Our History

With the rapid growth of the middle and northern areas of Macomb County between 1985 and 2000 came the expansion of several law enforcement agencies. With new young officers being hired, the need for another F.O.P. lodge was talked about frequently. Then in early 2001, Tom Willhite, Al Beindit, Lynn Baumgarten and Dave Willis Jr. decided to formulate a plan and see what kind of support they could get in opening another lodge centrally in Macomb County. The response was tremendous. Not only were the young officers excited about opening a new lodge but many senior and retired officers supported the plan also.

They first had to organize the personnel for the first lodge board. They needed to fill all of the positions from the President on down to Trustee. You can see the picture of our “chartered” board on this website. On July 10, 2002, Central Macomb Lodge #187 was chartered with 50 members. Over the next 2 years, our lodge was the fastest-growing lodge in the state. We currently have over 350 members and are still growing.

We have a diverse membership consisting of officers from over 10 different departments in the area. We also have a significant number of associate members that supports our efforts. We have raise money annually through golf outings and raffle tickets sales. The money we raise is contributed to numerous local charities including the AMVETS Feed a Family Program, Wertz Warriors Wave Runner ride and Snowmobile ride, American Legion Christmas Program, a Handicap Floor Hockey in the City of Fraser, and numerous others.

Central Macomb Lodge #187 was founded as a “member’s” lodge. Our current and past board members believe that our lodge is run by the board through the direction of the membership. The basic principle is that every member has a voice in how their lodge is run. That philosophy alone has made us one of the largest and strongest lodges in the state.

-Lodge #187

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