Kenny Henry admits he was an “unconventional” resident at the Masonic Children’s Home, arriving at age 18 and signing himself into the home.
“I got in touch with the children’s home through friends of mine,” Kenny said. “I had completed two years of high school, and the goal was to get my diploma, so I was presented with the option [to go to the home].” He graduated from Elizabethtown Area High School in 2006.
Already practically an adult, Kenny said the children’s home gave him a stable home life and the guidance he needed. That led to him being the first and only person to become a Freemason while living at the children’s home.
“One of the reasons I joined Freemasonry is because everything at the children’s home comes from fraternal donations and contributions, and it felt like the right thing to do, to give back and support the next group of children,” he said. In 2005, Kenny joined the Abraham C. Treichler Lodge No. 682, which meets on the Masonic Village at Elizabethtown campus.
In between his junior and senior year of high school, Kenny also decided to enlist in the U.S. Army, with the guarantee that once he received his high school diploma, he would ship off to basic training.
“The children’s home supported me while I was away and deployed overseas in Iraq,” he said. “When I was home on leave, before we deployed the first of two times, they threw me a big party.”
His lodge brothers also sent him cards and care packages to show their support. “I did lack a conventional ‘family,’ but knowing there were people back home who cared about me meant a lot,” he said.
If you listen to the house parents and do what’s expected of you academically and socially, the children’s home will provide you with a good foundation to live your life, according to Kenny.
He is especially grateful to Buzz Cash, former director of the children’s home; Joe Murphy, former CEO of Masonic Villages; and Mark Kurzenknabe, current executive director of the children’s home, for being mentors and his biggest fans.
“The children’s home helps you go to college, but there’s more that it provides,” Kenny said. “They gave me a sense of normalcy, family and belonging. They offered tutoring, sports, etc. I took advantage of everything they gave me and used it to the best of my ability. I would not be where I am today without the children’s home.”
Today, Kenny lives in Williamsport, PA, is medically retired from the Army and works for UGI Utilities. He has been married for 14 years and has a 6-year-old son.
“No matter what successes or accomplishments I have, it all stems back to the stability of the children’s home and the opportunities I was given,” he said. “Whatever I do in my life, I look back at those times and those men and the fraternity — they paved the path to where I am now, and I’m forever grateful.”
Now, Kenny tries to pay it forward, advocating for the children’s home at different lodges and events.
“People hear a lot about retirement living, but the children’s home is more of a secret,” he said. “It’s literally Masonic Village’s best kept secret. The word doesn’t get out enough.”