Even though here in the Northeast the winter “doldrums” have hit, and the month of January is behind us, I see the sun rising a bit earlier every morning. I have seen some crocus and daffodil stems peeking through the ground. Small buds are beginning to appear in my trees in my backyard. And there are parts of the 3D that have seen Spring for a while now (no, not jealous at all !!)
With Springtime just around the corner, it’s not too early to begin recruiting new members. If you know someone who is interested in learning more about Norwegian history and culture new members are always welcome. Family, neighbors, friends. As with every year, we want to have positive member growth. Everyone in the lodge is a recruiter. Anyone having ideas relating to membership retention and growth is encouraged to send suggestions to your Vice Presidents and Membership Chairs.
With that in mind, I wish congratulations to these 3-D lodges who had reached their 2020 membership recruitment goal. I’m happy to say every one of our 7 Zones has increased membership!
| Lodge # | Name | Location | Goal | Actual recruitment |
| 3-232 | Dovre | Providence, RI | 4 | 6 |
| 3-337 | Norge | East Williston, NY | 4 | 4 |
| 3-410 | Nansen | Staten Island, NY | 4 | 4 |
| 3-432 | Hudson Valley | Kingston, NY | 12 | 40 |
| 3-433 | Scandinavian Heritage Society | Rochester, NY | 7 | 10 |
| 3-438 | Oslo | Syracuse, NY | 6 | 4 |
| 3-467 | Norrona | Pearl River, NY | 6 | 13 |
| 3-515 | Tampa Bay | Tampa Bay, FL | 6 | 7 |
| 3-612 | Bondelandet | Lancaster, PA | 4 | 8 |
| 3-664 | Maine Nordmenn | Falmouth, ME | 6 | 6 |
| 3-678 | Norskevenner | Atlanta, GA | 7 | 11 |
| 3-679 | Norsk Carolina | Charlotte, NC | 5 | 8 |
I had the opportunity to meet a few members that I haven’t seen in quite a long time. The new faces are just an example of the excellent participation that is now going on at our lodge. We are a great organization and it shows. New members, reinstated members and transfers are still coming to our District to apply for membership. Your District leadership and your membership together, have been working diligently to get us over the past year’s difficulties, by planning outstanding events, contacting fellow members, sending out newsletters, inviting them to the events, and volunteering their time to help make things happen. Although we still face many obstacles, there is no doubt in my mind, that by working together, we will keep our district successful into the future.
Although we are limited due to the constraints of COVID, we remain active in our communities. Our 3D is operated by volunteer’s time and efforts, and without the devotion of ALL of our various committees and members, we would not be as successful as we have been for the past 126 years
NOTE: After the sale of Land of the Vikings there was a committee formed of district lodge members to advocate for the funds garnered from the sale. Although we won’t have any final numbers till debts, taxes, capital gains, etc. are determined, it is incumbent upon us to be good stewards of the money. Therefore, the committee has gotten input from our Financial advisor and our CPA and along with the committee are working on the substitutability of the funds.