The Three Links Odd Cast

There's a little corner of South Seattle that has been a burial ground for centuries, starting with the Duwamish Tribe and continuing through years of changing ownership and management.  About half of that cemetery is left now, existing as an off-leash dog park.  The other half was sold to builders for houses.  That's only part of the tragedy of Comet Lodge Cemetery, so named because it was supposedly owned by Comet Lodge #139, located in Seattle's Georgetown neighborhood.  On this episode, Toby, Ainslie, and Meredith discuss the story of the cemetery, from the razing of the "Garden of Angels" infants burial section to the desecration of headstones to the county running a sewer line directly through part of the property.  The Shoutout goes to Star Of Hope Encampment #33 of Illinois  In the Odd Podge, Ainslie reviews the huge success of Tuscola's Odd Market, Meredith previews some of the great events happening around the Metroplex, and Toby talks about his visit to the then-impending Testimonial Banquet for Sovereign Grand Master Ron Hanson.

Jody Jedlicka just finished her term as Grand Master of Illinois.  She was the first woman to hold that position.  As such, she got a great insiders' view of the inner workings of one of our Order's larger jurisdictions.  In this candid conversation with Ainslie and returning co-host Mike, she gives her observations of what worked during her term, what didn't work, what she would like her successors to continue, and many other invaluable insights for Illinois and beyond.  This episode is a must-listen for those curious about what happens when a jurisdiction decides to embrace and use technology to increase functionality and decrease costs.  There's no Shoutout this episode; members are encouraged to send the good news from their lodge to the podcast via Instagram, Facebook, and email ([email protected]).  For the Odd Podge, Ainslie shares his back-to-back trips to Grand Sessions in West Virginia and Illinois (where he was installed as Deputy Grand Master), Mike shares his experience at the West Virginia Grand Sessions (where he was installed as Grand Master), and Jody talks about her sale of Sessions centerpieces and her husband's ascension to Grand Patriarch of Illinois.

In the last couple years, a new frontier has opened up in the culture of Odd Fellowship: music.  There has always been music by, for, and about Odd Fellows, but a new group of creators is using the tools of artificial intelligence to create songs for the Order.  Ainslie, Toby, and Meredith talk to Amanda Robinson, PGM of Minnesota, Tommy Howe of Palacky Lodge #630 of Illinois, and Mike Duminiak, DGM of West Virginia and past co-host of the Three Links Odd Cast.  What follows is a wide-ranging conversation about the emerging new culture of Odd Fellowship and how new music is contributing to that.  The Shoutout goes to Crescent Encampment #14 of Alberta for performing the Patriarchal Degrees for seven new Patriarchs at the Montana Grand Lodge Session with the assistance of PSGM Calabrese.  In the Odd Podge, Mike previews his upcoming episode of "Odd Fellows Today" and his new books; Ainslie promotes the impending Odd Market; Toby gives thanks to PGM Laurel Delony for a ride to the auto parts store; Tommy talks about his "pretend" band; and Meredith teases a possible future show with the new lodge in Pennsylvania.

Amanda's music is available on her YouTube playlist.

Tommy's music is available on his YouTube playlist.

Mike's music is available on Google Drive.

Sovereign Grand Lodge is over for another year and we did another live recording.  This year, we were asking the attendees in Frisco, Texas about whether their jurisdictions were growing or dying, and why they felt that way.  We got a wonderfully diverse group of members from all around the US and Canada to tell us about what's going on in their jurisdictions.  We heard all kinds of stories, from the triumph of a new lodge in Halifax, Nova Scotia which draws on international migrants, to the disappointment of a Rebekah Assembly President in Maine who lost her home lodge to consolidation.  Toby, Ainslie, and Meredith were definitely at their best talking with this wonderful audience.  Be sure and give it a listen and get ready for the beginning of Season Seven of the Three Links Odd Cast!

