Successful
Actions of Pleasant Valley Grange - CA
Pleasant Valley Grange #675 is located in a small rural community in El Dorado County between Sacramento and South Lake Tahoe in California.
“We’re in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountain range,” says Bob McFarland, Master of Pleasant Valley Grange. “We’re at about 2800 foot elevation which means we have four distinct seasons of the year, getting two or three snowfalls most years.”
“Our community consists of a hardware store, market, gas station, beauty salon, veterinarian, a church, a pizza parlor, and a Chinese restaurant. Our Grange Hall is located just off the main road behind a stand of firs, oaks, and pines,” says Bob.
“As of January, 2007, we had just under 200 members on our roster, and an additional 16 kids in our Junior Grange. That makes us the second largest Grange in California. Our membership is diverse, with an age range of 8-92 years. We have farmers and ranchers, police officers, real estate agents, educators, business women, retired couples, escapees from the city, doctors, firemen, electricians, plumbers, lumberjacks, and clergy – all part of our Grange,” says Bob. “Of our 200 members, about 50 are very active, regularly attending meetings and participating in our programs.”
“Our programs include support to our local schools, an annual $1000 scholarship to a college-bound high school student, assistance to families in our community that may need financial or other support. We participate in issues concerning our community. We sponsor the annual 4 th of July Parade in Pleasant Valley – which is always a blast! And we are the evacuation center for the Red Cross in our area.”
“We created a memorial garden last summer to cherish and keep close the spirit of our brothers and sisters that have gone on before us. It’s a beautiful and peaceful place.”
“In April this year, we plan to have an open house and invite the community to our Grange and see what we’re all about. We’ll roast some hot dogs, and have displays and tables for our GWA, Jr. Grange, and programs – as well as have information on what a Grange is. We’ll certainly have membership applications available too!”
“We’ve put together a slide show to answer the question, ‘What is a Grange?’ They say a picture tells a thousand words. That’s our hope – because people who aren’t in Grange often seem to have a hard time understanding what we do.”
“Our State Master, Randy Lewis, and I stumbled on a recruitment approach that seemed successful last week,” says Bob. “We were staffing a Grange booth at the California Women in Agriculture Fair, and I tried to recruit a lady who represents alpaca ranchers. This lady knew about Grange. She’s good friends with some of our members, knows where the Grange is in her community, and has attended some events there. She said it was fun. But no matter how much I tried to convince her that she needs the Grange – especially with political issues that affect alpaca ranchers – she wouldn’t take an application to join. I felt a lot like a vacuum salesman trying to get my foot into the door. Finally after hearing about all she does in terms of farming and ranching in California, we said, ‘You know, Grange needs you! And that did the trick! She did accept an application, and we hope that she’ll be joining us soon.”
“We hold our business meetings on the first Friday of each month following a potluck dinner. We have a Social Night on the third Friday of the month with a potluck dinner where we invite the community, friends and family. We have fun and games, guest speakers, entertainment and celebrate holidays on our Social Nights.”
“We have two major fund-raisers each year to support our community programs,” says Bob. “Our annual Crab Feed each February is pretty much always a sell-out. We gross about $9000 and net about $3000 from our Crab Feed. Local merchants donate prizes – about $4000 worth - that we raffle off. We’re quite famous for our home-made clam chowder and fresh crab.”
“In June, we have a Corn Dog Booth for four days at the El Dorado County Fair where we bring in just about the same amount of money as our Crab Feed.”
“Throughout the rest of the year, we have various other smaller fundraisers like spaghetti feeds, plant auctions, and that kind of thing. In addition, if we hear of a need in the community, we’ll spontaneously raise monies. For instance, we held a rummage sale to benefit victims of Hurricane Katrina.”
“In 2006 we started a monthly newsletter that we call ‘The Samaritan’ to reach out and inform all of our members about what’s going on at our Grange. That’s been a good way to reach the many members who don’t regularly come to meetings. As Grange members get older, it’s easier for them to stay home rather than get out to meetings. Before our newsletter, we didn’t have much outreach to those folks. At first we started using phone trees to remind people of meetings, potlucks, and dinners. And now we use the newsletter to serve that purpose.”
“Each month we select one or two Grange members as our ‘Samaritans of the Month’ and recognize their contributions and value to our Grange. We really like praising individuals for their good work.”
