Inspiring Conversations with Joshua Hogg of The Masonic Event Center

Today we’d like to introduce you to Joshua Hogg.

Hi Joshua, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I moved to Fort Collins from Arkansas about 3 years ago. When I came to Colorado, I didn’t know anyone and I had few local connections. I had always been fascinated with Freemasonry and I became interested in joining the local Masonic Lodge (Fidelity 19) after receiving a tour of the building and meeting some of the Brothers.

After I joined the Lodge, I worked hard to progress through the three principal degrees to advance to Master Mason. Around this time it was brought to my attention that the non-profit organization that administrates the historic building wished to start an events program, inviting the public to host their private parties, gatherings, and dances. I had former experience as an Activities Director for a senior living community and felt that I was well qualified to coordinate events in the building. I started a company called Scottish Plumb Event Management and began to work on raising visibility on the new offerings for private events, but also to engage with the broader Fort Collins community. Instead of taking out typical advertisements on TV or radio, I wanted something that was more grassroots and organic, so we began hosting First Friday Art Walk and we opened an art gallery in the building called The Cornerstone at The Masonic.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
We’ve had some bumps along the way. It is never easy to build something from scratch. I think that the most difficult thing to balance has been finding a way to open up the doors to the public and offer something that is meaningful to a large variety of individuals while still respecting the history of our building and our organization.

Much of what we’re trying to do is unique and different and I’ve learned that no event ever goes exactly how you expect it to. I believe it’s important to stay flexible, be open to trying new things, and be prepared to course correct as needed.

As you know, we’re big fans of The Masonic Event Center. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
The Masonic Event Center is a 100 year old building located in the heart of Fort Collins Downtown. While still being an active Masonic Lodge, we also host a large variety of public and private events from across the community.

We opened our doors to private rentals in March of 2025 and in that very short time we’ve hosted 7 First Friday Art Walk events and enjoyed the company of over 50 artists, musicians, and poets in that time. The Masonic Event Center has also opened a public art gallery called The Cornerstone where we invite local artists to hang their work for 3 month cycles and we never charge a gallery or table fee for artists that choose to display their work here. We have a variety of multipurpose rooms for rent that have been used for weddings, receptions, CSU fraternal gatherings, dances, etc. We also just recently launched our website www.focomasonic.com where people can see our calendar of upcoming events or book their own.

How do you think about luck?
I believe that opportunity is everywhere all the time. All we can do is position ourselves to be ready and willing when that good fortune presents itself. There are a number of favorable circumstances that I’ve been lucky enough to encounter, but they would mean little if I wasn’t confident enough to emphatically say “yes”.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.focomasonic.com
• Instagram: @foco.masonic
• Other: @cornerstone.foco