Congratulations to Ron Blaisdell from Two Harbors Lodge #1463 on becoming a LIFE MEMBER of Arrowhead Moose Legion #72!

MOOSEHEART VAN PROJECT
SUMMARY SHEET
MARCH—2010

We had a total of six Moose Legions pay off their commitment to the Mooseheart Van Project in full during the month of March. They are:


Southern California Moose Legion #6 (CA)

Rushmore Moose Legion #39 (SD)

Arrowhead Moose Legion #72 (MN)

Puget Sound Moose Legion #91 (WA)

Western Michigan Moose Legion #106 (MI)

Capitol Moose Legion #155 (MD)


PLEASE THANK THE MEMBERS AND BOARD OF DIRECTORS FOR ME.

ED

TRIPLEPLAY!
A Conference for Those Who Care!

November 7 – 10, 2010
Atlantis Casino Resort Spa, Reno, Nevada.
Registration: $250.00/Per Attendee - $175.00/Two Attendees Sharing Same Hotel Room.

1 - Open Forum for Members of the Women of the Moose - Hosted by Director General William B. Airey.
A 2-day session open to ALL members of the Women of the Moose. Coworkers will have the opportunity to voice their opinion on current Chapter policies and programs; make suggestions to improve Chapter operations; critique current fraternal efforts of the organization; develop future plans for building membership.
2 - Running a Successful Lodge & Social Quarters Operation - Featuring Director of Lodge Operations Darrell O’Brien, Director of Membership Shawn Baile, General Governor Steve Greene, Chief Financial Officer Joe Mech and Director of Security and Loss Prevention Rick McKiness.
A 2-day conference for all members of the Loyal Order of Moose. Sessions will include proper budgeting, membership promotion and retention, interaction with the community, developing activities to build participation and ensuring the Social Quarters operate for profit.
3 - The Moose Legion - Making the Difference Between Success and Failure - Moose Legion Director Bob Neff and Selected Moose Legionnaires.
A 2-day conference for all Lodge Moose Legion Committee Chairmen and Moose Legion Directors. Discover: how a successful Moose Legion Committee can impact the Lodge operation; ways to market the Moose Legion to our Lodge membership; the proper way to conduct Moose Legion Celebrations for maximum attendance; how to strengthen the relationship between the Moose Legion and the Lodge.

Registration Fee Includes:
Special Atlantis Moose Rate 3 Days Prior or Post Conference
Three Nights Atlantis Luxury Tower Accommodations plus:
Unlimited Local Phone Calls, Unlimited 800 Toll Free Phone Calls,
Tower In-room Coffee Service, In-room Wired or Wireless High Speed
Internet, Valet and Self Parking, Use of Indoor & Outdoor Pools
& Outdoor Jacuzzi, Tower In-room safes, Concierge Services,
Boarding Pass Printing Services, Discounts to property Concerts and
Events, NEW Extended Check-out time of 12:00 pm (noon) and
Midweek Spa Discounts, Complimentary Round Trip Shuttle to Airport
Complimentary Entry in Slot Tournament
Complimentary Conference Shirt
Complimentary Conference Materials
Complimentary Buffet Ticket to Toucan Charlie’s

Please visit www.mooseintl.org
to register online or for additional information.

We have had a few questions about who we are and what our thoughts on what our direction for the Moose Legion might be. I answered one Moose Legion President with the following and thought I would share it with all our members….

Anyway - something about me - Well let me give just a brief history of myself, and then some thoughts on our needs and the future...

I sat in a lodge enrollment in 1979, listening to the ritual and the speaker who I recalled saying that one of the members of this class may be Governor of this lodge one day and thinking, “I wonder which one it will be” as I looked around at them. But I figured my brother had talked me into joining so I may as well attend a couple meetings and see what was actually going on....and as they say the rest is history. I got involved and went through the chairs of the lodge, the Moose Legion, and the district, became a state chairman and was lucky enough to get on the state board and served as State President, Moose Legion Ambassador and DSG. Eventually I was appointed to the Moose Legion Council and served as International President in 05-06. Following that I served on the Mooseheart Board (an interesting eye opening experience) until I came to work at Moose International the first January.

The Moose Legion has the potential to really be an asset to the fraternity, and the fraternity needs our abilities to come to fruition more perhaps now than ever. We can give lots of fancy speeches and say nice things, but what we need to do is get into the real trenches of this degree - we need to build the Lodge Moose Legion Committees and get them activated and working at the local level like they are designed to do. They need to be promoting harmony in the lodges. They need to be serving on nominating committees and helping make tough choices to select the best possible officers for our lodges. They need to be scheduling activities for Moose Legion members and their spouses and families - locally at the lodge level first - and then encourage those who have become interested to broaden their horizons by attending jurisdiction functions. These committees need to be provided the knowledge and tools to truly be the leaders they have the great opportunity and calling to be - to assist our lodges - who need their support.

As we build the lodge committees - and draw interest (and members) - we build the lodge, and the jurisdiction at the very same time. Each committee function that brings members into the lodge - helps build the committee, puts revenue in the social quarters, sustains members in the lodge and Moose Legion jurisdictions, and the state / provincial associations start to not only sustain themselves again, but can start to grow also. More dues paying members means more revenue to our individual units and to Moose International through dues / per capita (and hopefully more donations to Moose Charities at the same time) to sustain the services not only to the members and the lodges, chapters and Moose Legions, but so very importantly to our kids at Mooseheart and senior members at Moosehaven as well.

Yes, we will continue to hold MLEC training, but that is not just for jurisdiction directors - it is for all interested in the Moose Legion program, and interested in making this fraternity successful in our current and future endeavors. The Moose Legion has great (I believe) yet untapped potential to help this fraternity - first to begin to sustain itself, and then to begin the building of what is already a great fraternity, but has the makings to be so much more with the right attitudes and harmonious members truly working together for the common benefit of what we stand for and what we do as a fraternity. But I believe - it has to start by building our lodge committees and getting them back on board and active and working at the local level. They are our foundation, which we must fortify and build on.

Remember what we say as a fraternity: we care for kids, seniors, bring communities closer together and celebrate life. We have a tremendous program at our two campuses caring for kids and seniors. We tend to think of communities in the sense of the municipality our lodges are located in, but I also suggest that a community might be the community of Moose - which includes this degree which could stand to be brought closer together, I hope that we can lead the membership to be all they can be through the Moose Legion - so we truly can celebrate life like never before. Please join us on this journey!

My very best wishes to you and the members of Arrowhead Moose Legion.

Cordially & Fraternally,

Robert A. Neff
Director of Moose Legion
"On the Move"
Moose International
rneff@mooseintl.org
M L Office: 630-966-2227