He advocated a return to fundamentals…. Thirty-two years ago, still quite unsure of his future, he knocked on the Masonic door, and he was initiated as an Entered Apprentice and passed to the Fellow Craft. It was, strangely enough, not until after two years that he was raised to the degree of Master Mason. Taking root in F .D. Roosevelt Memorial Lodge No. 81 as Master Mason on the 7th of March 1970, he took his membership to heart, so that, the year after, he was elected as Worshipful Master of his Lodge. Seeing that their Lodge was becoming a beehive of activities, the Brethren gave him another year to implement his program of direction. There was, from then on, no stopping Simeon Rene Lacson. By 1973, he was appointed by no less than Grand Master Ruperto Demonteverde, Sr. as the Grand Standard Bearer. Then in 1975 he was made the Grand Bible Bearer by Grand Master Teodoro Kalaw, Jr. Phenomenal! That was how his rise was described. He literally involved himself in all the allied and appendant Bodies of Masonry existing in Manila, seemingly to make up for “lost” time. Before he became a member of the Craft, he was President of Lacson Colleges and of the Philippine Law School. As such, he was active in the Lions Club, having joined the Pasay City Lions Club in 1951. In 1954, he became President of the club. Then years afterwards, he was elected District Governor of Lions District 301-A, Lions International. In 1968, he served the civic organization once more and went on to be rated as one-hundred-percent District Governor, one of only eleven one hundred percenters among the fifty-odd who have served as District Governor in Philippine Lionism. Today, he holds a lifetime title: International Counselor of Lions International. In 1969, the 7th Orient in South East Asia Lions Convention, participated in by nine countries, was held in Manila, and he was made the Convention Chairman. In the halls of the Lions world, undoubtedly, the man who was elected Grand Master in 1981 had carved a niche for himself. Civic-minded Rene has also served, for four decades, the Pasay City Chapter of the Philippine Red Cross. Also, he is past Chairman and President of the Pasay Chest Clinic for the Philippine Anti-Tuberculosis Society. He has also served as member of the Board of Directors of this Society for decades. The Philippine Cancer Society and Boy Scouts, Pasay City Chapter, are two other organisations he was an active member of. A member of the Defenders of Bataan and Corregidor, he served as Post Commander of Post 37, American Legion, for three consecutive terms. After finishing his Law studies at the Philippine Law School, Lacson was called to active duty and inducted in the United States Armed Forces in the Far East (USAFFE). He was designated Executive Officer of “C” Company, 1st Battalion, 72nd Infantry Regiment – one of the three infantry regiments of the 71st division that were mobilised in Negros Occidental. These regiments were composed mainly of trainees and reservists of the province. He himself reminisced: On December 6, 1941, my infantry embarked by inter-island vessel from Fabrica, Negros Occidental to Manila. The following day, we immediately proceeded from Manila to our cantonment in Capas, Tarlac. The next day, December 8, the War broke out. The 71st Infantry Division was part of the USAFFE that defended Luzon against the Japanese invaders. Later on, we engaged the enemy in a series of withdrawal-holding actions, particularly in Sison, Pozorrubio, and Tayug – all in Pangasinan. We passed along some nameless points on the way down to Baliwag, Bulacan. Finally, we withdrew to the Bagac section in Bataan. Historically, Bataan surrendered on April 9, 1941. Luckily, he survived the death march from the vanquished US Army bastion in Bataan to the internment camp in Capas, Tarlac. “After fifty-nine thousand deaths later,” continued Rene, I was made burial-officer-of-the-day. It was my misfortune to keep count of the dead we buried. I was released in November of 1942. Thank God, it was not much later! Otherwise, I would have written 30.” A year and a half after his release, he joined the East Central Luzon Guerrilla Area (ECLGA) operating within the Manila and suburbs. He recalled: “I served the Army, after liberation in 1945 and remained in the service doing routine duties until 1948.” Mustered out of military service, he forthwith assumed the position of Registrar-Comptroller of the Philippine Law School and of Lacson College, both being wholly owned by his family. Later on, when his uncle passed away in 1960, he became President of both schools. Rene, recalling fond memories of Intramuros in Manila ante bellum, casually confessed: I consider myself ethnically a native of Silay City, where all my folks came from, although I was born at the old St. Paul Hospital in Intramuros, Manila, on April 21, 1918. This “accident” of birth was due to the fact that my family was in Manila at that time, where my father, Simeon C. Lacson, was a practicing lawyer. Unfortunately, he died in 1926. I was eight years old at the time of his death. In 1969, together with a group of friends and business associates, he incorporated the Carmen Mindanao Mining Co., Inc. Since then, he has served the company as Vice-President for International Affairs. Likewise, he was the President of the Gumban Copper Mines Inc., with mining claims in Basay, Negros Oriental. This farmer gentleman was actively engaged in sugar planting, with sugar plantations in Silay City, Saravia, Victorias and Cadiz, Negros Occidental. Rene certainly has had many a love in both the business and the civic world. But his dedication to Masonry is without parallel. In 1978, eight years after he had been raised as Master Mason, he was elected Junior Grand Warden. From then on he moved up until he became Grand Master. He is a member of the Luzon Bodies, and also of the York Rite Bodies, serving as Excellent High Priest in 1981 in Manila Chapter No. 2, Royal Arch Masons, R.A.M.; Grand Chaplain, Grand Chapter, R.A.M.; and Grand Representative Grand Chapter, R.A.M.; Nevada USA. He was Deputy Illustrious Master of Oriental Council No. 1 of the Royal and Select Masters; Grand Captain of the Guards of the Grand Council of Royal and Select Masters of the Philippines, and Grand Representative of the Grand Council of Royal and Select Masters of New Hampshire, USA. He served as Eminent Commander of Far East Commandery No. 1 of the Knights Templar. In 1981, he was named Grand Prelate of the Grand Commandery of Knights Templar of the Philippines. He was also Grand Representative of the Grand Commandery of Knights Templar of Denver, Colorado, USA. His membership in other appendant orders include Far East Court No. 1, Order of the Amaranth Inc.: Sampaguita Chapter, Order of the Eastern Star, and Islam Temple, Ancient Arabic Order of Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, with headquarters in San Francisco, California, USA. Like many another Grand Master, he did not believe in starting with a bang and ending in a whimper. Shortly after he was sworn in as Grand Master, he said: …I believe that by doing little things that are basic in promoting Grand Lodge harmony, I will be contributing towards the program initiated by my predecessors. There is a need to examine the system of collecting what is due the Grand Lodge. If only blue lodge secretaries will be faithful in performing their tasks the setting of priorities would not be that difficult. I am disturbed by the fact that, until now, the brethren who have promised to give their share of P200 to the temple fund have been remiss in fulfilling their vows. If I will be able to accomplish the collection of all the dues for the Grand Lodge and of all the pledges made by our brethren during my term. Only then will I feel that I have served my time. To me, this is basic. We cannot talk of anything worthwhile when our coffers are empty. Rome, indeed, was not built in a day’s time. The Brethren do admire such a man of vision as Rene Lacson, as well as his managerial know-how needed for streamlining operational thrusts. With him around, the Masonic Fraternity may yet have a promising tomorrow.