|
| |
Then & Now
This page is an excerpt from
The Three Link Fraternity -
Odd Fellowship in California
by Don R. Smith and Wayne Roberts
Our Duty Then and Now
and in the Future
The individual interested in the Independent Order of Odd
Fellows has probably read or perhaps repeated the Valediction of Odd Fellowship,
by Past Grand Sire D. D. Monroe - 1944-1946, and no doubt realizes that it
refers to "... my duty 'to visit the sick, relieve the distressed, bury the dead
and educate the orphan'..." A person may wonder how this "duty" came to exist,
and how relevant it is to Odd Fellowship in modern times. The English Odd
Fellows' (the Manchester Unity) major objective was "relief" and that
organization was primarily a mutual insurance fraternity in 1819 and remains as
such to this day. Accordingly, our "duty" apparently is of American origin.
History does tell us that the "duty" was extremely relevant in
Baltimore, Maryland, when, for all practical purposes, North American Odd
Fellowship was founded there in 1819, for that city was in the grip of a severe
epidemic, and sickness, distress, death, and the inevitable result, orphans,
were to be found everywhere.
Visiting the sick was a daring, bold thing to do in 1819, and
indeed for in excess of one hundred years more, because of the very real
possibility the visitors would contract the illness or disease. Odd Fellows, and
Rebekahs after they came into existence in 1851, visited the sick as a matter of
course. Odd Fellows and Rebekahs continue to this day to make special efforts to
visit the sick.
Relief of the distressed was a major goal of most or all
fraternal organizations, then and now. Odd Fellow Lodges normally provided
monetary sick benefits to its members who were ill or injured and unable to
work. A few California lodges still provide monetary sick and/or death benefits
for members. Assistance to those in need, whether in the form of donations to
charities, or donations of money or goods and services to members or others in
the community is commonly provided today by all lodges.
In addition, lodges commonly provided all kinds of assistance
to members who were in need, such as a box of groceries, a cord of wood, or a
member or visiting nurse to care for a seriously ill member at home. With the
modern day social welfare programs operated by government agencies, these
services by the Order are no longer as vital as they once were, but Odd Fellows
and Rebekahs still provide friendship that members require for a wholesome and
full life.
Burying the dead was taken very seriously by early Odd
Fellows, and most lodges purchased land and established cemeteries as one of
their first activities in a new town or city. In many areas all phases of burial
(sometimes including services now provided by undertakers) were provided by Odd
Fellows in the earlier days. Cemeteries were often open to the public, and plots
were sold for a few dollars each. Many California lodges still own and operate
cemeteries, and in some instances the major cemetery in the community is the Odd
Fellows Cemetery.
Odd Fellow Lodges continue to conduct funeral and memorial
services for members when requested prior to their death or by their families.
This may be the only service, or may be in conjunction with a church service or
with other organizations.
Educating the orphan was also taken seriously, and orphans of
Odd Fellows, and Rebekahs too, could expect to receive at least a high school
education through the lodge. In California the Rebekahs were in the forefront of
caring for the orphans, and in the late 1800's they were granted authority to
establish the Odd Fellow-Rebekah Children's Home in Gilroy. They likewise were
in the forefront of providing funds to insure an education for orphans and needy
children of members.
The original need for the Odd Fellow-Rebekah Children's Home
as an orphanage has decreased as the life span has increased. Today the Rebekahs
still operate this facility with a renewed determination to provide for
children, not necessarily related to members of the Order, with special problems
and needs.
Caring for the widow likewise was and is one of the basic
duties of all Odd Fellows, and it is comforting to realize that most lodges
continue to include the widows of their members in lodge functions and
activities. Remembering the widows on special holidays and at other special
times during the year is a thoughtful way to demonstrate that Odd Fellows do
care for those left behind. When the Odd Fellows Home of California was
established it was to provide care for aged Odd Fellows and their wives, widows
of Odd Fellows, and Rebekahs. Today this very same principle is applied when
admitting new residents to our home in Saratoga.
Reasons for Joining Odd Fellowship in the early days had a
many faceted answer. In 1927, a book commented that no Odd Fellow or his
dependents ever will become a public charge. Although the benefits of membership
were not lavish, they did eliminate the possibility of being cold, hungry and
homeless. Today, government programs often patterned after earlier programs
developed by Odd Fellowship such as Social Security, unemployment benefits,
public assistance, low-income housing, senior meal sites and meals on wheels,
and all the other government programs based on tax dollars are now taken for
granted. The security of belonging to an organization which would help them in
times of sickness, distress or death, and which operated homes for their care
and the care of dependents if their funds werebility of being cold, hungry and
homeless. Today, government programs often patterned after earlier programs
developed by Odd Fellowship such as Social Security, unemployment benefits,
public assistance, low-income housing, senior meal sites and meals on wheels,
and all the other government programs based on tax dollars are now taken for
granted. The security of belonging to an organization which would help them in
times of sickness, distress or death, and which operated homes for their care
and the care of dependents if their funds were depleted were important.
Others joined for the desire of helping others, and this is
probably one of the most over riding desires of the present membership in the
Three Link Fraternity. In modern times the Odd Fellows and Rebekahs have been in
the forefront of nearly all organizations in helping to make this world a better
place in which to live. Sponsorship of Boy and Girl Scout troops, or youth
organizations, youth and adult athletic teams and leagues, hospital and nursing
home programs, various health agencies including the Odd Fellows World Eye Bank
and Visual Research Foundation, Educational loans and scholarships for deserving
young people, and generally helping to make this world a better place in which
to live are some of the activities of modern day Odd Fellows and Rebekahs.
Opportunities for socializing at lodge meetings, dinners,
breakfasts, dances, other lodge functions andBible. While others enjoyed the opportunities of
participating in conferring the dramatic degrees, and the opportunity of
learning the proper way to deliver various charges in the degrees.
Several of these reasons remain valid today, but with
competition from various service clubs, leisure time activities such as watching
television and attending athletic events, and the various forms of governmental
assistance have contributed in recent years to a decline in the popularity of
fraternal organizations including Odd Fellow and Rebekah Lodges.
A renewed interest in Odd Fellowship is being demonstrated as
steps are taken, especially with the restructuring of the Grand Lodge of
California in 1990. New and ambitious programs are being launched in California
to make membership in the fraternity even more attractive than it has been in
the past. Each individual member of the Three Link Fraternity has a very
important part to play in the future of Odd Fellowship, and with a united and
common goal this fraternity is again coming to the front in the fraternal field
of endeavors.
From: The Three Link Fraternity - Odd Fellowship in California
An introduction to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and Rebekahs
by Don R. Smith and Wayne Roberts, Linden Publications - 1993.
h and Wayne Roberts, Linden Publications - 1993.
|
