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Listed below are details about the Grand Assembly of Maine.
Maine
updated on 08-30-01
Local (Assembly) Level:
Sanford Assembly No. 7, Sanford: (Instituted March 28, 1932)
- Sanford Assembly meets at their local Masonic hall, and is sponsored by the Masons.
- For her term, the Worthy Advisor chooses a mascot colors, motto, scripture, honored station, theme, symbol, flower, songs, and dedication.
- Installations are on a Saturday, which is a special day, and are in afternoon. We usually have a little lunch afterwards. At the last Installation, a band played afterwards; a first-time event.
- The Worthy Advisor sometimes gives gifts to the members of the Assembly at her Installation.
- The only way we have the DeMolay boys or the Masons do anything is if we ask them. At the last Installation, the WA had an arch of steel. For special installing officers we can have soloists to sing a song.
- Passed-down items at Installation include the Worthy Advisor's travel pin, and the out-going Worthy Advisor gets a PWA pin.
- We have Rainbow Dads, the Worthy Advisor choses them and they are usually Masons.
- At Installations, we give out the points awards and also we have a girl who comes to meetings or special outing put their name in a bag and we pick a name out of the bag to see who gets the prize. This also happens every month for smaller prizes but the big one is at the end of the term.
- Gift for the out-going Worthy Advisor. It depends what the Assembly wants to get in addition to the scrap book that gets made for her, but usually just a scrap book with a cover that relates to her term and pictures and memorabilia from her term.
State (Grand) Level:
- The first Grand Assembly of Maine was held in 1949.
- Famous former Rainbow Girl alert: our senator Olympia Snowe was a Rainbow Girl.
- The terms in Maine are six months long. Installations are generally in January and June.
- Merit Bars. We just have to add up our points for doing service, but we have a whole list of how many points everything is worth.
- Maine has Pledge Groups. We get together and make things with them, play games, invite them to do fun things with the Rainbow Girls, etc.
- Maine has something called a "Fun Degree", where they 'initiate' Masons, in a fun way. (We turn Masons into Rainbow Girls.) Almost all Assemblies in the state do this.
- In Maine, they have Adopted Grand Officers and Sister Assemblies. Sister Assemblies are appointed by the Grand Assembly. Normally they have some kind of relation (size, closeness, etc). As their Sister Assembly, you are supposed to go down and visit and help them (fill in for offices etc.) Adopted Grand Officers, once again, are appointed by Grand Assembly. The adopted Grand Officer is supposed to come down and visit, sometimes, depending on the WA, they will even fill in as WA sometimes, to give the regular WA a break. Adopted Grand Officers are required to visit their Assembly at least twice.
- Crowns are worn in Maine. The Line officers in the individual Assemblies, and the Grand Line in the Grand Assembly. The Grand Worthy Advisor has a Rainbow crown. Line officers have crowns with clear jewels on them. The individual assemblies, they all have crowns; the WA has the largest, and the WAA has a slightly smaller one. Charity's, Hope's and Faith's crowns are smaller, and all alike.
- Maine allows hoopskirts - anyone can wear them.
- When entering the Assembly room, the girls "walk in normally".
- Songs sung during Initiation are:
Love -
Love like a star of hope,
it lifts it leads it glows.
Love how beautiful the path
with happiness it grows.Religion -
The will of God should be our will
And guide us on our way
The love of God should be our love
And grow from day to dayNature -
Out on the hills of God,
out where the sunlight plays,
here may I strength renew,
here may I sing God's praise.Immortality -
Dark are the fields of night,
wet are the tears of dew,
Bright is the sun of light,
with hope and life anew.Fidelity -
To be faithful, to be True
What more can you ask of me?
To be Faithful, to be True,
What more can I wish of you?Patriotism -
AmericaService -
I would love, I would praise;
I would sing with the birds;
I would Hope, I would stand,
I would pledge and be true;
And with it all, And through it all,
I would serve, I would serve.
- Opening and Closing the Bible. We don't sing DURING the actual opening; just before it's opened we sing Old Rugged Cross, and after we sing Blest be the Tie that Binds.
- Assembly Closing. Prayer, Blest be the Tie that Binds, Rainbow Circle, and march out.
- Dress code: No black. Assembly meetings are street dress, which consists of skirts (not too short) or dress pants, and a nice top. For Initiation white gowns, for Installation pastels or white, special functions like Grand Family are white gowns if in the Grand Choir or a Grand Rep. or Grand Officer and dress clothes if you're a sideliner.
