Communication Shorts 4-2-2023

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!

April Bulletin

Columns and posts for the April Bulletin are due April 14, 2023. Remember, you can always find recent issues of the Bulletin on the Program Books and Information Page.

Pie and Community

Listen to this one-minute podcast and think about Grange Month! Could you drop off some pies around your community together with some information about your next meeting or program?

Grange Month Happiness

Don’t forget to tell us what happiness you experienced during Grange Month at your Grange. Use the Submissions Tab or send an email!

Ideas for Granges

How about a House Plant and Seed Swap? Invite people looking to build their plant collection or interested in gardening and looking for seeds to join other plant lovers to trade plants and seeds. Serve light refreshments.

Thought for You…

Spring is nature’s way of saying, ‘Let’s party!’

Robin Williams

Do You Love the Grange?

The world wants to hear about it! Fill out the simple I Love the Grange Form… it only takes a couple of minutes! Thanks to all who have shared so far!

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!

Do You Have FOMO?

“FOMO” is, of course, a Fear Of Missing Out. One strongly recommended treatment is to subscribe to the Maine State Grange Website. We’ll send you a daily summary whenever news and columns are posted, and we won’t share your email address with anyone!

Subscribe to the Maine State Grange Website

Open Farm Day Sign-up

It’s time for farms to sign up for Open Farm Day; the deadline is May 1. The event is on July 23, 2023. There will be a webinar on April 5, 2023, at 5 pm for farms who want to learn more. More information and resources, including how to signup for the webinar and Open Farm Day 2023.

Kennebec Valley Grange Lunch To Go

April 15, 2023, 11:30 – 1:00 (or until the food runs out)

Enjoy lunch to go from Kennebec Valley Grange! The menu includes smothered beef, mashed potatoes, peas & carrots, homemade biscuit, and peach cobbler. The cost is $10 per lunch.

Kennebec Valley Grange is located at 560 Main Street in Madison, Maine.

For more information, email Diane Pinkham or call 207 314-5135.

April Grange Events in Maine

It’s not too late to get your event listed on the calendar! Use the “submit” tab at the top of the page.

  • April 1, 2023, Free Easter Egg Hunt at Jonesboro Grange, 11 am – 1 pm. Pre-registration is required.
  • April 6, 2023, Piscataquis Pomona Grange meets at 7 pm. Location TBD. FMI contact Pomona Master Bill Bemis at 924-4123.
  • April 14, 2023, MSG Bulletin Deadline — columns and posts are due.
  • April 15, 2023, Parkman Grange Daddy/Daughter Dance, 6 pm to 8 pm. Tickets ($5) are available at the door. For more information.
  • April 22, 2023 Information/Instruction Meeting at Arbutus Grange (tentative). Contact State Master Sherry for more information.
  • April 23, 2023, Ag Scholarship Application Deadline – Download Information and Application.
  • April 23, 2023, Degree Day at State Headquarters, 1:30 – 4:30 pm. Contact Maynard Chapman for more information at 207 312-5591.
  • April 26, 2023, Fifth Degree at Enterprise Grange, potluck supper at 6 pm, meeting and degree at 7:00 pm. For additional information, contact Marilyn Stinson or Ben Edgerly.

Notes from National – March 2023

Are you feeling disconnected from National Grange news?

Gleaned from an email written by Phil Vonada, National Grange Communications Director

Each Friday morning, an email arrives – your computer dings, your phone buzzes, a notification pops up on your computer screen. The email is from the National Grange – either the Patrons Chain or the once-a-month View from the Hill. Without fail, that email has come to you for years, and then you notice… it’s not coming anymore. It’s not in your junk or spam folders, you didn’t change your email address… where is it?

Scrolling emails on your phone, it’s really easy to accidentally unsubscribe, mark the email as spam, or remove yourself from our mailing list. Unfortunately, it’s not so easy for the National Grange staff to re­-subscribe you. Because of the software used to send these emails, the only way to get back on the weekly email list is to sign up again – staff are unable to do it for you.

That’s why we tried to make it simple for you to get back on our email list! Visit www.nationalgrange.org/comeback to be added back to our mailing list through Constant Contact. On the form, check “Newsletter” to start getting our weekly Patrons Chain and View from the Hill emails again. Checking “General Interest” will also subscribe you to other communications through the National Grange emails. Don’t worry, we promise not to clutter your inbox.

If you haven’t subscribed to the newsletter before, this form will still work for you!

Here’s what you can expect by signing up:

  • Each week includes columns from National Grange President Betsy Huber, one of our Department Directors, and information about what’s happening at the National Grange
  • The Legislative Department includes two columns a month – one is the “Advocacy Playbook,” which picks a specific issue and helps Grange members know how to get involved; and the last Friday of the month is the “View from the Hill,” which gives a rundown on what’s happening on Capitol Hill and how it affects Grange policy.

So, if you’re feeling a little disconnected from National Grange news and information, be sure to update your subscription to the National Grange’s newsletters!

National Grange Heirloom Program

Grange Heirlooms are snippets from the lessons of the Grange as taught in the Ritual and Declaration of Purposes. Please share “success stories” about the use of the program with us or if you come up with other innovative ways to incorporate the Program in your Granges. Information and materials are now available on the National Grange Website.

“Notes from National” is based on a monthly email received from the National Grange Communications Department.

Maine Traffic Fatalities Down!

Early figures indicate that traffic fatalities have dropped dramatically in Maine since the start of the year. Compared to this time last year, 12 people have died because of accidents compared to 32 at the same time last year.

Reprinted with permission from an e-newsletter published Maine Senate Stacey Guerin, District 4

According to Lauren Stewart, director of the Maine Bureau of Highway Safety (BHS), 2022 was one of the deadliest years on record when 177 people were killed across the state, including 20 people who were either pedestrians or bicyclists. It was the highest year since 2007 when 183 people died that year.

Stewart said last year’s figure continued a trend that began during the pandemic, especially involving those who speed or drive recklessly. The increase in Maine follows a national trend that saw half of all states experience an increase in fatalities in 2022, according to the December 2022 estimate by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Traffic deaths in the U.S. have been rising steadily since the summer of 2020.

Stewart said contributing factors in the fatal crashes in Maine continue to be unsafe and illegal speeds, reckless driving, alcohol and drug impaired driving and non-use of safety restraints, the latter of which she said was probably the greatest factor.

What can drivers do? BHS offers a few tips to avoid being in a serious crash, including:

  • Be courteous and cautious, and slow down;
  • Practice defensive driving – staying engaged means being alert;
  • Buckle up – being partially ejected almost always leads to serious injury or death;
  • Plan ahead – especially if you plan to get impaired;
  • Say something – If you see something, call 911. It can save a life.

TIP: Could this be the basis for a Family Health and Hearing Report?