Moose Legion - The Degree of Service
The second degree of our order is the Moose Legion degree. The Moose Legion was first created in 1913 and is open to any member of the order that has been a member for longer than six months or sponsored one member into the fraternity. The Moose Legion's ultimate goal is to provide an outlet for Moose members who aspire to provide greater support and service to the fraternity. It is no wonder that this degree of service is known for being the leaders of our fraternity. When the need is great, the Moose Legion members roll up their sleeves and make things happen. The majority of dues collected by the Moose Legion go to support health care at Moosehaven and Camp Ross for Mooseheart. Lodges with active Moose Legion committees have much more vibrant lodge activities.
Message from International Moose Legion President
We have just taken part in the first Virtual International Convention and hopefully you were all able to access the site and participate. Well of course during this time I was installed as the International Moose Legion President and I am proud and happy to serve in this position.
We are all aware of what is going on with the world right now dealing with the pandemic of COVID 19 and it has hit us all hard. This includes our Fraternity at all levels and we must figure out a way to recruit more members to keep our Twin Cities Mooseheart and Moosehaven operational for many years ahead. As such, your Moose Legion Council with approval of the Supreme Council have implemented a ZERO application fee from 01 July thru 30 September in hopes of helping us recruit more new Moose Legion members.
I am aware that many of you have already implemented this so for you it will at least save you a few dollars. Of course, if you really want to get creative you could continue to cover the application fee and get creative with the amount of the application fee another enticing way to encourage sponsors and lure in applicants. Maybe some out of the box thinking will at least get people interested in taking the next step and joining us.
Well we have put a tool in place to recruit new members and it is up to each of us to make sure that we have activities going on both at the Lodge level with the Moose Legion Committee and of course at the jurisdiction level in order to keep them interested. Let’s face it, people aren’t going to pay more money just to attend another meeting. We call our self the fun degree; well let’s make sure we have some fun. Of course, if we show them a good time not only will they pay their Moose Legion dues but they will pay their Lodge dues as well so this helps greatly in retention efforts for both.
I would like to say I was disappointed but understanding when we received word that the International Convention was cancelled and I wasn’t going to get to meet you all but alas we do have another avenue. We are having the International Moose Legion Conference and Ritual Competition in Pittsburgh October 29-01 November. If you attended the one in OKC you all know the fun we all had there and we have big plans for this one as well so please register now.
I know a lot of us are worried that this could be cancelled due to COVID 19 which is a real concern for all. So, you might want to hold off on airline reservations for a bit until we know for sure what is going to happen. Registration fees of course will be refunded just like International Convention were so please register early and I do hope to meet a lot of new faces there.
I would also be happy to come and participate in your celebration such as an All-State, an awards meeting or just a regular celebration if you invite me through Mr. Neff. International covers my travel and the inviting host covers the local transportation to and from an airport and of course housing.
I will close with saying let’s do everything possible to overcome the first few months of the Moose year and let’s invite our friends and families to join the lodge. Then steer and mentor them in the right direction to get them to commit to the second degree and let’s have fun making it happen! Let’s all set a goal to increase membership in all 3 Fraternal units and shoot for 3 more members than we had at the beginning of this Moose year and head into Cincinnati with an increase in every unit.
Thanks again for the opportunity to serve the Moose Legion as your International President.
Fraternally, John Prough
International Moose Legion President