- Assemblies do Ooga Booga while attending Grand Assembly.
- Special dress for Grand Assembly. Assemblies can choose to make aprons, pins, sashes... anything they want.
- Baby Dedication. When Majority Members bring in their baby daughters to get dedicated into Rainbow, at Grand Assembly. The GWA gives the mother a Rainbow Bible. Then they go to the seven bow stations and each one says something, and give them a little ribbon from each color station, which they put in the bible. Then the GWA gives them a petition with the daughter's name on it and tells the mother to give the bible to her daughter on her 11th birthday.
- There are Grand Officer tryouts and from there you can be told if you are able to run for an elective office and if so you can run. The elective offices are Recorder, Treasurer, Faith, Hope, Charity, and WAA. We have special Grand Officers: Historian, Bible Bearer, American Flag Bearer, and State Flag Bearer, also a Miss Service. In order to run for a Grand Office you have to be Charity or higher, and to run for an elective you have to be 16 or older, and have a certain score on your tryout.
- Choosing Grand Officers and Grand Representatives. At Grand Assembly, on Saturday afternoon, we (Charity, WAA, WA and PWAs of each Assembly) vote on the elected officers, and the majority vote wins. For the appointed officers, we have a tryout and I believe it is judged by the Supreme Inspector, and whoever does the best wins. As for the Grand Representatives, they have to write down what state(s) they want and why, the best reason gets it. To apply for an appointed office, you have to be that office or higher in your Assembly. (unless you are a PWA) To try for an elected office, you must be past or present WA.
- There is no limit on how many times you serve as a Grand Officer.
- Session gowns. Grand Officers wear them during the sessions at GA. It normally has something to do with the GWA's colors. Grand Representatives have to wear white gowns, and the sash for their represented jurisdiction. Grand Representatives are not considered Grand Officers.
- Mascots. The Grand Officers have mascots, which the GWA gives them.
- Grand Choir. To be eligible, youou have to have been in Rainbow for at least 6 months, and you just join the choir and go to 2 or more Grand Families.
- Grand Pages. The individual Grand Officers pick someone from their Assembly to be their Grand Page, the other pages are picked from the hostess assembly. Grand Pages have to wear a white gown (when they are paging) and the badge that Grand Assembly has made. Without their badge, they are not allowed on the Grand Assembly floor. On Saturday (the first day they page) they do a quick entry march, going to the Grand East, announcing their name and what GO they are Grand Page for, and then in an orderly fashion, go to their seats. They only page on Saturday.
- Grand Tilers/Sentinels are girls from the hostess assembly.
- Grand Officers' Drill. When the Grand Officers come in they do like a march, and Mum Moody (our SI) reads things that the GWA writes, and makes it like a play, kind of, but they are still marching around so it doesn't look informal or anything.
- Grand Officers' duties. The highest-ranking Grand Officer is asked to speak at the end of the meeting, and has to go to Grand Families, practices, and the Grand Officers picnic right after Grand Assembly.
- Maine has lots of competions at Grand Assembly. We normally have a poster contest. (Each Assembly creates their own poster, which has to have their Assembly name on it, and it has to do with the GWA's term. They are displayed in the Grand Assembly room, before they are judged.) It is also a tradition to turn Miss Service's Charity Project into a competion between the Assemblies, winners are announced at Grand Assembly and are awarded with a prize. There is a certificate for all members who bring in new girls during that year. The names are called, and they go up to the Grand East to get their certificate, which is awarded by the GWA, or the SI. We normally have a centerpiece contest (which is judged by out-of-state guests) Once again, it has to represent something about the GWA's term, and they are displayed in the 'mess hall'. There is an award for the assembly that brings in the most members, an award for selling the most datebooks, and many other things.
- Grand Families. When the Grand Assembly gets together, and most of the time do initiatory work.
- GWA's Homecoming. This event is almost like a Grand Family, (as in, the Grand Assembly gets together) but with no Initiatory work. It is held at the GWA's assembly. And is basically to honor her.
- Grand Representatives' Day. When the Grand Representatives are honored, and they normally dress up in costumes or make a flag representing their jurisdiction and the GWA's term for that jurisdiction.
- Grand Reception. Maine does not have individual receptions for their Grand Officers.
- Grand Cross ceremony is at Grand Assembly.
- We collect can tabs and soup labels, and help Canada collect bread tabs.
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