Odd Fellowship and a View of Urban America

Do you hate living in the city? Or do you live in the country and you’re glad you don’t live in the city? Even though country living may be seen as the ideal by some, the truth is, the United States is becoming more urban each decade. There has been a decline in rural population […]

Do You Have a Plan? by Toby Hanson DGM, WA

In any organization there’s something called “institutional knowledge:” the knowledge inherent in the institution which is necessary to the function of the organization. This can be anything from procedural information, like how to file reports, to where supplies are stored or what day the garbage is picked up. In Buckley #75, all of our institutional knowledge was invested in only one person and, when she passed away, that knowledge was lost. Now we’re going through the difficult and time-consuming process of rebuilding that store of knowledge.

Odd Group Activities For Your Lodge

We all need lodge activities. If you can get at least 3 people together from your lodge (including yourself), try doing one of the following Odd activities. Click the highlighted links for more information. 1. Ghost Hunting: Ghost Hunting 2. Visit an Escape Room: Escape Room 3. Brew some beer. Drink it. Homebrewing 4. Geocaching: Geocaching 5. Participate […]

REPOST: IOOF Grand Lodges That Don’t Have A Website.

(This article was first posted in June of 2017. If your state has since gotten a website for its Grand Lodge, PLEASE LET US KNOW. We plan on reposting this same article for a while to emphasize how important it is to have a web presence. C’mon GL’s, let’s get online! 😉 ) Occasionally, our […]

Frustrated With Your Lodge? Start Over.

Frustration. It’s one of the key elements that can alert you to the fact that your needs aren’t being met. Have you become frustrated with your current lodge? Is the leadership not what you hoped for? Does the lodge leadership refuse to adapt to modern times, or to modernize? Is there so much infighting that […]

Odd Fellows and Reefer Madness in 1843

Reading back issues of old Odd Fellows magazines from the early 19th century can result in a severe case of bulging eyes. Here’s an article from The Symbol and Odd Fellows Magazine, in 1843. See link below. A SUBSTITUTE FOR INTOXICATION There has been recently discovered in India, by accident in the first place we […]

An Eye For The Lack Of An Eye

You have two eyes. Would you give one of your eyes so someone in a developing nation without sight could become seeing? You have two kidneys. Would you give one up so a stranger could live a longer life? What is it that drives some of us to look beyond our own interests and the […]

Mind the (Generational) Gap

In England, the London Underground has a famous phrase, “MIND THE GAP”, that is played over the PA system and is emblazoned on the edge of the station platforms. This now iconic warning is to remind passengers stepping on or off of the trains to look down and make sure they aren’t stepping out into thin air, as many of the station platforms are curved and therefore create a large divide to step over. As Odd Fellows, we have our own gap to mind. The generational one.

The Gift of Time -by Kelly Hughes

By Kelly Hughes Grand Master Washington State 2017-2018 Originally printed in the Washington Odd Fellow. As I sit here writing this letter for the newspaper, I think about the holidays. I received several wonderful gifts from family, but the most precious of all was time. Mother and I had my nephew and his wife and […]

Hoodwink How To -by Scott Robinson

Scott Robinson Lewisburg, PA Lodge No. 96 http://www.iooflewisburg.org scottr@iooflewisburg.org I have been looking for a source of hoodwinks for some time. Originals are too fragile and expensive, modern steam punks are way too expensive and need to be custom made. While I was at Harbor Freight, I bought a set of el-cheapo welding goggles…$4.99 for […]

Let’s Put Pride and “WOW” Back in Our Degree Ceremonies – by Scott Robinson

Scott Robinson Lewisburg, PA, No. 96 When I joined the Odd Fellows, I looked forward to my Initiation night! I was excited, and nervous. I looked forward to taking part in the same mysterious ceremony that my ancestors were in many years ago. I was thrilled to be a part of that tradition, mystery, and […]

The Nature of Truth in Sierra Leone -by Jessica Dickinson

The Nature of Truth in Sierra Leone This essay was written by Jessica Dickinson Goodman, a member of the Mountain View, California Lodge #244, touching on a lesson about truth she learned while teaching this past summer in the west African country of Sierra Leone. Last summer, I went to visit a friend’s tech center […]