Grange Today! 6-14-2024

The Newsletter of the National Grange

Articles in this edition include:

  • Presidential Perspective
  • National Grange Hosts Webinar about Supporting Patient Access to Non-opioid Pain Medicines
  • Potlucks: Summer Fun can be Sustainable
  • Updates to National Grange Youth Programming
  • Oregon State Grange Elects New Leader
  • Community Service Department Updates
  • Celebrate Junior Grange Month
  • View from the Hill
  • Take Action on Obesity
  • Grange Store & Benefits

Click the button below to read and/or subscribe to the Patrons Chain!


Note that all recent issues are available on the National Grange Website. To save space, we only post the table of contents on the MSG Website.

1st Annual Northeast Chaplains’ Worship Service

Saturday, July 27, 2024

Lunch at 12 noon, followed by worship service at 1:30 pm.

Vermont Grange Center
308 West Street
Brookfield VT

RSVP for Saturday Lunch to Ruth Hovey-Sicely of the Vermont State Grange. Reservations must be made by July 8, 2024.

Stay the weekend at the Grange Center!

  • Camper hookups and cabins are available
  • Meals available courtesy of Vermont State Grange

For reservations, contact Ruth Hovey-Sicely 802 223-7961 by July 8.

Notes from National – June 2024


  • Register for the 158th National Grange Convention in Bettendorf, Iowa, November 12-16, 2024. Information and registration links can be found at http://www.nationalgrange.org/158thconvention. Early Bird Registration will close on July 31, so if you want a discount on your registration fee, jump in now!
  • Subscribe to the National Grange’s Good Day! magazine. Only $16 a year gives you access to our print or digital subscription. Learn more about the magazine at http://www.nationalgrange.org/goodday or the digital issue at http://www.issuu.com/grangegoodday. The July issue is out at the printer now, but we might still be able to get your name on the list.!
  • We are also looking for people to submit their Grange’s news so we can feature them in the Grange Today! newsletter or in Good Day! magazine.
  • The National Grange has a new podcast called “The Grange Hall,” which releases a new episode every other Wednesday. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or iHeartRadio. You can also listen on PodBean, the National Grange website, or watch on YouTube. Be sure to like and subscribe! If you have comments or questions, or if you’d like to recommend a member of YOUR Grange to be featured, you can contact us at grangehallpod@gmail.com.
  • Are there topics you would like to see covered in a future Zoom from a National Grange staff member, department, or officer? Please let us know! We’re always working to ensure our topics align with what our members want or need to hear from us.
  • The National Grange Social Media Calendar is available. This is intended to be a guide for State and Community Granges on topics/events that may be used to enhance social media. By no means is it a suggestion to post ALL of these things, but if you’re looking to get out of a rut or expand your social media reach, this could also be a great resource.
  • Many National Grange events are recorded and archived. If you missed an online event and would like to view it, please visit the National Grange YouTube channel at http://www.youtube.com/nationalgrange. 
  • Follow National Grange on Social Media! We’re on Facebook, Instagram, X (Twitter), LinkedIn, TikTok, and YouTube! This is generally the quickest and most up-to-date location to find out what’s happening at the National Grange.

Notes from National are gleaned from an email provided by Phil Vonada, National Grange Communications Director.

Communication Shorts 06-16-2024

By Walter Boomsma,
MSG Communications Director
207 343-1842

Communication Shorts are brief (short) but important items posted for your information and use. Send us your ideas and thoughts!

June Bulletin Is Available!

The June Bulletin is now available for download and printing! You can find recent issues of the Bulletin on the Program Books and Information Page.

Junior Grange Meeting Schedule

There have been several changes to the Junior Grange Meeting Schedule. Please make sure you have the most recent information!

National Grange Digest Is Available on this Site

We have made the 2024 National Grange Digest available directly from the MSG Website. It is listed in the National Grange Section of the Program Books and Information Page. This booklet will answer many of your questions regarding Grange Law and Practice.

Scholarship Information/Application Available

The Educational Aid and Howes Nurses Scholarship information and application is now available on the Program Books and Information Page or this direct link. Note that the deadline for application is September 15, 2024.

Trenton Grange Hosts Weekly Farmers’ Market

Every Friday, from June 7 through October 4, 2024, Trenton Grange Farmers Market, 3 pm – 6 pm. 1134 Bar Harbor Road in Trenton. Vendors contact Beth Warner at 207 664-4164 or zeppa@ aol.com. Free admission. (Vendor/booth fee).

Grange Today?

As a reminder, this new publication replaces Patrons Chain and View from the Hill.

New Links Available

We’ve added two new links to the site. One for “TroopOns” and one for Maine Fair Information and Dates.

Consider this Idea!

Do you have a printed list of the programs your Grange offers?

Think about this!

“If you don’t help with the milking, you’ll forget the cows names.”

Amish Proverb

Submit News! Be “famous”

Submitting news can be as simple as a photo and “cutline.” A cutline is a brief description–longer than a caption–to accompany the photo. Let’s prove that the Grange is alive and well in Maine! (Photos should be submitted as an attachment to an email.) We get inquiries from people looking for active Granges!

Online Directories Available 24-7

  • The ODD Directory features all state officers, directors, and deputies with contact information.
  • The Directory of Granges features all Granges in the state with a contact person. Please make sure your listing is correct!

Grange Today! 6-14-2024

The Newsletter of the National Grange

Articles in this edition include:

  • Welcome to Grange Today!
  • Florissant Designated “Purple Heart” Community
  • Survey of Agricultural Industry
  • Local EMS, Fire Companies Treated and Thanked
  • “Hands Busy and Hearts Happy” as Grange Rediscovers Joy of Community Service
  • Virginville Celebrates Community Open House
  • Celebrating a Golden Sheaf Member
  • June’s Grange Heirloom
  • Distinguished Grange Applications Due Soon
  • Grange Store & Benefits

Click the button below to read and/or subscribe to the Patrons Chain!


Note that all recent issues are available on the National Grange Website. To save space, we only post the table of contents on the MSG Website.

Fraternal Concern — Rolf Staples, Sr.

Submitted by Walter Boomsma, MSG Communications Director

It is my sad duty to inform you that Rolf Staples Sr. passed away on June 10, 2024, following a long illness. Rolf was a member of Bangor Grange and Old Town Grange, where he held numerous offices, including Master/President.

Rolf served as Deputy of the North Penobscot Pomona from 2006 to 2009 and on the Maine State Grange Membership Committee. He led numerous Degree Days and an Officer Installation Team. He and his wife Anne supported Granges in the area, including the Piscataquis Pomona. Rolf’s knowledge and understanding of “the Grange Way” was deep, and he truly loved the Grange. When Rolf said, “for the good of the Order,” you could trust it.

Cards of condolence and encouragement should be mailed to Anne Staples, 487 Grandview Avenue, Apt 202, Bangor, ME 04401

A service is scheduled on Sunday, June 23, 2024, at 1:00 pm, at the Essex Street Baptist Church in Bangor. A complete obituary is available here.

May the example of our Brother inspire us to persevere and
when we are called to lay down our implements here on earth, may we be reunited with all our Brothers and Sisters who have labored in His glorious cause. May we enter the Paradise not made with hands, eternal in the heavens and receive that welcome plaudit: “Well done, good and faithful servant.” We remember our Brother not as one dead – but as one gone on before us through the gates, where dwells the Great Master of us all.

Adapted from the Subordinate Grange Manual, 2023