Notes from National – May 2022

Reminders

Regional Leadership Conferences are coming up soon… National Grange Convention registration will be opening soon… 2022 Communications applications are now open–any and all ages welcome! Check recent issues of Patrons Chain for more information.

National Grange Virtual Photo Contest

Remember the deadline is June 30, 2022. Submission guidelines are available on the MSG Website.)

National Grange Convention

156th National Grange Convention will be held at the Nugget Casion Resort in Sparks, Nevada from November 15-19, 2022. Visit the National Grange Website for information and to register.

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.

New Member Recognition in Good Day Magazine

Want to see your new members recognized in Good Day Magazine? Anyone who has not been recognized as a new member in the past year can be included. Use this link to share the news. The deadlines for each issue are:

  • June 30, 2022
  • August 30, 2022
  • November 30, 2022

156th National Grange Session is scheduled for November 15-19, 2022 in Sparks, NV

Coming up in June…

  • June 1, 2022 Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow — a discussion of the Grange’s contributions to our Maine Communities at the Waterboro Historical Society, starting at 7 pm. More information here.
  • June 2, 2022, Piscataquis Pomona meets at 7:00 p.m. at Wayside Grange in Dexter. Contact Pomona Master Bill Bemis for more information.
  • June 3, 2022, MSG Ag Scholarship winner(s) will be announced.
  • June 4, 2022, Maine State Grange Yard Sale at Manchester Grange, 8 am – 1 pm. Contact Fundraising Chairperson Norma Meserve for more information or see this post.
  • June 14, 2022, MSG Bulletin Deadline — columns and articles due.
  • June 17-19, 2022, Eastern Regional Conference in Delaware. Contact MSG Master Sherry Harriman for more information.
  • June 18, 2022, Touch A Truck at Jonesboro Grange, 57 School Road (Elementary School Parking Lot), 10 am – 2 pm. More information here.
  • June 24-26, 2022, Junior Grange Summer Campout at Maine State Grange Headquarters. Contact Junior Directors for more information.
  • June 24-26 Jonesboro Grange Crush Cancer 5K Run at the Municipal Landing in Jonesboro. More information here.
  • June 30, 2022, Deadline for most National Grange Contests.

This information is from the Conferences and Dates Page. We do our best to list conferences, regional events, state meetings, Pomona meetings, and local Grange events with dates and links to information! Please remember, we can’t post what we don’t know. 

What Are You Doing?

Some may remember that we posted this story in the past… “Taps Across America” started in 2020 and continues to grow… a short opportunity to remember and reflect!

What are you doing on Monday, May 30, 2022, at 3 pm?

Visit the Taps Across America Website

Overheard at Ocean View Grange

Ocean View Grange is sporting its primer coat.

Thank Spinner Lee, for getting this going. Great leader! I think we need a vote to rent the lift for another day to finish coat the front and wash at least one side. The lift saves a huge amount of time setting up ladders/staging. And a lot of wear and tear in the old guys. I, for one, cannot climb ladders anymore.  I vote yes!

(There were lots of “yes” votes!)

What an undertaking!

It is hard work, but a labor of love and respect for our Grange hall. Thanks to everyone who has and is helping.

I’m glad we could get the ball rolling on the painting. We’d be remiss if we didn’t include Josh Coggeshall on the paint team. Not only was Josh a technical voice of reason, but he swang a mean scrapper. You’ll remember that Josh is always there to help. Puttying windows is a labor of love and time, and Josh did a great job there. He models a true Granger.

Don’t forget that Saturday, May 28th at 10 am is Flag Day at the Ridge Church… You are welcome to join us in honoring our fallen veterans. Bring some tall boots and gloves and anyone who wants to help!

(Ocean View Grangers are always busy! What do you suppose they are doing that requires tall boots and gloves?!)

Mill Stream Grange at Work

Mill Stream Grange members (l-r) Ingrid Grenon, Debbie Lavender, Lisa Goucher, Jill Sampson, Laurie Cunningham, Allan Harville, and Paul Lavender (taking photo) placed U.S. flags at three cemeteries on the Tower Road in Vienna to honor and remember veterans on Memorial Day.  Ray Anderson (on stone) was a long-time member of the Grange.   (If we have inadvertently missed your military loved one, please call 293-4408 or 293-4960, and we will make sure the flag is placed.)

Ocean View Painting Progress

If you can spare a few minutes… drive over to Ocean View Grange this morning–they could use some help with the painting! Sorry we couldn’t get this posted sooner!

According to Master Larry Bailey,

Thanks to Grange members Jim Lee and Ben Norton, the first step is well underway. Jim and Ben power washed the front facade in anticipation of painting it on Tuesday.  The bright and warm sun along with the steady winds are drying the shingles very quickly.  

Ben will not be available Tuesday so, we are looking for someone to step in and help.  Jim and Ben took turns doing the power wash. I think the painting will require more hands.

(Ocean View Grange is located at 435 Port Clyde Road, Martinsville.)

You do not have to be a Granger to help! Don’t worry, not everyone needs to go up in the bucket! Help is needed at the lower levels as well! Wear your old clothes!

Eastern Regional Conference Deadline

By Samantha Wilkins, National Grange Operations Coordinator

This is just a reminder that the Eastern Regional Conference Registration closes June 1! Conference takes place June 17-19, 2022.

If you have not yet registered or shared the registration information within your states, please do so ASAP!

The Eastern Regional Conference is open to ALL Grange members in the following states: Connecticut, DC, Delaware, Florida, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, and West Virginia.

Please remember that regional conferences are open to ALL Grange members, no matter their age or interests. There will be activities for Juniors and Youth as well as subordinate members interested in programming, communications, membership growth, and service. And as always, we plan on including a ton of fun and fellowship in the nation’s capital!

Public Speaking and Sign-A-Song contests will be open for ALL Youth and Junior Grange members to participate in. You do not have to be a state winner to compete for the best of show and a chance to move on to nationals. For those members in the Northeast Region who are unable to attend the contests in person, they may sign up as virtual contestants. Contestants will be judged against their regions only (Eastern and Northeast)

Registration and hotel information can be found here: Eastern Regional Conference – National Grange Youth

For any questions about the conference, please reach out to Samantha Wilkins, samantha@nationalgrange.org or 210-838-7892

Highland Lake Grange Marks Members

While placing American flags in Highland Lake Cemetery, the Grangers at Highland Lake Grange P of H No. 87 thought it would be nice to mark the graves of members interred at the cemetery. Kathy Gowen came up with a design, and we worked together to assemble them at our last meeting. We identified 16 headstones of members (including married couples or multiple members in a family with one headstone). Several were charter members of Highland Lake Grange in 1875. Here are photos of a few of them.

Browntail Moth Season Begins

MSG Comm Department Logo
This article is reprinted with permission from an e-newsletter published by Paul Davis, State Senator for District 4.

The Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Maine CDC), Maine Forest Service (MFS), and 211 Maine remind Maine residents and visitors to watch out for browntail moth caterpillars and to take steps to limit potential health risks caused by the caterpillars. The advisory comes on the heels of a bill recently enacted by the Maine Legislature to provide mitigation resources to communities suffering from severe browntail moth infestations.

In their caterpillar stage, browntail moths shed tiny hairs that can cause a skin reaction similar to poison ivy. Most individuals affected by the hairs develop a rash that lasts for a few hours up to several days.

Browntail moth caterpillars are easy to identify. They are dark brown with white stripes along the sides and two red-orange dots on the back. Younger caterpillars lack these white stripes. For more information, answers to frequently-asked questions and tips on how to protect yourself, visit the state’s browntail moth page.