisdiction are organized into 37 Districts, each lead by a District Deputy Grand Master who is the Grand Master’s personal representative to the lodges therein. Canhoto led: Middlesex Lodge, Framingham (chartered in 1797 by Paul Revere); Meridian Lodge, Natick (1797, also chartered by Revere); United Brethren Lodge, Marlborough (1859); Charles A. Welch Lodge, Concord (1872); and Alpha Lodge, Framingham (1875).
In addition to the offices he has held, Canhoto has been a member of several Grand Lodge Committees, including Chair, Grand Lodge Strategic Planning Committee; Chair, Beyond the Third Degree; Chair, Masonic Leadership Summit; Education & Training Committee; and Membership Development Committee.
Canhoto holds membership in several Masonic organizations. He joined the Valley of Boston of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite in 2010; he is an officer with Mount Olivet Chapter of Rose Croix and a member of the Massachusetts Chapter, Knights of Saint Andrew. He is a member of the York Rite’s Concord Chapter of Royal Arch Masons, Adoniram Council of Royal and Select Master Masons, Concord, and Saint Bernard Commandery No. 12, Knights Templar, Boston, for which he is the immediate past Eminent Commander, and the Massachusetts College of Rosicrucian Society, Boston. He belongs to Aleppo Shriners, Wilmington.
Freemasons belong to the world’s oldest and largest fraternity. It brings together men of every country, religion, race, education, income, and opinion and helps develop the bonds of friendship between them. Through a large variety of North American Masonic philanthropies, approximately $3,000,000 is given to charity every day; 70% of which benefits the public. During its initiation ceremony, members are encouraged to further develop their character and integrity. By providing meaningful opportunities for fellowship, charity, leadership, and education, Freemasonry gives men the opportunity to be the best versions of themselves, and to make their families, workplaces, and communities better. For more information, call 800.882.1080, or visit MassFreemasonry.org.
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