National Grange President reviews past year of success, outlines plans for the future

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In recent years, fraternal organizations have struggled to gain and retain members, but the National Grange is turning that around.

The president of the oldest agricultural organization in the United States reported a year of growth and action during her annual address at the opening of the 156th Annual Convention of the National Grange in Sparks, Nevada.

“I am delighted to report that… because of your hard work and dedication to your Granges and communities, we have indeed come back stronger after difficult years” in spite of Covid-19, President Betsy E. Huber announced. The National Grange posted a net gain of more than 3% in new fraternal
members from July 2021-June 2022. This included significant growth in the category of family and Junior memberships, proving that people are looking for ways to bring their families together while supporting
their communities.

Legislatively, “the National Grange continues to gain more recognition as a valuable grassroots source of information and influence,” she said, “Joining with many other associations, we amplify our voice on policy issues.”

In Washington, DC, the National Grange has been busy working on behalf of Grange members and all of rural America. “[We]… lobbied against tax increases which could have harmed farmers,” which had been in early versions of the Build Back Better Bill.

This was done, in part, through partnerships with other major agricultural interest groups.

The Grange is known for its work in the agricultural field. During the year, the Grange supported the Cattle Contract Library Act, and lobbied for agriculture and food research investments – particularly in practices that improve climate resilience and sustainability – and the Ocean Shipping Reform Act, which
“severely hampered exports of agricultural products,” Huber said.

BY PHILIP J VONADA
National Grange Communications Director