| February 6, 2017 -- MY FAVORITE PLACE IN CT
By Jean Meehan,
Prospect Grange - 3rd Place Winner
My favorite place in Connecticut is the Veteran’s Memorial Park in Watertown. The first Sunday of August each year between 60 and 100 members gather to reunite at the annual family reunion. This year will be the 105th year we have gathered for this occasion.
It is located on the top of a hill where it is breezy in the hot summer and has a great view with nature at its best and loads of things for the younger generation to do. The large pavilion protects us from the sun and any rain.
It is quiet and tranquil allowing everyone to catch up on family events like births, deaths, marriages and divorces. Some family members traveled from as far away as California and Florida for this event.
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I hope everyone has gotten a good start to 2017. The world is a changing place and we need to take the Grange into the future if we are to survive. I am amazed at how often I get asked about Lecturers Programs and what they should include. My answer is always it should please the Grange Members. Some like speakers, others like programs with quizzes, music, skits and agriculture included. Keep your members guessing. Do one type of program one meeting and another the next.
This year we are including Ritual Numbers in our requirements. Most Granges are no longer doing degree work and our newer members are not familiar with what us veteran members have always taken for granted. All Lecturers are being supplied with numbers they can use in the Lecturer’s Newsletters which comes out six times a year.
All programs should be between 30 and 60 minutes long. A five or ten minute program does not qualify. We need more than a reading or a song for a program. Don’t forget the Lecturers Program is part of the order of business and should not be omitted. As Lecturers we need to make people want to come to our meetings. And, don’t forget, your Deputy will once again be asking for your records the night of inspection.
Your Lecturer has a hard job. They need to please all our members. They need to be creative and constantly come up with new ideas. Why not offer to do a number for your Lecturer. She or he would be delighted and a new approach is always appreciated.
Grange Sunday and Let’s Celebrate are coming up quickly. Do you have a Talent entry and/or an “A Number” to enter? Every Grange should have an “A Number.” You have them every meeting. Check your Blue Book, call your Pomona Lecturer or myself for details. Remember all entries go directly to the State Judging this year. See You Around the State... |
