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Listed below are details about the Grand Assembly of Ohio.

Ohio
compiled on 8-29-01

Local (Assembly) Level:
Marie L. Hamilton No. 170, Circleville: (constituted in 1964)

Our Assembly is named after an OES member and Past Grand Matron. We are located in a very small town but we have a great bunch of Masonic Bodies in the area.

We meet in the Masonic Temple in Circleville, OH, which is about 30 miles south of Columbus, OH. It has one of the only two surviving original Masonic ceilings.

Marie L. Hamilton is sponsored by the local Amaranth, Circle Court #57

Assembly traditions include Ooga-Booga, and we hunt for 'wabbits' (Grand Officers) at Grand Assembly (this to get into the only dorm that is air-conditioned!)

For Installation, Worthy Advisors choose a mascot, colors, flower, symbol, theme, scripture, motto, and honored station. Also, our WAs are allowed to decorate the East and other offices if she chooses. We put colored flowers on top of each bow station and sometimes mascots at each line station.

Usually the WA picks her mascot. At Grand Assembly, the Assembly/District can compete in the mascot competition. There is a wave contest, where each group waves their mascots for all to see and they are free to wave them during march ins/outs. Very cool stuff has been done!

Our Installations are almost always on weekend evenings. We used to have dances, but now it is more just refreshments (cake, sandwiches, punch). Some Assemblies have theirs on their meeting days, usually Saturday mornings.

Ohio usually doesn't use carry-ins and any gifts are usually given to the Installing Team. We do pin-ons like little flowers w/felt backing or ribbons. Our rules say that only line officers, installing team and WAs can wear white, but that is the only rule. I have never been to an installation where everyone was in the same color/style of dress.

Items passed down at Installations include the WA charm and charm bracelet.

Area (District) Level:
District Six - Marie L. Hamilton #170 (Circleville), Columbus #172:

We did try to have District events for a little while, but it didn't work out too well. Each of our Districts or a group of districts have annual Grand Receptions, highlighting the Grand Officers from those districts and there are skits or outside entertainment. The Grand Cross is exemplified three times a year and our District holds the bread ceremony every year. Since our Assemblies are pretty far apart (almost 40 miles) it was hard to get together for much fun stuff.

The ritual work is only done 'officially' at Grand Assembly and if a new Assembly is constituted. The GWA is supposed to make a visit to each Assembly, but that really depends on the quality of the GWA. We do have the occasional School of Instruction, where the Assemblies in a district get together and go through the ritual work & the Deputy guides things.

Grand (State) Level:

Proficiency: We just do the secret work. We did have a few 'pop' quizzes given by our Deputy during School of Instruction, on general Rainbow stuff.

Merit Bars: We got points for each thing we did - meetings, functions, money raised, Installations (each Installing Office had a point value), Receptions, School of Instruction, protemming (you can earn the right to wear a officers' pin if you protemmed a part from memory), etc. The merit bars were non-specific; you received one for each 25 points you earned. The pot of gold and wreath were 50 each. The big things in our Assembly were the trophy and the plate, which is a useless monster of pewter! We got a little Rainbow Bible that was something like 250 points. They had to make stuff up after a while, the girls earned so many points.

Term length: Up until about 1996 or 1997, the terms were 4 months long. We usually had Installations in January, May, and September. That Summer term was the bomb! Only 6 or so meetings, Grand, and lots of fun summer activities! Now the term length is six months, and Installations are usually held in June and January. The number of girls has gone way down and you can have a better term w/o having to cram 10 activities into 4 months.

Crowns are not worn in Ohio.

Songs sung during Initiation. After Nature, we sing 'In the Garden'. We usually did not sing after Immortality unless the WA wanted it.

Opening & Closing of the Bible. We keep it really silent and reverent. At Grand, they play a general gospel melody until Hope steps to Love, then silence, then begins again when she passes Love again.

Ohio has a few Pledge groups.

Marching in the Assembly room. We definitely do the 'float' thing. At Grand, Drill Leader and Faith are pretty much judged based on whether they look like they are floating across the floor.

Closing. The Assembly ends up in a circle in front of the Altar and we sing the Rainbow song, file out and DL gets the WA and MA.

