The Patrons Chain – June 2016
National Voice May Help Local Granges with Media
BY BETSY HUBER
National Grange Master | be***@************ge.org
Did you know that you can track news articles about Granges all over the country? Google Alerts notifies you via a daily email of all mentions of “Grange” (or whatever words you enter.) Of course we at the National Grange Office are signed up for this feature so we can keep track of what our local Granges are doing out there.
Recently we saw an excellent article in a NY newspaper about Bethlehem Grange #137 that was holding a fundraiser for repairs and improvements to their Grange Hall. It was such an excellent article, explaining all the benefits that Grange offers to the community, that we were truly proud and inspired to help their efforts as best we could from the National office. After contacting the local Grange leaders for more specific information, we were able to respond quickly and thank the editor for writing the story, and then elaborate on the great community service projects and activities this Grange does to help their community and other organizations there. CLICK HERE TO READ OUR EDITORIAL RESPONSE. We would be happy to help you with press contacts like this, offering a national perspective on the Grange.
Developing a relationship with your local editor will certainly help you get more Grange news into the paper. When you are planning an event, write a short story about your plans and submit it to the local paper a couple weeks in advance. Newspapers like to print things that are going to happen. Make sure to invite reporters to the event a week in advance (for daily papers, two weeks in advance for weekly papers) and two days in advance for dailies (at least a week out for weeklies) call to remind the editor if you have not heard from a specific reporter that they will attend. If no reporter attends, write another story and send it with photos to the editor after the event. When they do print your news, be sure to thank them!
Another benefit of news items and Google Alerts is the sharing of ideas that can happen with sister Granges all across the U.S. All local Granges are doing amazing things and should be sharing so others can duplicate their successes. If you are on Facebook, I hope you have “friended” the National Grange Community Service page. National Director Pete Pompper does an excellent job of sharing all the great projects that local Granges are doing. This compiles them in one location so you can look at the National Grange Community Service page for dozens of project ideas that your Grange could try. Of course we would love you to send information and photos to the National Grange office so we can include them in this newsletter as well.
Grange Policy Begins with Local Members
BY BURTON ELLER
National Grange Legislative Director | be****@************ge.org
Local and state Grange sessions begin soon around the country. These meetings of grassroots Grange members are the origin of National Grange public policy and operating procedures.
Resolutions traditionally address public issues like the stewardship of land, water, animals, property rights and rural communities. Other initiatives might address community service, good citizenship, food policy, quality education, infrastructure, rural broadband and urban-rural relationships.
Increasingly, access to local, affordable, quality medical care and prescription drugs are top-of-mind issues for Grangers.
As every Grange member knows and appreciates, the Grange is truly a bottom up organization. Policy begins with resolutions that originate at the local Grange by local Grangers. Resolutions adopted at local level are forwarded to the state Grange for consideration at the annual state session. After the state session, adopted resolutions are sent to the National Grange for consideration at the Annual Session. Resolutions adopted there become National Grange policy. This policy gives direction to National Grange officers and staff as they tackle external public policy issues and administer internal Grange operations.
Resolutions properly written and narrowly focused stand the best chance of adoption throughout the policy process. Resolutions of local resolve stay at the local level for action. The same is true for statewide issues. If resolutions are meant to address nationwide issues, they should target national concerns and solutions.
Membership Retention the Forgotten Factor
BY JOE STEFENONI
National Grange Membership/Leadership Director | me********@************ge.org
Any decline in membership has a negative impact on Grange programs and diminishes the public presence local Granges have in their communities. When we encounter these declines, we must seriously consider what is causing the problem and how to solve it. Instinctively, we all come to the conclusion that we should just seek out new members and ask them to join the Grange.
However, what we fail to consider is that membership declines occur because of two reasons, the second reason being that we are losing existing members. Some loses are inevitable; we cannot evade the passing of members from this life to the great Grange above, but we can make every effort possible to ensure that our members are furnished with every reason possible to renew their membership. When members are of the mindset that their membership is valued by others, then they will be more likely and willing to share the organization with others.
We recruit thousands of new members a year, but what good does this do if we lose as many members because they’re not renewing their membership? How can excited new members suddenly become disheartened? From my experiences and observations, some say that after joining the Grange, no one reached out to them, welcomed them or made sure they felt they were truly a Brother or Sister of the Order. Then when it came time to renew their membership, no one contacted them. To thrive as an organization, we must adopt the mantra: to recruit, but also retain. Grange members work hard in their communities every day to bring new members into our organization, but we as the whole Grange must work even harder to build lasting relationships with every person who is a Grange member who joins our organization.
New members are wonderful additions to our organization. They bring vitality, new ideas and new connections to the Grange, but by neglecting to work to retain those members we bring in, we’re taking two steps forward and one step back. Each Grange needs a clear strategy and volunteers devoted to membership retention and emphasis needs to be placed on building lasting relationships with new and existing members who will ultimately sustain our organization and keep Grange programs, activities and events operating into the future.
