Volume 2 | Issue 18
September 26, 2025
A publication of the National Grange
Make History Together: Host a Community Contest for America’s 250th by Amanda Brozana
National Grange Membership & Leadership Development Director
In July 2026, the United States will mark its semiquincentennial — 250 years of striving, building, and dreaming together. It’s a once-in-alifetime milestone, and people everywhere will be looking for a story they can tell their grandchildren about “what I did for America 250.” Your Grange can help them write that story—literally—by sponsoring a fun, engaging community contest that puts local talent, hometown pride, and Grange fellowship on center stage.
Why a Contest?
Contests create memories. Whether it’s a pie-baking showdown, a youth essay challenge, or a yarddecorating competition, friendly rivalry turns an anniversary into a personal adventure. Participants get bragging rights, spectators get entertainment, and the whole community gains a feel-good moment they’ll retell for years. Contests forge connections. The judges’ table needs volunteers, prizes need sponsors, and entries need cheerleaders. Every role is an
invitation for neighbors—long-time members, brand-new residents, and curious onlookers—to collaborate with the Grange. Those casual contacts often blossom into lasting membership. Contests showcase the Grange brand. From our earliest fairs to today’s digital forums, the Grange has excelled at bringing people together around shared skills and hometown hospitality. A wellrun contest reminds the public that the Grange is still the go-to place for community-building—and that we do it with integrity, inclusivity, and a dash of fun.
We’ll Do the Heavy Lifting
In This Issue Make History Together: Host a Community Contest for America’s 250th . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Two State Granges Welcome new Presidents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Grange Foundation accepting Board of Directors nominations . . . . . . . . . . 2 View from the Hill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 How Technology Is Helping Older Adults Thrive in Rural America . . . . 6 3 Things Every Older Adult Should Do for Their Health This Fall . . . . . . . . . . 7 Save the Date: National Grange Honors Night . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Grange Member Benefit: Harvest Hosts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Have you Registered? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Hamp Watch: Where was our National Grange President This Month? . . . 10 Recipes from the Heartland . . . . . . . . 11 Grange Store: Prepare for State Conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
To make launching a contest as easy as lighting a birthday candle, the National Grange will release a digital America 250 Contest Toolkit this fall. Here’s what you’ll find inside: • Turn-key contest templates. Pie bake-offs, photography exhibitions, quilt squares, children’s chalk-art, pickle canning—you’ll receive proven contest frameworks with age divisions, judging criteria, and tie-breaker rules. Prefer
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