| Mousam Lodge #26 meets the 2nd and 4th Wednesday every month, except in July and August. We have a dinner at 6:30, and lodge meeting is at 7:30. We’ve joked we ought to advertise our lodge as a Dinner Club. Dues are $35 per year, and you get 20 free meals included! 🙂 Sometimes our dinners are open to guests who aren’t members, and we do have a couple of get-togethers each year where there is no Lodge meeting so anyone is welcome. Do Members have to show up for every meeting? No, and that’s one of the beauty of Fraternal Lodges. We know life happens, so while we encourage regular attendance no one is upset if a member can’t attend. What happens at meetings? After dinner, there is a short ceremony where the lodge is opened for business. After that it’s pretty much standard “Roberts Rules of Order” where the lodge goes through business items one by one. Yes, we vote on everyday things like going through communications and paying bills… but we also focus on charity work and any issues which Members would like to bring up for the good of the community. Meetings generally last an hour but can run as longer if there is more business. Does the lodge do anything besides Degree work to bring in members, and regular business meetings? Yes, when the members agree to. We’ve attended community events, done appreciation events for local services like the Fire Department and the Police. If you’re a member and there is something you want to do in or for our local community our answer usually is… “Permission Granted – You’re welcome to get that going!” Why no regular meetings in the summer? Back in the day it was so people could do farm work during the busiest season. Now that’s not only a tradition, it’s also easiest since it’s Tourist Season here in Maine and everyone is busier during those times. In addition to meetings, does the lodge ever rent out the Odd Fellows Hall for other events? Yes, we’ve done that in the past, and are happy to consider requests. |