Dress code. You can wear white if you are a line officer, PWA, WA, or Grand officer. Death will certainly follow if you wear dark blue, dark red, brown, black, or any very dark color. If you are participating (escorting or being inititated too), you must wear a formal; otherwise normal dress on regular meetings, with color rules in effect. Hems above the knees are discouraged in all cases.

Hoopskirts are not allowed in Ohio.

State publication. The Grand Worthy Advisor has a newsletter, but it seems to have dwindled in interest in the past few years.

The Grand Executive Committee decides who will be in what office. Our Grand elected officers are 'elected', supposedly by the girls, but they are picked by the Grand Executive Committee too. The pecking order under the floor officers is fierce, and a copy of the 'official' order is kept at all times to determine if prompters come before soloists, escorts before tributes, etc. Usually if you run for an elected office, you will get a bow office if you lose, sometimes Grand Chaplain. The Drill Leader is always tall and thin. Since about 1995, the GWAA moves up to GWA. The others do not advance. If you run for GWA (GWAA), you must commit in your nomination speech to forgo your first year of college to run.

Other Ohio Grand Officers include (starting from Choir Director down the Grand Auxilary Officers): Soloists, Aide to GWA, Aide to Supreme Inspector, Flag Escorts (American, Ohio, Christian and Rainbow), Flag Tributes (gives a speech on each flag), Hostesses (solely responsible for picking up dresses for people-seriously!), Grand Junior Executive Commitee, Pages, Prompters & protems. Whew! Then there are the representatives. We used to have a Lecturer for each district; not sure if those exist any more.

Anyone with a Grand Office is a Grand Officer. The pecking order is intense though. Just let a Page line up before an Hostess and the fur will fly! Grand Representatives are usually the 13 year old PWAs too young to have a 'higher' office.

As long as there are offices available, if you are a PWA you can get a Grand office. Some people have had up to 4. The mascot you get is at the discretion of the GWA, in relation to her term.

The board recommends to the Grand Deputy for Grand officers, and she must approve anyone planning to run for elective office. There is no true age limit, but usually the younger girls get the reps.

Grand Officer duties are pretty small. The GWA must have learned Grand Cross work by October (she goes in in July); the Grand officers of an area get nominated for the Grand Cross work if they are in a district where it is held & it doesn't matter what office you hold. At Grand, they pick from a pool of people who have done it before, Past Grands, etc. The Grand Cross is only required for the GWA. The lecturers and reps have to file a report; reps get the address of their counterpart and are supposed to correspond with them over the year and write a summary. The Flag Tributes are the most dreaded office since you must compose a speech for your emblem to read at Grand Assembly. Grand Junior Executives read 'reports' from the Grand Executive and Special Committees. If you are visiting an Assembly, you can give remarks on behalf of all the visiting Grand Officers and promote GWA goals. Other than that, its pretty cushy.

Joining the Grand Choir. As many girls as you want, to sing as loud as they want! You submit the names on the GA form.

Grand Pages are Grand Officers, so it is the rigamarole of that. They hold microphones, mainly.

Grand Tilers/Sentinels. They are appointed along with the rest of the Grand Floor.

If you are on the Grand Floor (meaning not a Grand Rep) you are required to wear white; choir and Heralds wear white as well. Everyone in the stands can wear street dresses. Making identical dresses isn't a big thing here. Reps can wear colored formals, since they are not officially 'on the floor'. Dresses are whatever you can afford and they must be floor length. Long hair has to be up and no hairpieces.

Other appointments at Grand Assembly. We have Honor Court, usually line officers from several Assemblies, chosen by the GWA. They hold up little mascots the GWA had chosen when she and the dignitaries are escorted to the East. Heralds sign up to play trumpet for the opening of each session. The Deputies pick escorts from their district to walk them in.

Traditional Grand Assemlby events. We have mascot waving & judging; we have a sports competition on Saturday afternoon; recognition for best Rep report, etc. Grand Officers are announced from Representatives to Floor Officers.

Grand Cross ceremony is three times a year. In October in Dayton area, in May in the Toledo area, and in July at Grand.

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