Here are 20 tips for bolstering membership retention
| 1. | Send a thank you note for joining or volunteering. This could a physical card or an e-mail. | |
| 2. | Give an incentive, such as a free gift, to members who renew their membership by a certain date. | |
| 3. | Communicate successes to members regularly. | |
| 4. | When sending out membership renewal notices, provide a recap of the activities and events of the past year and tell how membership benefited them this year. | |
| 5. | Send a special certificate of thanks to members who renew their membership for the first-time. Market research on organizations shows the first two years produce the most drops. Focus hard on the first renewal. | |
| 6. | Develop a written retention plan. In this plan include goals such as retention rate, percent of drops that were first year members, activities to be undertaken, resources available to help, etc. | |
| 7. | Do a survey of important questions and issues as they arise. Ask members what projects/activities/events they would like to see the Grange host and how they can commit to helping the Grange. | |
| 8. | Establish a member-mentoring plan. When someone joins your Grange, assign them to a current member(s) who will be a welcoming and friendly face for the new member when they come to their second meeting. Have the mentor explain the responsibilities and obligations of Grange membership, the ritual and traditions of the Grange and the structure of our organization. By doing this, a new member will be fully versed in the Grange structure, history and traditions as they begin their Grange journey. | |
| 9. | When looking to retain members, reach out to those who were formerly members and didn’t renew their membership. Ask them why they didn’t renew, tell what activities/projects your Grange is conducting and then ask them to rejoin your Grange. | |
| 10. | Keep experienced members active through targeted involvement. It is important to keep both current and new members interested and involved. Keep the activities meaningful. | |
| 11. | During functions, suggest that officers look for new members and spend time with them. Have a special name tag for new members indicating their status. | |
| 12. | When a new member joins, e-mail congratulations from the Master or Secretary that same day. | |
| 13. | There are only two forms of currency that we can use to “pay” our members: Recognition and tradition!! Look for any opportunity to recognize any member’s contribution. Draw upon the Grange’s rich traditions to create a sense of being and inclusion. | |
| 14. | Have new members serve as greeters during a meeting so they can get to know all the members. | |
| 15. | Keep the FUN in fundraisers, community service activities and meetings to get members interested and involved. You can still accomplish your goals while keeping the process lively and fun. | |
| 16. | Remember that the best time to retain members is BEFORE they show signs of dissatisfaction. Make sure members know you care about them. If they start missing meetings or are becoming less involved in activities, give them a call to find out why before it becomes a chronic situation. | |
| 17. | Encourage input from your members regarding your Grange’s community activities. Ask new members for their ideas — they may have some fresh, exciting thoughts, and asking for their input will show that you are interested in their opinions. | |
| 18. | Involve new members in Grange activities quickly. Have them participate in an event as soon as they show an interest in your Grange. Ask them to co-chair a committee or coordinate a small activity in the early stages of their membership. | |
| 19. | Don’t let activities and fundraisers become stale. Make sure that your association’s activities are still relevant for your community and your members. Periodically try something new. | |
| 20. | Let members be involved at their comfort level and respect that level of involvement. Some members are comfortable jumping in feet first while others prefer to just come to meeting and test the waters for a while. Be sure to actively communicate with members to know what their comfortable level of participation is. |
Outreach, Charity at the Heart of the Grange
BY PETE POMPPER
National Grange Community Service Coordinator | co**************@************ge.org
Why? Why do we as Grangers do the community service projects in our communities? Why have we as an organization been involved with helping our communities from our inception as an organization almost 150 years ago? These are questions we often hear.
The easy answer is “because we have always done it that way.” This is the one time that phrase works. At the end of every Grange meeting, we are reminded to “help the fatherless and the widows,” which shows the importance our founders saw in giving back to those who need help. It is also one of our core values, Charity, which we are reminded of at our meetings and in our degree work.
KUDOS
We wish to congratulate the following Granges who were Community Service report winners at the 2015 National Grange session: 1st Little Compton #32 (RI), 2nd Friday Harbor #225 (WA), 3rd Montague #140 (NJ) and 4th Volunteer #1250(TN). The Firefighter of the Year is Arthur Jette (MT) and the Law Enforcement Officer of the Year is James Miclon (ME). These two awards will be ongoing and we have added Teacher of the Year to the program. Each State Grange can nominate one honoree for each category. We look forward to receiving the nominee forms from each state.
IDEA LOG
Here are some highlighted community service projects that Granges do throughout the year. We know this does not even scratch the surface of the amazing things our Grangers do.
Dictionary Project– This is probably the closest we have to a national project as Granges across the country have presented dictionaries to third graders for several years. In fact Granges are close to giving away the 1 millionth dictionary as part of the project which to me is an amazing number. Granges also have given large dictionaries to school libraries, Spanish language dictionaries and dictionaries for blind students.
