Something that I love about Hermann Sons Life is that we believe the success of lodges is everyone’s responsibility. That goes to show how much we value the lodge system and see the value it brings to communities all over the state.

Since January, Home Office employees have been invited each month to participate in lodge engagement forums. They are held at lunch breaks or right after work and the topic changes each month. They’re typically moderated by different employees and officers depending on the topic and time. The purpose of these forums is to exchange ideas and share stories so that we can benefit from what is working well in other lodges.

e are doing this as a Home Office staff because many of the employees are active members or leaders in their lodges. Notes from each forum are shared in the Hermann Sons Life Insider so that other interested ambassadors of Hermann Sons Life can read what was discussed in the forums. If you’re interested in receiving the notes from the first four forums, just send me an email.

Since the notes contain a lot of information, I want to share:

My Favorite 10 Lodge Engagement Ideas So Far

10. As a fund-raiser or special event, host cake decorating. (H-E-B has a program where they will come to your location with 8-inch round cakes and decorating materials. They charge you $5/cake and you charge participants $6/person. You could also do this on your own with cakes, cupcakes or cookies and provide your own materials.)

9. Play “ice-breakers” or other get-to-know you games a few times each year. Since newer members may not know everyone and we can all probably learn more about each other, it’s nice to regularly plan these types of activities.

8. If your lodge has dance classes, try holding the meeting at a time and day when dance classes meet. This could be a convenient time to get dancer parents involved.

7. Try serving dessert and coffee at a meeting instead of a full meal. You could even serve it during the meeting.

6. Have the president or another officer send a personalized card to each new member as new members join. (To request cards with your lodge’s name, send an email.)

5. Have purposive incentives for gatherings. One way to do this is by making the planning of community projects an important part of each business meeting. Meaningful attendance prizes also can be a consideration.

4. Host a talent night. Invite all members to come and share a talent as entertainment for the gathering.

3. When having a potluck meal, vote on best dishes by category and award prizes.

2. Join with another lodge for a special event.

1. Hold an annual barbecue just for new members. Lodge officers can do the work and invite just the new members and their family and friends. Ask agents also to attend. Get to know new members during this barbecue and tell them about your monthly schedule. Have games that might be more appealing to younger members like horseshoes and washers. Bingo is often very popular for all ages. Remember that family and friends who attend and are not members could really be viewed as your future members.

Hopefully you also like a few of these ideas – or maybe you recognize one of the ideas as something your lodge already does!

While these lodge engagement forums are intended to be upbeat and to focus on positive experiences, sometimes struggles also are shared. Many lodges are struggling with the same things – it can be tough to get younger members involved, fewer people are attending meetings, it’s always the same people helping with community service and big events, etc. Hermann Sons Life is not alone. Other fraternal benefit organizations all over the nation say some of the same things. But knowing that others are experiencing some of the same struggles doesn’t lower my spirits. It tells me that there is more work to do in the re-imagination of lodge gatherings in today’s society.

And on top of that, for every struggle, there is a bright spot. There are many lodges experiencing successes – increased youth involvement, increases in lodge attendance, greater involvement in the community, increases in membership, etc. So what are these lodges’ secrets to success? We all know that each lodge and community is different, so it really can be a mixture of factors. Maybe it’s the lodge’s leadership, maybe it is strong family tradition or maybe it is changes being made to their get-togethers. This is why we’re sharing ideas and looking for ways to mimic the bright spots.

To every lodge leader who has tried something new, who has built on successes and who is working to make the future of lodges even brighter than they are today – you are building a legacy.

And to the ones who keep pushing forward even when the struggles keep arising and something new you try doesn’t work – keep your heads up and feel proud of what you’re doing, you are keeping a beloved tradition alive and with persistence and teamwork, you will see the benefits of your hard work.

I know that I’m grateful for the people who keep their lodges going and who work to make them stronger. I’m also grateful for those who attend our Home Office forums and who read the notes about what was discussed.

What we do in the forums is easy – we’re not really solving any problems; we’re just sharing ideas and talking about things we want to do. The hard part is implementing the good ideas.

At Hermann Sons Life, we value community and our lodge communities are some of the strongest examples of this.

If you have an idea for a forum topic or want to share one of your lodge’s successes, please post in the comment section.