Master's Page
2024 Master's Address
Worthy National Representatives, State Officers, Delegates, Brothers and Sisters,
It is my honor to give my second Master’s Address. Although the year has seemed relatively quiet there has been quite a bit going on. As I am sure most of you have heard, Deputy State Master Ida Hutchins has been unable to continue as a Deputy, Secretary of Pemigewassett Valley Pomona, and Secretary of Baker’s River Grange. While Baker’s River had enough members to remain open there were not enough willing to put in the time and effort to keep it going. The members who were helping Ida did not come from Rumney, with the exception of one. The others came from Haverhill, Thornton, and Bristol. Reluctantly the vote was taken to close Baker’s River Grange.
Pemigewassett Valley Pomona was destined for a similar fate, but Wicwas Lake has risen to the challenge and meetings are being held to elect new officers, determine when meetings will be held and update their By-Laws. Pemi’s new home will be at Wicwas Lake Grange Hall.
At one point we were excited to learn that a group of people in Sandwich were very interested in starting a Grange there. The Worthy Treasurer was asked to be the liaison as he is a Mason and many of the prospective Grangers were as well. Unfortunately, it was discovered that they weren’t really interested in becoming a Grange as it was more about not having to pay property taxes.
Many of our Granges are struggling to get a quorum together. Some are concerned with having enough members as people unfortunately pass away. Most of these Granges are still very active in their communities which makes me reluctant to pull their charter. I understand that another state is considering a resolution to reduce the number of members needed for a Grange to function to 8. I’m not sure what this would mean for the number necessary for a quorum. If this resolution makes it to National, I am sure there will be quite a discussion. As to our own Granges, I challenge each and every one of you to make the effort to visit other Granges. I know not all of us are as young as we used to be and we aren’t as able to get out and about, but some of these Granges haven’t seen a Pink Sash member other than their Deputy State Master in a number of years. To this end each State Officer is being given two Granges to visit in the coming year. These Granges will not be in their Pomona and for the Deputy State Masters, the Granges will not be part of their Instruction and Inspection lists. If you see
something exciting, please, let us know! If you are disappointed, please, let us know! We need to celebrate good Grange work and help those who are struggling. Help me let them know they are not alone and not forgotten. I will give a list of these Granges to the Membership Committee in hopes they will reach out and do their best to help the process of gaining new members.
How many of you are aware of what all Granges will need to do in the year 2025 and every five years from now on? The Executive Committee isn’t allowed to answer this one. It’s the reincorporation year! It happens every five years. The Worthy Treasurer has worked hard get the Granges who had let it slide back on the list. We only have one Grange that hasn’t managed it yet. Hopefully they get on board before it will cost them a lot more than $25.00. I challenge each of the Granges to get this taken care of early in the year, so it doesn’t get forgotten.
I mentioned earlier about updating By-Laws. I did appoint a committee to update our State By-Laws and we have worked very hard to get them ready for this State Session. A copy was sent to each Grange and hopefully they were given to the delegates and you have your copy here. If not I believe that the Worthy Secretary has hard copies if you need one. We will be presenting these tomorrow during the Election. I know that several Granges have updated their By-Laws and others are working on it. I challenge all of those who have not yet updated their By-Laws and share them with the State Executive Committee as soon as possible. This is necessary as not adhering to your By-Laws can cause serious problems as it has out West when a Grange lost their hall to a business because they had not updated their By-Laws to reflect what they were currently doing. You may not own a hall, but it can still cause problems if anyone were to look too closely.
We have a few Granges who are working the various degrees. I encourage all of you to keep an eye on the grapevine and make a note of where and when these are being done. Most of us have new members that have never seen a degree. Some probably haven’t been obligated. Seeing these degrees give them a better understanding of the Order they have joined. Make the effort to engage your newer members and encourage them to attend. My guess is that if you ask them to accompany you to the event they will be more likely to agree to attend.
This year the NH State Grange was invited to have a table at the NH Preservation Alliance’s Old House and barn Expo. The Membership and Agriculture Committees did an excellent job representing us. I know this because several people from Danbury and surrounding areas told me so. I would like to see our participation in this event continue. Our presence at this event and at the Farm and Forest do get our
organization into the public eye.
I have enjoyed traveling to Granges this year, as well as to National and Regional events, such as the Leader’s Conference put on by National, the Northeast Youth Rally, and, of course our own Family Weekend, Youth Rallies and the Lecturer’s Day in April. I encourage all of you to attend these various events. Youth and Junior Days are not just for the Youth and Juniors. Everyone is invited. Children learn by example and what better example than to show them that adults can enjoy these days as well.
Thank you for giving me the chance to serve these two years as your State Master. It is an honor and a privilege to serve in this way.
Tricia J Taylor