‘A Burden Heavy To One
Is Borne Lightly By Many...’

> The ten words of that headline describe an absolute truth of fraternalism -- and a necessary requirement of it -- and it is why this simple statement has appeared in Moose rituals and literature for decades. Whatever positive “magic” a fraternal organization can accomplish is a result of the simple fact that, joining together, we can help each other much more effectively, and accomplish much more good in the world, than any of us can individually.

But because we fraternalists are, by nature, incurable optimists, we too often ignore the just-as-absolute truth of this counterpart to that phrase: If there aren’t as many bearing the burden, there is no choice but to make the burden somewhat heavier on each individual.

You will read, in this issue’s cover story, that the fraternity’s Supreme Council voted to approve a significant increase in the portion of every member’s dues which come to Moose headquarters to support Mooseheart Child City & School, the Moosehaven retirement community, and the operation of Moose International. For Women of the Moose, this amount has been long known simply as the Per-Capita Assessment (literally meaning “per head” or per-person). In the Loyal Order of Moose, it was established in 1929 as “A Big Charity Dollar (ABCD), set that year at $1 per quarter; $4 per year.

Over the years, both the men’s “ABCD” amount and the women’s Per-Capita were occasionally increased--though never nearly enough to keep pace with inflation -- as you can see from the graph that appears both on the cover and in the cover story.

At present, the portion of the men’s dues amount coming to headquarters is $16. But as you’ll read, had the amount kept strict pace with inflation, from its beginning at $4 a year in 1929, it would have risen by now to fully $49.37!

The Supreme Council did not vote to approve nearly that much of an increase. But, effective with Moose dues payable Sept. 30, that $16 amount will go to $28. And, the current women’s annual Per-Capita will go from $12 to $20.

You may well ask: Why was this amount never increased nearly enough to keep pace with inflation?

Well, as I said, fraternal leaders are incurable optimists. We, and our predecessors alike, believed (and still do believe) in the truth of: “A burden heavy to one is borne lightly by many.” We knew that at any point, if, say, even half of our Moose membership decided to focus on the goal of sponsoring just one new member every year, we would add roughly 500,000 new members to our rolls every year (instead of a bit over 100,000), and we could meet our obligations, without having to worry that our Per-Capita amounts were keeping pace with inflation!

Problem is, that hasn’t happened. Out of more than 1.1 million Moose men and women, the same 80,000 or so--about 7 percent--sponsor a new member or two every year, and thank God for them. But because of that, and because of the numbers you’ll see presented in our cover story, we think you’ll agree that our Supreme Council made a wise and courageous decision. You all know that in your own households and businesses, you often have to bite the bullet and make an unpleasant decision in the interest of long-term financial health. This is one of those times for the Moose organization.

If you read the “At Moosehaven” section in the February issue, you expected the story of Moosehaven’s forthcoming redevelopment to be the cover story of this issue. Various necessary changes in the plan made that impossible, so Executive Director John Capes will lay out the details at the International Convention in June, and it’ll all be reported in the Convention-coverage August issue of Moose Magazine.