COMING SOON: “The Ante Room” Video Series

Heart in Hand: The Modern Odd Fellow’s Guide is proud to announce “The Ante Room”. A video series where we discuss all things “Odd” and interview members from all over the globe. If you have a topic idea you would like to see covered or want to be featured on the show, just send an […]

“Oddball” Polar Plunge in Victoria, BC – by Billy Sanderson

And then one day, the shared Odd Fellowship took hold of them. How can we make this a way to give back to our community? Brother Drew jumped right into the topic, “I’m thinking we should get serious about a Boxing Day swim and a pledge drive… When the topic hit the Facebook group, each one of these “sticks” jumped up to form a unified “bundle” to bring life to the idea.

Three Inquiries Into The Language Used In An Odd Fellows’ Lodge Open In The Initiatiory Degree And The Inclusivity That Language May Imply – by Arike van de Water

The Odd Fellows aims to include people of all genders, religions and other backgrounds, I was assured. While I have found this to be true of the community, the language used in the meetings does not yet bear this out. I wish to discuss the questions I have had about the language used in an Odd Fellow Meeting when the Lodge is open in the Initiatory Degree, and how we have, so far, handled these questions in the Mountain View Lodge.

Odd Fellowship is Progressive Part II by Michael Greenzeiger, GW CA

Unlike other types of organizations, which may find it desirable to have a set of officers or leaders that varies little from year to year, in Odd Fellowship we see value in giving as many brothers and sisters as possible the chance to participate in leadership. While, the “desk officer” positions of Recording Secretary, Financial Secretary, and Treasurer do often remain with the same individuals from year to year, there also exist the “line offices” which comprise a series of steps leading up through Noble Grand which are designed to be switched every year as the members advance.

17 Songs That Make You Think About Odd Fellowship

Matisyahu, Tim McGraw, Drake, Michael Franti, singers from the musical Rent, Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, Rage Against the Machine, Queen, Luminaries, Black Eyed Peas, Craig Morgan, White Stripes, Aretha Franklin, Bo Diddley, Swedish House Mafia, Bob Dylan. OK folks, these are music videos that can get you thinking about being an Odd Fellow. Some are […]

Immigrant Among You -by Arike van de Water

Here in Mountain View Lodge #244 we are trying to give hands and feet to the call to “relieve the distressed” by holding fundraisers, for detained immigrants and refugees, among other things. Isn’t that too political a cause? some critical thinkers in our lodge asked. So it may seem.

Diagram of the 1797 Lodge Layout of the Patriotic Order of Odd Fellows

First, the link below should bring up a diagram of a lodge of Patriotic Odd Fellows in 1797: Patriotic Order of Odd Fellows Lodge Layout The documentation I used to support the making of this diagram is the description of the lodge found in the 1797 ritual book. In looking at the diagram of the […]

Following Yourself On The Jericho Road

What if the story of the Good Samaritan is about YOU and your personal suffering? Taken as a whole, The Good Samaritan story can be about your own “inner suffering.” Those nights you are alone and cry yourself to sleep. Your anguish at not being able to achieve your goals, or that nagging addiction part […]

CONSIDER THE POOR, 1845.

CONSIDER THE POOR. (Adapted and edited for the 21st century reader from The Symbol and Odd Fellows Magazine, 1845. I used 19th/early 20th century photos and drawings to keep with the tone of the article) We call the attention of our readers to the following excerpt, from a report, made by the Episcopal city missionary, Bro. […]

DISCRIMINATION AND RELIEVING THE POOR

As we are called to relieve people who are in distress, we need to understand how certain discriminatory laws contribute to making life harder for others and creates problems beyond their control, especially if one is poor. It is very common for such laws to create inequality even today in 21st century societies. Following is […]

Tips For Creating An Effective Social Media Campaign For Your Lodge

If we’re going to continue increasing membership, we need to consider this statement: In order to recruit Generation X, Millennials, and Generation Z, we’re going to have to engage them online using social media FIRST. “…using social media FIRST” is an extreme statement, but I mean to sound extreme to challenge some of you to understand the […]

How We Remember – by Carl Armijo

One of the things that has been on my mind since I joined the Order was to document our Lodge brothers and sisters through modern portraiture with a throwback to the old times. I envisioned old regalia and the faces of our current membership.