Family

WANTED

One hard-working person to join the State Family Activities Committee for Region B.

Must be willing to go about in that region to represent us and work with the needs of people in that region. The job is open to any male or female who would like to take on this challenge. The only requirement is: be willing to work with the existing committee members and director and have some fun as well.

Contact Ginny Mangel at 724-285-3324.

Greetings from Butler on this frigid cold day. It got the whole way up to 14 today and things around here are a little chilly. They are telling us on the weather that things are going to warm up on Wednesday to the freezing mark. Do you call that warming up? I sure don’t.

However, February is here and winter has not been that bad so far. Better knock on wood, because by the time you read this, things could change in a hurry. It is so hard to believe that the Grange year is moving so fast. It seems like a month ago we were all gathered in Williamsport. Now we are about to attend the state planning meeting and get things rolling for 2008.

The big thing we will be working on is the Family Festival in July. As always, the Family Activities committee will be up and moving as we take on some of the responsibilities of this weekend. I am hoping that you will consider being a part of it this summer. We always have a great time. You can attend workshops which are designed to the needs of families today. We have crafts, and of course our favorite, the bonfire cookout. This year the Family Activities is planning a special thing for the festival.

We hope that you will tune into the Advocate next month and find out just what we are going to do. We will also update you on any changes to things in this department. As you know there is alway change and things pop up at the meetings that create the need to make those changes. So...keep reading the Family Activities article each month and if there are changes that need made, we will try our best to get it into the Advocate so you are aware of it.

After making the plans for the Family Festival, we will move on to the jobs for State Session, and all that we have to do. I am looking forward to returning to the Host Inn in Lancaster for another wonderful session. It has been some time since I have been there, but I am looking forward to it. I hope that you are beginning to make your plans to come and be part of the history-making decisions that we are faced with each October.

LOOK OUT, the Family Activities packets will be be coming to your mailboxes. I hope that we have the right person getting the packet. If you have changed positions in your Subordinate or Pomona Granges, please pass the packet you receive on to the new person. Then have the new person call the state office and report the change so we can get this information into the right hands. It is very frustrating to send this out, then have calls come in that tell me that they got the packet but they are no longer the chairman. Please make sure that your secretary has informed the state office of such changes.

As you have seen in the past Advocate, we have added and deleted some of our contests to make room for new ones. Please be sure to check with the chairman of your Subordinate or Pomona Grange to get a copy of the contests for 2008. They will receive a copy in their packet and a half page of the two new contests we added. If you picked up the contest flier at State Session, throw it out, the NEW one is in the packet with all the information. Of course, if you do not get the packet and would like a copy, please call your regional chairman and they will be glad to send it to you.
As the Regional Meetings begin again, please make every effort to attend and hear about the new stuff that the Grange is doing. This goes from the Family Activities, Youth, Juniors and Deaf & Community Service right down to all the members of the Grange. As you attend, please be prepared to ask questions about the contests and programs of the Family Activities. We are loaded with many things to do. Bring along your packet and have the regional chairman go over it with you and become better acquainted with it. I would like to go to all of them, but things back home need me there as well. That is why I call upon the ladies of the committee to be there and to take care of the needs of their region. So far I think we are doing okay, but if not, please give me a call and I will be glad to help you out.

As I have in the past, and continue, to encourage each of you to start your contest articles while we are still in the cold of winter, please read through all of the information of each class to be sure that you are doing it correctly. One category that we are having trouble with is the AFGHANS. After the judging last year, the judge came to me and said that some afghans were disqualified because of the size. Please be sure that you read through the judging criteria and be sure that your afghan is the right size. After all of the hard work you put into them for the contest, I would like to see that they all stay as entries and none be disqualified. This same caution is for all the classes we have such as baby afghans, quilts, baby quilts, wall hangings, etc. The criteria are provided for you so you will qualify and be a part of the judging. Everything that has a size is measured before they start the final judging, so please be sure that yours is correct.

New for 2008...Raisin Filled Cookies, Decorate a Tea Cup and Decorated Sweatshirts.

Of these three, there are two that can really test your creativity. The one I am looking forward to seeing at State Session is the Decorated Sweatshirts. As the styles of today change, everyone is now wearing sweatshirts, especially now that it is cold. So, put your thinking cap on, get out your beads and sequins and have some fun. There are so many pretty one in the stores, but let's see what we can do and then we can say that the retailers have nothing on us. These can be of any design that you want to make. Have fun with it. The same goes for the Tea Cup. I can’t wait to see what some of them look like. I am looking forward to seeing what we can do with “grandma’s tea cup”.

Well, that is about it for February. March is coming quickly and we will keep in touch with you again. Be sure to let us know if you have any ideas for contests or projects that can also benefit others.