Batesville’s Lloyd Gathright has been awarded the rank of 32nd-degree Knight Commander of the Court of Honour by the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry, Southern Jurisdiction.
According to a release from the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry Supreme Council, Gathright, a 106-year-old World War II veteran who served in the U.S. Army for over 20 years, is the oldest living Scottish Rite Mason in the country.
He has been a Freemason for over 68 years and a Scottish Rite Mason for more than 50 years.
A special Masonic ceremony was held on July 15, 2024, at Mount Zion Lodge in Batesville to celebrate this achievement. The event was attended by Darrell Gifford, grand master of Masons in Arkansas, and Dr. James Graham, Scottish Rite sovereign grand inspector general in Arkansas, who officially invested Gathright with his Knight Commander’s cap and patent.
Rick Komraus, deputy of the Supreme Council in Oregon, also assisted in the ceremony, representing the Grand Lodge and Scottish Rite of Oregon, where Gathright still holds membership.
According to the release, Freemasonry, the world’s oldest fraternity, teaches self-improvement through the principles of brotherly love, relief and truth. The Scottish Rite of Freemasonry continues these teachings through a series of degrees, culminating at the 33rd degree.
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