Updated: March 29, 2021
Ten new community members – ranging in age from 17 to 69 – have just been voted into membership in the Davis Odd Fellows Lodge. The ten new Odd Fellows include five women and five men. They are: Mara Bledsoe, Jennifer Borenstein, Joshua Cruse, Terri Fong, Peter Gemellaro, Nan Schuman Klein, Michael Raub, Michael Sweeney, Bret Wasley and Kendall Wasley. They will be formally initiated in April.
Largest Odd Fellows Lodge in North America
“We are delighted to welcome our new, dynamic members,” announced Membership Chair Dave Rosenberg. “They bring our Lodge membership up to 322, cementing our position as the largest Odd Fellows Lodge in North America, and perhaps the world.”
Noble Grand Matthew Elliott added, “Even though our Lodge Hall is generally closed due to the pandemic orders, we still remain active and involved.” Elliott noted that the Lodge meets regularly via Zoom during the shutdown, and has even sponsored safe, community events such as the Zombie Bike Ride, several blood drives in partnership with Vitalent, and two “Chase the Chill” events to provide warm clothing to unhoused members of the community.
Once allowed to open again, the Lodge is prepared to reactivate its 55 committees, many of which organize and host community-serving events such as A Taste of Davis, Thursday Live! music, the Davis Chocolate Festival, Breakfast with Santa, and others.
More About the Odd Fellows
Odd Fellows are a fraternal order of men and women that began in the United States some 200 years ago. There are hundreds of Odd Fellows Lodges throughout the United States, Canada, and dozens of other countries. The motto of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows is “Friendship, Love and Truth.”
The Davis Odd Fellows Lodge is located at 415 2nd Street in Downtown Davis, and has been a fixture in town since it was chartered in 1870 – the oldest organization in the City limits. Persons interested in applying to join the Lodge should contact Dave Rosenberg, Membership Chairman, at Odd Fellows Lodge, 415 2nd Street, Davis CA 95616. More information on the Davis Odd Fellows is available at www.davislodge.org.
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