Food Banks– Many Granges work with their local food banks in various ways. Elizabethtown Grange (PA) works with the food bank with a focus outside of the holiday season providing assistance when times are tough anytime of the year. This is personal to this Grange as they found out members of their Grange were helped by the food bank during a tough economic time for the family. Granges offer their halls to be used as food distribution sites in more remote areas of the country. Sallal Grange (WA) collects donations of dairy products (no milk or eggs) each month at a local grocery store to give to the local food bank. As they say it is a way to show the Grange is alive and active in the community.
Alternative uses for Grange Halls –Arlington Grange (NH) – Working with the local social service agency to use the hall to meet with clients who have opiate addiction, establish a playgroup for children of mothers who have addiction issues so the children have a safe nurturing atmosphere while the mothers are receiving counseling. They also allow a non-profit karate school for youth to use the hall as an outreach in the area. Jim Tetreault said the electric bill has gone from $40 a month to $80 and he couldn’t be happier. Montague Grange (NJ)– sponsors a community garden on their property, which has been expanded each year due to the community response.
Local Media Contacts Needed
BY AMANDA LEIGH BROZANA
National Grange Communications Director | co************@************ge.org
As we prepare for our 150th Anniversary, there is no better time to reach out to media outlets to tell our story. However, from the headquarters in Washington to the main streets of many of your hometowns where small dailies and weeklies, community television programs and radio stations are located, there is a divide.
Often the publications and outlets most likely to help us tell our story and provide a potential boost in membership or community engagement are the ones left off of our mailing lists for press releases and pitches.
We need your help to build a database of contacts at local media outlets who may be receptive to telling the story of your Grange within the context of our national organization.
We ask each local Grange to provide the National office with the name or names of the media outlets that cover your area; the type of outlet (daily or weekly newspaper, local magazine online local news outlet, TV station, radio); the contact information (email and phone) for the outlet and if possible the name of the editor/station manager or reporter who has been receptive to information from your Grange. Please send the information to co************@************ge.org or mail the information to Communications, National Grange, 1616 H St. NW, Washington, DC 20006.
The 150th Anniversary gives us an opportunity of a lifetime to promote the Grange but only if we take action not to miss it!
National Grange Introduces New Hearing Program
BY LORETTA WASHINGTON
National Grange Sales, Benefits & Programs Director | sa***@************ge.org
We are very happy to announce a NEW hearing program. The Hear in America hearing plan. This program is free to the members of the Grange and what makes this very unique is the following:
- Free annual hearing screening for you and your extended family members are eligible (like parents, grandparents, brothers, sisters, aunts and uncles etc. who may not live with you.)
- Referrals to qualified local hearing centers. (Must Call Hear In America for your Referral)
- Full line of high-quality hearing aids available from all manufacturers with prices from 30% to 70% off manufacturer’s suggested retail prices.
- Three years of free batteries included with every hearing purchase. ($1000 value) Three Year Warranty ($250 per aid per year value) and Three Year Loss and Damage Coverage. Three Years Follow Up Care for Cleanings, Adjustments etc.
Please call 1-800-286-6149 to activate and register for your free benefit
Communication Fellows Program will Return at 150th
Convention
BY AMANDA LEIGH BROZANA
National Grange Communications Director | co************@************ge.org
Thanks to the generosity of several State and local Granges, partner organizations and individual Grange members, the Communication Fellows program will return in 2016 during the 150th Annual National Grange Convention.
The program, open to any Grange member in good standing, teaches the basics of communications, such as press release writing, newsletter planning and creation, interacting with the media, podcasting and live streaming, social media management, and more. This year there will also be a special focus on the intersections of programming, membership recruitment, retention and engagement and communications.
Through the program, participants receive a 10-night stay at the convention hotel in quad-housing with members of their same gender, free registration, and meals for the duration of the program. Participants are only responsible for the cost of travel and are encouraged to bring a small amount of money for snacks, personal items and souvenirs they wish to purchase during their time at the convention.
This year, Fellows will hear from the National Master, National Grange Staff and Officers, professional journalists, public relations professionals and more. Fellows will produce content for the daily convention newsletter, interviews for podcasts and other Grange media channels, photos and short blurbs for social media and much more. This is a hands-on training with a support from many of the 20 previous Fellows who participated. Those previous Fellows now hold many significant offices and jobs in their State and National Grange.
“I cannot say enough about the opportunity to be a Fellow,” 2013 Pfizer Communication Fellow Hayley Tonner said recently. “I was able to help manage others, produce something that was used by the convention attendees and members all around the country, and build confidence in my skills. The things I learned and added to my resume and portfolio helped me get a job that I really love today.”
Those interested must be nominated by a National Grange Delegate, Officer, staff member or previous Fellow, and must submit their own letter of interest, writing sample and nominee information form. The deadline for all materials to be submitted by email to the National Grange Communications Department is August 8. Send and questions or all nominating material to co************@************ge.org.
Program history, guidelines, expectations and more are listed on the 2016 Communication Fellows Information Sheet.
