On Friday, October 24, 2025, Jacob T. Yanovich was installed as the 65^th Most Illustrious Grand Master of the Grand Council of Royal & Select Master Masons of Massachusetts.

In his capacity as Most Illustrious Grand Master, he will oversee the 200^th Anniversary of the Grand Council in 2026. There are currently 21 Councils and over 1000 Cryptic Masons in Massachusetts.

Jacob was raised in Quincy, Massachusetts, graduating from North Quincy High School and Boston University. He is currently employed in the Grand Treasurer’s Office at the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts. He was active from a very young age in the First Baptist Church of Wollaston and served as an Usher and Deacon for many years.

Not having any Masonic background in his family, a member of the congregation who was a Mason suggested he look into joining the Order of DeMolay. He was initiated into Old Colony Chapter in Quincy in January 2006 and served as Master Councilor in 2009-2010. He later served as State Chaplain for Massachusetts DeMolay and is a recipient of the Degree of Chevalier.

Jacob became a member of Rural Lodge in Quincy in 2009 and served as Worshipful Master from 2013 to 2015. He currently serves as Secretary. He was a petitioner to have the Charter of Boston University Lodge restored in 2012. He is an Honorary Member of Norfolk Union Lodge, Weymouth United Masonic Lodge, and Delta Lodge. He served as District Deputy Grand Master for the 8^th Masonic District in 2020 and 2021. He currently serves as a Grand Lecturer. He received the Joseph Warren Distinguished Service Medal in 2023.

Jacob became a Royal Arch Mason in 2009 in Saint Stephen’s Royal Arch Chapter in Quincy, now meeting in Hingham. He first served as Excellent High Priest of Saint Stephen’s Chapter in 2017. He affiliated with Pentalpha Royal Arch Chapter in Weymouth and served as High Priest in 2019. He currently serves both Chapters as Secretary. He is also an affiliated member of Saint Andrew’s Royal Arch Chapter and Saint Paul’s Royal Arch Chapter, both of Boston, and is a member of Massachusetts Convention of Anointed High Priests. He served as District Deputy Grand High Priest for the 6^th Capitular District in 2022 and 2023. He received the Benjamin Hurd, Jr. Meritorious Service Medal in 2019. He has been honored to serve as a member of the Grand Royal Arch Chapter Exemplification Degree Team since 2017 and currently serves as a Grand Lecturer.

Jacob became a member of Temple Council in Weymouth in 2010 and served as Illustrious Master in 2016. He is an affiliated member of Boston Council. He served as Thrice Illustrious Master of Massachusetts Council of Thrice Illustrious Masters in 2024. He served as Grand Sentinel and Visiting Officer for the 1^st Arch from 2019 through 2021. He received the Blake-Bayley Distinguished Service Medal in 2019 and the Abraham A. Dame Medal in 2025. He has been a member of the Grand Council Exemplification Degree Team since 2018. He served as Deputy Grand Master of the Grand Council in 2025.

Jacob was knighted in South Shore Commandery No. 31 in Weymouth in 2010 and first served as Eminent Commander from 2015 to 2017. He currently serves the Commandery as Prelate and Recorder. He is an affiliated member of Boston Commandery No. 2, Gethsemane-DeMolay Commandery No. 7 in Newton, and St. Bernard Commandery No. 12 in Boston. He served as Preceptor of Massachusetts & Rhode Island Chapter of Knights Preceptor in 2023. He has been a member of the Grand Commandery Exemplification Team since 2014. He served as Grand Warder of the Grand Commandery in 2022 and currently serves as an Assistant Inspector-Instructor. He received the Order of Merit in 2022.

Jacob became a member of Scottish Rite in the Valley of Boston in 2009. He has served as a degree worker in Boston Lafayette Lodge of Perfection and Giles Fonda Yates Council, Princes of Jerusalem, as an appointed officer in Mount Olivet Chapter of Rose Croix, and in the Consistory Guard in Massachusetts Consistory. He affiliated with the Valley of Southeastern Massachusetts in 2018, where he served as Thrice Potent Master of Fall River Lodge of Perfection and Commander-in-Chief of Old Colony Consistory. He is currently High Priest of Samuel C. Lawrence Council, Princes of Jerusalem. He is the Director of the Work for all four bodies in the Valley of Southeastern Massachusetts and serves as Chairman of the Oman Price Scholarship Committee. He was nominated for the Meritorious Service Award in 2025 and elected to receive the 33^rd Degree in Boston in 2027.

Jacob joined Taleb Grotto, MOVPER, in Quincy in 2009 and served as Monarch in 2016. He became a Noble of the Mystic Shrine in Aleppo Temple in 2009, where he serves in the Arab Patrol and on the Ritualistic Degree Team. He was President of the South Shore Shrine Club in 2014. He is a member and Past Governor of Mayflower York Rite College No. 105 and received the Order of the Purple Cross in 2023. He is a member and line officer in Paul Revere Council No. 401, Allied Masonic Degrees. He served as Eminent Prior of Massachusetts Priory No. 52, Knights of the York Cross of Honour in 2024-2025. He is a member and line officer of Colonial Council No. 19, Knight Masons, and Saint Matthew’s Conclave, Red Cross of Constantine. He is a Charter Member of Saint Anselm Chapel No. 36, Commemorative Order of Saint Thomas of Acon, in New Hampshire.

Jacob resides in Plympton, Massachusetts, with his wife Kristen. When not involved in Masonic activities, he is a member of several other societies and associations, and has been a Revolutionary War reenactor since 2006.