One of the questions that comes to us frequently is if we have any training materials to help prepare members to step up and serve in an elected office.  To that end, we have recorded a series of training episodes to help members feel more comfortable moving up into those roles.  The fourth in our series is about serving as Secretary.  Since most lodges are small and don't have a separate Financial Secretary, we have combined those roles in this episode to match the most common practice.  Those lodges with a Financial Secretary may split out the duties in this episode as appropriate under local jurisdictional laws.  We made every effort possible to present the material we have in an easy-to-follow, conversational style.  If you're a member looking to move up and become an elected officer in your lodge, give these episodes a listen.  If there's something you think we should include in an update of each episode, be sure and let us know

One of the questions that comes to us frequently is if we have any training materials to help prepare members to step up and serve in an elected office.  To that end, we have recorded a series of training episodes to help members feel more comfortable moving up into those roles.  The third in our series is about serving as Treasurer.  These are by no means completely comprehensive; we may have missed something in the process.  However, we made every effort possible to present the material we have in an easy-to-follow, conversational style.  If you're a member looking to move up and become an elected officer in your lodge, give these episodes a listen.  If there's something you think we should include in an update of each episode, be sure and let us know

One of the questions that comes to us frequently is if we have any training materials to help prepare members to step up and serve in an elected office.  To that end, we have recorded a series of training episodes to help members feel more comfortable moving up into those roles.  The second in our series is about serving as Vice Grand.  As the line of officers is progressive, the Vice Grand needs to be familiar with the duties of the Noble Grand should it be necessary to assume those duties at any time, so we recommend listening to the Noble Grand episode as well.  These are by no means completely comprehensive; we may have missed something in the process.  However, we made every effort possible to present the material we have in an easy-to-follow, conversational style.  If you're a member looking to move up and become an elected officer in your lodge, give these episodes a listen.  If there's something you think we should include in an update of each episode, be sure and let us know.

One of the questions that comes to us frequently is if we have any training materials to help prepare members to step up and serve in an elected office.  To that end, we have recorded a series of episodes to help members feel more comfortable moving up into those roles.  The first in our series is about serving as Noble Grand.  These are by no means completely comprehensive; we may have missed something in the process.  However, we made every effort possible to present the material we have in an easy-to-follow, conversational style.  If you're a member looking to move up and become an elected officer in your lodge, give these episodes a listen.  If there's something you think we should include in an update of each episode, be sure and let us know.

Season six brought some exciting developments to the Three Links Odd Cast.  The biggest one was Meredith Moore joining as co-host and Director of Institutional Research.  We expressed our gratitude for Past Co-host Mike Duminiak and his years of hard work on the show.  We also reviewed and discussed our various episodes from throughout the season.  Some of those highlights included the on-location episode recorded in Yreka, California for the Cave Degree, an interview with Past Co-host Duminiak about his book "Oddtistic," a look at the fraternal cemetery business with Brother Jon Hart of the Odd Fellow Memorial Gardens in Livermore, California, another tattoo episode (of course!), the Christmas episode, Meredith's two survey episodes about burnout and the future of the Rebekahs, the new lodge in San Antonio (for which Toby made a special musical recording), and the episodes about new and revitalized lodges in Tennessee, Minnesota, and Wisconsin.  We closed out with a great conversation with Sovereign Grand Master Tom Calabrese who provided us with some great wisdom and insight.  All in all, it was a pretty good season.  The Shoutout went to another revived Encampment, Pueblo #1 of Colorado.  In the Odd Podge, Toby is looking forward to his Washington Grand Sessions with old friend Kelly Hughes returning as Sovereign Grand Warden, Meredith gave credit to a number of lodges doing great things, and Ainslie spilled the beans on the upcoming Three Links Emporium and Tattoo Extravaganza at Sovereign Grand Lodge.

Odd Fellowship is built around the principle of mutual aid, which implies that we should all be of service to one another.  Our current Sovereign Grand Master, Tom Calabrese, exemplifies the spirit of a servant leader.  Modest and unassuming, he has shown throughout his career in Odd Fellowship that he is always ready to pitch in and help out and that spirit of service has extended to his time as Sovereign Grand Master.  Brother Tom worked his way up from being a member of his father's lodge to becoming a Past Grand, joining the Grand Lodge of New Jersey, joining the Sovereign Grand Lodge, and then moving up to the highest office in Odd Fellowship.  Along the way he has exemplified the best aspects of service at every opportunity.  He shares his thoughts about the Order's direction, tells what he has done to keep the Sovereign Grand Lodge functional, and gives insight into how he deals with issues that come to him.  The Shoutout goes to yet another new Encampment, Barataria #73 of New Orleans, Louisiana.  In the Odd Podge, Toby shares the visit of PGM David "Ace" Adams of Minnesota to Seattle, Ainslie talks about his adventure driving a century-old dump truck, Meredith gives credit to a lodge in the Philippines for their amazing relief efforts in the face of a disaster, and Tom shares his wonderful cemetery experience with the Grand Master of Vermont, Teppi Zuppo.