Tina Sparlin
As this year seems to be flying by, we continue our attempts to increase our membership. I know most of you are getting tired of hearing about membership. I have even heard the comment that the Grand Lodge is only worried about membership because of the money (Per Capita), but that is not true. Without growth we are a dying breed. Last year we lost three Lodges and potentially could lose a couple more this year. As Lodges close, membership drops and people who wish to continue must travel further to attend a meeting.
I realize that over the years most Lodges no longer have space to call their own. Sure, we may have meetings on a regular basis, but some Lodges find that due to cost or changes beyond their control they must relocate their meetings. Some have gone to a Zoom platform as well to get information out to our members. During our Presidents’ call I learned that Lodges who are growing rapidly in membership are not only having their meetings consistently but are at a consistent location with regular activities. They invite their community to join and reach out to other organizations. They remain visible to their community. People like consistency in location, dates and time. This way if they miss a meeting they can simply plan to attend the next one. Without consistency people simply just stop going and eventually drop off because they no longer know what is happening or where to go to find out. Potential new members don’t know where to go either.
My next question is, are “we” fun? Nobody wants to attend a boring meeting all the time. I recently attended a dinner dance at the Centinela Valley Lodge in Torrance. This event was in addition to their regular meeting gathering. Granted, Centinela owns their building and has overhead costs requiring that they need to raise money for upkeep, but they also give a lot back to their community. Annette Porter, their president is very active and has activities planned every month. In fact, for the month of February, they had an event every weekend. You can feel the excitement when you attend one of their events. During last month’s Presidents’ Zoom call, Marisa Miller, President for Napa Valley Lodge has multiple activities planned, including Bocce Tournaments, Bunco group gatherings, and dinners.
So, as we move forward, think about your Lodge. Is there consistency? Is your Lodge visible to the community? How can you spread the word about your Lodge and what you are doing in the community? Are we having fun?
I feel that we are still the best kept secret out there, but how do we get people to come on board if they don’t know about us and if we are just another boring organization?
I hope you all have a wonderful Easter.