“Our emphasis this year is on working together and learning to appreciate each other more. We just can’t have enough of that! We have a dedicated and friendly core group of folks and good leadership. We look out for each other,” says Bob.
“We’re beginning to get more involved in Grange affairs at the Pomona and State Grange levels. Our new State Grange Master, Randy Lewis, has a very strong agenda to promote the interests of farmers, ranchers, and agriculture in California, and we have a new State Grange Legislative Director, Michael Greene, who is making great progress.”
“We’re also reaching out to other Granges through our Pomona Grange and look forward to bringing area Granges together for picnics, talent shows, and to share common interests.”
“We try to nurture our relationships with local government and particularly with our County Supervisor Helen Bauman who has been very supportive of our Grange. Last year our Grange was awarded Volunteer of the Year by the El Dorado County Board of Supervisors for our Packages and Prayers program and other community programs we do.”
“Our most popular and successful program has been our Packages and Prayers program that has been managed quite well by our GWA. Our GWA is really the heart and soul of our Grange. I’m sure that’s true of many Granges across the country.”
“Last spring, in cooperation with Supervisor Bauman’s office, we launched a Beanie Baby Challenge. We reached out to kids in public schools throughout El Dorado County and asked them to donate Beanie Babies to send to US Troops serving in Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere. The troops give these Beanie Babies to children in these countries as gestures to goodwill.”
“Well we thought the kids might give us 2000 Beanie Babies,” says Bob. “But the kids of El Dorado County donated 10,616 Beanie Babies! They practically filled up a whole 10 by 50 foot sea container! We estimate that it will take another year and a half to mail all those Beanie Babies out to our soldiers.”
“Pleasant Valley Grange is seven miles southeast of the historic town of Placerville, California,” says Phyllis Snyder. “It was once known as Hangtown because before law enforcement agencies were in place, miners took advantage of their own methods to create order – and their methods were quite effective. We’re about 15 miles from the site of the first discovery of gold, and truly each spot in our county is loaded with historical significance.”
“Phyllis is our much admired and beloved senior member,” says Bob. “She is 92 years old and has been a member of Pleasant Valley Grange for 47 years. She is a wealth of knowledge about the history of our Grange.”
“On September 10, 1938, about 20 prospective members gathered to hear from members of other Granges about why they should form a Grange. Just one week later, the Charter for Pleasant Valley Grange closed with 42 members. A month after that, members realized that the school hall where they were meeting was too small and the Grange needed a hall of their own,” says Phyllis.
“They started out with a $3 donation from the piano player at Pleasant Valley Grange’s very first dance. He donated his fee for the night, and that started the Grange Hall building fund-drive. Members made a quilt to raffle, someone donated a rabbit that was auctioned off, and a few no-interest notes were sold that could not be redeemed until the building was completed.”
“By May of 1939, the group had gathered $75 with their quilt raffles, and that was enough to put down for a half-acre lot. Plans for a Grange Hall were drawn and a model was built so members could picture it better in their minds.”
“The Brown brothers, Bob and Frank, who ran a saw mill, sold us standing timber at cost. Grange members had to cut, trim, haul, and mill the lumber – and they had to do all that on Sundays which was the only day that the mill was not operating. So the men handled the lumber, women cooked, and the children stayed home to do the chores that needed to be done.”
“The cement foundation used up most of the building fund to that point, so more auctions and raffles were held. The building was framed, roofed, lit with gas torches, and heated with borrowed stoves,” says Phyllis. “One year and nine days after the first meeting, Pleasant Valley Grange Hall was open for business.”
“Times were hard and money was scarce. Grange held two public dances each month and collected brass and junk metals. It was so cold that they put in a plywood ceiling. They dug a well, and when the bridge to the Grange Hall collapsed, they put in a culvert. There was an outdoor Johnny on the far side of the lot.”
“In March, 1940, the final payment was made to the Brown brothers. Grange members painted a sign on scrap lumber and installed it on the front of the building.”
“Many Pleasant Valley Grange members were called to service in World War II. Electricity was brought to the valley. Pleasant Valley Grange formed a drill team. Our hall was stuccoed and much later bathrooms and a furnace were installed – much to the delight of the female members!”
“Over time, an active membership grew elderly. Attendance dropped, but a few older members held on until there were younger folks ready to take over the helm,” says Phyllis.
