Lodge or Club?

by Joey Pettegrew

[Note: Joey Pettegrew is a member of our Lodge and spent two years in the Officer Corps as Esquire and Loyal Knight. Though he's transferred to the Fallon Lodge, he is maintaining an associate membership here. Joey has always had insightful observations on many elements of Elkdom and our Lodge, including the piece below. The following was written in May, 2002, after he placed 3rd in the West-Central District Ritual Contest as Esquire. We think it is still appropriate.]

As your new Esquire, I have no uncertain interest in building membership in this Lodge in order to ensure the vitality and viability of Palo Alto # 1471.

As aging membership and transfer demits continue to take their toll on our rollsheet, it is more and more important to take every step possible to boost new membership.

But how do we entice new members?

And, more importantly, what kind of new members do we want?

Obviously, the more dues paying members we have, the more general funds we will have available to fulfill the Lodge's mission.

But do we want Lodge members or "Club" members?

Since joining #1471, I have listened and heard many different voices referring to the Lodge as "the Club"...But is this right?

With my solemn and binding obligation from the ritual still fresh in my head, I find it difficult to think of the Lodge as anything other than an institution dedicated to the Cardinal principles of our order.

Now, I realize that ritualistic work is not for everyone, but I can't tell you how much enjoyment I have had in practicing for the ritual competition and helping steer the Lodge's activities through my participation in the advisory board meetings since becoming an officer.

But there is also something to be said about those consistantly dues paying members that just come to the Lodge for there own usage.

I don't really see anything wrong with this, but it seems that these type members are also the ones that are surprised by any new developments in whatever the current issues happen to be!

So, Lodge or "club"?

Let's all rethink our friends and family members for a moment and try to propose those that would make the kind of Elks that participate, help out with Lodge events, become commitee members and maybe even officers.

As part of my commitment to boost membership this year, I will make sure that all the forms boxes are always full.

Next time you pass a proposer box, take a couple of forms and always carry them with you.

Just in case you meet someone or think of someone later that would not only enjoy the many benefits that membership in this Lodge has to offer, but would also become the kind of Elk that would make all of us proud to have as a true and upright member.