| FEBRUARY 28, 2013 -- Today the postal service will announce their intention to eliminate Saturday first-class delivery. For many people in urban and suburban areas, this seems a welcome change to get some of the raging deficit of the USPS in check, but those of us in or from rural areas know how important mail delivery can be.
Since nearly its founding days, rural mail service has been a pet issue of the Grange, but you can find many other issues within even the smallest of communities that Grange rally for or against. These issues are important to our members, important to our communities and important to our organization as a whole.
Actively telling others about our Order, its mission and its core concepts, such as advocacy, can be done directly or indirectly, and issues-based discussion or information gathering is a great indirect way to communicate about the Grange.
Next time your Grange takes on an issue – be it a very local one such as the adoption of a leash ordinance for dogs, or a national one such as the support of six-day-a-week mail service for rural areas – consider taking that issue to the streets in a sense.
Ask people in your community to offer testimony of why they support your resolution or cause and create a podcast – an audio recording similar to a story you would hear on public radio.
Get their feedback and invite them to attend a Grange meeting to talk more about how they can get involved specifically related to that issue.
Good Grange members come into our organization for many different reasons – some because they are attracted by our stance on issues and advocacy.
When you have a resolution in place, write a letter to the editor about the issue, your Grange’s stance and how others can get involved in helping you to advocate for it.
Make sure to use your social media to post information about the issue, your work and similar initiatives. If counties throughout your state are starting to pass the same ordinances as your Grange is fighting for, post links to stories about these efforts. Ask people to share their stories of support and challenge them to get engaged.
Make signs, speak to reporters, post flyers in your local “third places” – physical spaces that anchor communities such as post offices, barber shops, diners, town squares or feed stores – and make sure to include your Grange name, logo, and information about your meetings.
Communicate about the Grange and our values by choosing issues and advocacy initiatives wisely and you’ll find your message spreading easily. |
