As more and more people are searching the Internet for Odd Fellowship, many of them are finding this podcast. As a service to them, we put together this episode where we give an introduction to Odd Fellowship, including what it is, how it's structured, how to join, and what members get out of it. We hope this will be helpful to those of you looking for a way to connect with your community through Odd Fellowship. As always, you can contact us for help in finding a lodge to join. The Shoutout goes to the newly-rechartered Glacier Lodge #77 of Vancouver Island, British Columbia. In the Odd Podge, Toby looks forward to the Washington Grand Sessions (and the Past Grand Masters banquet), Mike shares a special and unusual event planned for the upcoming Sovereign Grand Lodge session, and Ainslie talks about his recent trip to Springfield, Ohio for the Midwest AMOS Meeting.

Spring is here and many jurisdictions are having their Sessions, which means electing new Grand Masters who will be traveling around to visit lodges. In response to a listener's question, we discuss the process and protocols involved in a Grand Master's visit. Should you feed the Grand Master? When does he or she get introduced? Where should they sit? When do they speak? Who else gets introduced with the Grand Master? There are a lot of questions to answer and we do our best to get to all of them. The Shoutout goes to yet another new Encampment, Razorback No. 100 of Oregon. That's TEN new Encampments during the five years of this podcast! In the Odd Podge, Ainslie shares his lodge's new mode of transport, Toby shares receiving is 25-year pin for Sons of Norway (and can't resist an impromptu history lesson about the group), and Mike talks about his most recent experience participating in the Pilgrimage to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington, Virginia.

Not everyone understands fraternalism or takes the groups at face value. The suspicion of Freemasonry by the Roman Catholic Church is well known. Lesser known is the skepticism of so-called "secret societies" by Evangelical Christians. In response to a listener question, we asked Paul Michaels (not his real name), an Evangelical pastor, to come on the podcast and shed some light on why some Evangelical Christians are highly suspicious of Odd Fellowship and other fraternal groups. By keeping him anonymous we were able to get candid and honest answers about why Evangelicals distrust Odd Fellowship as an institution. Some of the answers were apparent but others were quite surprising! The Shoutout goes to a new Canton in Florida: General George Washington #70 of Miami. In the Odd Podge, Mike shares the publication of his new book, Paul talked about his passion for cemeteries and "The Good Cemeterian," and Toby recalled his visit to the Easter Egg Hunt at the Olympia Odd Fellows Park.

Brothers Aiden Brink and Will Sparks both joined their respective lodges in the past couple of years. Each have become very active and spurred growth in their areas. They were both kind enough to join us to discuss their perspective on Odd Fellowship: what we get right, what we get wrong, and what we can do to build a solid future for our Order. Some of the answers may be surprising, especially to long-time members, but they are incredibly insightful and provide a very appealing pathway to future growth. Hint: newer members see a lot of value in our history and traditions! The Shoutout goes to *another* new Encampment, Faro Fraternal #70 in Miami, Florida. In the Odd Podge, Ainslie reflects on watching a new streaming drama through Odd Fellow eyes, Will cherishes some of his most recent Odd Fellow gifts, Mike announces his newest side project, Odd Fellows Today, Toby recounts the story of meeting listener Michael Crile of Four Creeks Lodge #94 of Visalia, CA during his recent vacation, and Aiden gives thanks to those who listened to him and Ray Jackson of Illinois in particular.

Although it's tempting to think that Odd Fellowship has been handed down from the past completely unchanged from some visionaries at an ancient building site, that's not the case. Odd Fellowship has adapted and changed through its history to meet the needs of members and the Order as those needs have changed. In this episode, Kris Gratz of Virginia shares his research into the developments in Odd Fellows' regalia through the ages and how that has coincided with changes in our ritual and also various cultural cross-currents. For example, gold fringe on a collar used to indicate that a member had taken the Encampment Degrees. The number of stars on a collar had a meaning as well. Joining Kris is his friend and previous podcast guest Nick Curry to talk about some legislation he's working on regarding the future of regalia and suppliers. The Shoutout goes to the newly-revived River Raisin Encampment #154 of Michigan (our first Shoutout from Michigan!). In the Odd Podge, Toby previews his upcoming trip to the Northwest IOOF Meeting in Canada, Nick talks about the importance of mentorship in lodges, Mike announces his latest book (available at www.duminiak.com), Kris clues us in to his deep dive on the Odd Fellows' Tartan, and Ainslie updates us on the project to get a stairlift in his lodge hall, as well as reminding us of the upcoming Tattoo Event at Sovereign Grand Lodge.

For those interested in seeing some of the regalia examples discussed in this episode, head over to The Odd Fellows' Guide to see Kris' article and pictures.

In 2016, an exhibit opened at the American Folk Art Museum showcasing various artifacts from American fraternal orders, most notably the Odd Fellows and Freemasons. The collection shared the best of fraternal folk art with the wider world. One of the curators of that exhibition, Dr. Aimee Newell, joined us to talk about the collection and give us some background and history on where the items came from, their significance, and their influence into culture at large. Once again, the Shoutout goes to a new Encampment, this time the re-chartered Santa Paula #118 of California. In the Odd Podge, Toby announces the new recording he's working on, Ainslie shares his story of helping save a lodge with an Initiation and meeting a listener, Dr. Newell contemplates returning to her former employer, the Scottish Rite Museum in Lexington, MA, and Mike talks about his most recent publication, an epic poem.

Most of us know about our local lodge and may be familiar with a couple other lodges in our area. However, Odd Fellowship is global in scope and scale—or is it? Brother Chuck Hillberry of the State Of The Order Committee of Sovereign Grand Lodge joins us to discuss exactly how much global reach Odd Fellowship has and how various overseas groups are connected to the Sovereign Grand Lodge. The truth is a lot more complicated than most members realize and Brother Chuck shares the necessary background with us to have the right understanding of the situation. The Shoutout goes to a newly-rechartered Encampment, Halifax #3 of the Atlantic Provinces in Canada. For the Odd Podge, Ainslie promotes the upcoming Tattoo Session at this year's Sovereign Grand Lodge session, Mike previews the releases of his new books (info at www.duminiak.com), Chuck encourages members to visit other lodges and learn, saying, "Your dues card is your ticket to learn," and Toby thanks a friend and listener in Sweden for a recent gift.

We think we all know the story of how Odd Fellowship began in North America: five brave souls, led by Thomas Wildey, held the first meeting in Baltimore in 1819 and, from there, Odd Fellowship exploded across the continent spreading friendship, love, and truth from sea to shining sea. The reality, though, has a lot more detail and challenges than what we know. Mike, Ainslie, and Toby delve into the history of the founding of our Order a couple centuries ago. They reveal some of the challenges of the young lodge and structure and highlight the members who helped build and grow Odd Fellowship beyond that first meeting, including the authors of the Rebekah Degree and the Patriarchs Militant Degree. The Shoutout goes to *another* new lodge, this time Citrus #118 in Florida. Owing to the length of this episode, the hosts decided to skip the Odd Podge but it will return in future, shorter episodes.