WHO WE ARE

Rising Star Temple was instituted in Port Tampa, Florida under the leadership of Noble John R. Hall, our first Illustrious Potentate in 1896. Rising Star Temple was changed to Harram Temple No.23 and was officially chartered September 25, 1927. Prince Hall Shrinedom embraces all the fundamental concepts of the Masonic Order but is more colorful with a broader spectrum of visibility by the way it serves as a charitable non-profit organization and dispenses charity throughout its various communities and the care for its own.

SHRINE HISTORY

John George Jones, a prominent Black lawyer from Chicago, Illinois, is said to have been the first Prince Hall Mason introduced to the ritualistic mysteries of the order during the World’s Colombian Exposition in Chicago, Illinois on June 1, 1893. Noble John G. Jones, shortly afterward, established our organization on June 3, 1893, and became its first Imperial Grand Potentate, empowered with the authority to create Nobles and to propagate Temples throughout North and South America. Our very first Shrine Temple was then established as Palestine Temple June 3, 1893.

Despite our early growth, the order would be forced to restructure its base of operations on December 12, 1900. A convention of Temples was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania with representatives attending from Temples located in Alexandria, Virginia, Philadelphia, and Pittsburgh Pennsylvania. This meeting was initiated with the sole purpose of saving Shrinedom in Prince Hall Masonry. At this meeting, the order adopted its new name: The Imperial Council of the Ancient Egyptian Arabic Order Nobles Mystic Shrine (A.E.A.O.N.M.S.) of North and South America and its Jurisdiction, incorporated. By placing the word “Egyptian” into its title the organization would add a sense of African origin and express the ethnicity of the group. The first annual session of the organization would take place on September 25, 1901, in Newark, New Jersey, and it was here that constitution was formally adopted establishing the fraternity as it is today. The organization would make one of its most important decisions, that of becoming incorporated. This legal filing was achieved in Washington D.C. on November 13, 1901, and this was the key element in assisting the Shrine in justifying its sovereignty.

The Imperial Potentate is the senior elected officer of the Shrine. The men of the organization, known as Nobles, wear the Red Fez and the women, known as Daughters, wear the White Fez. Most importantly, both are community servants. The Shrine Organization takes considerable pride in its Auxiliary, which is comprised of wives, sisters, mothers, and daughters of the membership – officially styled, the Imperial Court Daughters, an Auxiliary of the A.E.A.O.N.M.S., Inc. The Imperial Commandress leads the Daughters.

Headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, the Imperial Council of the Ancient Egyptian Arabic Order Nobles Mystic Shrine of North and South America and Its Jurisdictions, Incorporated is a benevolent, charitable, educational, and fraternal organization dedicated to charitable, civic, economic, and educational development programs. Our Worldwide Fraternal Shrine family has a membership of over 47,000 in some 272 Shrine Temples and 230 Courts, (Daughters, an Auxiliary of the A.E.A.O.N.M.S., Inc.) throughout the Continental United States, the Bahamas, Canada, England, Germany, Guam, Hawaii, Italy, Japan, Korea, Panama, Spain, and the Middle East.

We foster a multitude of national charitable programs: The Prince Hall Shrine Foundation, Inc., a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, was established to provide financial resources to help support the following initiatives: Health Care, through its National Community Health Initiative (NCHI) and the American Diabetes Association (ADA); St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital; partnership with the NAACP Voter Education/Registration program, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Mentorship: Minority male youth who have at-risk or high-risk educational deficiencies will have a forum to improve these deficiencies through the Shriners As Mentors (SAM) program. This program gives economically deprived youth, who want to grow and do better, an opportunity to receive invaluable personal support and additional guidance to build on life skills to further achieve personal and academic success.

On the local level, Harram Temple No.23 Prince Hall Shriners is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization. Some of the charitable endeavors and programs the Temple is involved in includes the following: Educational/Charity Program, which provides school supplies and book Bags; Harram Temple Youth Program; Shriners as Mentors Program (SAM); National Community Health Initiative (NCHI); the Hillsborough County Branch NAACP Voter Education/Registration Program; volunteer programs at the Tampa Metropolitan Ministries; Feeding Tampa Bay Mobile Food Pantry; Homeless Outreach Programs through our Community Engagement Program. Annually, the Temple awards five $1000.00 educational grants and five laptop computers through the Watts Sanderson, Jr. Memorial/Educational Grant Program for deserving college/university bound students, to include vocational/trade schools, to help defray unexpected out of pocket expenses the recipients may incur. Members of the Temple prepare and distribute over 1400 food baskets annually in partnership with other community organizations through its Holiday Food Basket Program for less fortunate families in the communities we serve. In addition, the Temple sponsors and operates the Annual Clothes Closet Give-a-Way/Distribution Program for those in need of clothing, shoes, toys for children and much more!