The Joys of Sister(Lodge)hood -by Mason Wolf

The lodge is a special place in Odd Fellows. Everything we do in the order ultimately relates back to our brothers and sisters in our home lodge. They’re the ones who know us best, are first to support and encourage us, join us on the various projects we decide to partake in, and they’re the ones we share our stories with: good of the order in the better times, sick and in distress in the bitter times.

But that familiarity, as wonderful as it is, often leads members to view their entire experience in Odd Fellows as beginning and ending with their local lodge, and I think that risks missing out on one of the greatest benefits of being in a fraternal society – sister lodges.

When all you know of Odd Fellows is your experience in your home lodge, it is natural to assume that every other lodge is basically the same. After all, we all have the same red books that say how we’re supposed to run a meeting. But those of you who’ve visited other lodges know that couldn’t be further from the truth! Some lodges just sit around a kitchen table, while others use grand meeting spaces while wearing full regalia. Some spend time eating together before or after every meeting, while others might play games afterward, or break into committees. The point is that each lodge has its own way of doing things, and that’s actually kind of cool.

Visiting sister lodges is a fun way to find out what other flavors of odd fellowship are like. I’m a member of True Fellowship in San Jose, but I’m also an associate member of Mountain View Lodge. And I love being able to bring ideas from one lodge to another, to be able to say, this is working in lodge X, maybe we should give it a try here? We should be open to looking beyond “the way we’ve always done it here,” and one way that starts is by finding out what our sister lodges are doing.

The easiest way to get involved beyond your home lodge is by checking out the other lodges in your own district. In my district, California number 107, we have lodges in Cupertino, Mountain View, Redwood City, San Jose, Saratoga, and even in the Saratoga Odd Fellow Retirement Home. None are a terribly long drive from any of the others, and each has its own unique character.

And by the way, this isn’t like me saying, “I know it tastes bad, but eat it anyway, it’s good for you.” It really is a treat to visit another lodge! It’s fun to be introduced as a visitor. They’re always very welcoming and make you feel special. You get to see the way they do things, and while you can’t vote, you can get the inside scoop on what they’re up to, which often sparks all kinds of ideas about how something might be adapted for your own lodge.

And if you’ve got a project you want to tackle that’s simply too ambitious for your lodge to do on its own, sister lodges can also be a great source of energy and fresh volunteers. Around the beginning of the year, my lodge decided to get involved with the city of San Jose’s “Viva Calle” event. And before long, it became clear that our reach had exceeded our grasp. On our own, we just didn’t have the people and resources we were going to need in order to make the event a success. But luckily, the Mountain View and Cupertino lodges were interested in partnering with us. In fact, Cupertino ended up providing as many people as our own lodge did, and even brought a live band to keep us entertained! What could have been a demoralizing disaster ended up being a wonderful and fun day for all who joined. And about 10,000 people (we counted) got to see us volunteering in their community, helping to organize an event that they cared about.

So get to know your local lodges. Make some new friends, hear some new ideas, try some new experiences, and be inspired! There’s actually a lot more to odd fellowship than what goes on in your own lodge, and I would love to welcome you at one of our meetings.

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