“People had moved away from the Valley,” says Phyllis. “We needed growth – and we got it. We have new schools, new people moving out from the city. And they’re finding out that the country can be a lonely place if you don’t have friends. I think they see us meeting and having fun, and they want to be part of the group. We don’t have a lot of places for people to meet in the Valley, and Grange is one great place to make that happen.”
“We try to get children and young adults to get involved,” says Bob. “Children’s interest is often necessary before we’ll get adults to come. But I have teenagers and I know that when they get home, they go into their rooms and turn on their computers. They’re into pretty amazing things with their ipods, and Myspace. If we want them, then we have to offer kids exciting alternatives. We’re up against ipods, dvd’s skateboards, and all kinds of competition. If we’re going to get them, we have to address the interest of kids who are used to all that technology.”
GWA Secretary, Kathy Stimson, explains how very active Pleasant Valley Grange has become – especially with their Packages and Prayers program.
“Since October, 2004, we have sent over 820 packages out to our service men and women. We’ve received more than $9,500 in donations so far. We held a spaghetti dinner for Packages and Prayers and raised $3,325 which included donations.”
“Some of the donations we’ve received have been really amazing,” says Kathy. “My husband and I were at Lake Tahoe and in Caesars’ Tahoe we noticed all these products with the Caesors’ name on them – wet-wipes and that kind of thing. Well, the casino is having a name change, so I talked to a manager and asked ‘What will you do with all these wet-wipes that have your old name on them?’ And I told them how we were sending packages to our troops. Well a few weeks later, I got a call. They said that if we’d come get it, they had some stuff for us. You wouldn’t believe all the stuff they gave us! We made three trips and our car was piled to the top. There were 20,000 wet-wipes, playing cards, soaps, and all kinds of things – all of which will be great to send overseas to our guys and girls!”
“We try to send packages first to our local soldiers. We collect names from anyone in the community who cares about a soldier who might be in harm’s way. We also go to Anysoldier.com where soldiers can put in requests for certain items, and there’s a really comprehensive list of what to send and what not to send. We send all kinds of stuff. Q-tips, things for the soldiers to give to children, things they’d really like to give to people in the country where they’re serving. One that really pulled at my heart was a request for dog biscuits and toys for a wounded dog that the company had adopted.”
“You should see the thank you notes we get! One fella has become a friend. He writes us three-page letters. One letter said, ‘To the ladies of the GWA, Thank you. I wish you could see the smiles of the children when they get toys from us. Your efforts are winning over the hearts and minds of the children of Iraq.’ This was actually written on writing paper that had been part of the package. It really makes you feel pretty good!”
“We send out 25 boxes every three weeks. It takes several hours to pack up all the boxes. My car is just programmed to stop at the Dollar Store. I just sent out 5 more packages today,” says Kathy.
“We make an appointment with the post office so we don’t jam up their customers. We have to fill out customs forms that are six pages long, and they have to be filled out just so. We put labels on the boxes that tell everything that’s included. The last time I was at the post office, there was a guy who said something about all the packages I was sending. So of course I told him about what we were doing. Well, he was over in Viet Nam, and he said, ‘We never got anything like that.’ I could see his eyes tearing up. And he gets out his wallet and hands me a $20 bill. ‘The only time we got a package was at Christmas.’ So it really does feel good to make it better for our troops this time around!”
“We have fundraisers to support the program – and other Grange programs too. We have a craft fair and a flea market where we sell spaces for people to sell things. We sell hot dogs. We sponsor a family at Christmas. We just like to help out,” says Kathy.
“Our dues are $30,” says Bob. “Dues will go up on a graduated scale in 2008, but not much. California State Grange has voted to increase dues over the next four years. They’ll go up $2 this year and then $1 each year for the next four years. That will be a total increase of $6 over five years. Many Granges are doing the same thing – and doing more fundraising. Of that $6, $4 will go to National Grange.”
“Our insurance rates are reasonable through Grange insurance. We had a diesel spill in our basement, but we have such good support that our county granted us $30,000 to help clean that up. Well that grant really saved the Grange – and it was Supervisor Helen Bauman that came to our rescue,” says Bob.
“I think what makes our Grange successful is that we find needs and address them. We have people who will do prescription delivery for people who need it. Other folks cut lumber for people who can’t do it themselves or spread gravel in driveways. The community is well aware of what Grange is doing. People will say, ‘That’s a great Package and Prayers program you’re doing.’ Or, ‘You put on a great parade!’ We’re doing programs that are worthwhile and people in our community know it.” |
