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Under the authority of the Sovereign
Grand Lodge, the Odd Fellows support an Educational Foundation, the
United Nations Pilgrimage for Youth Tour, Eye Research and Eye Banks,
the Arthritis Society plus many Jurisdictional projects. Over the past
decade, Odd Fellow Lodges around the world have spent more than six
million dollars in the relief of distress. The total spent in relief
of distress since 1830 is more than one billion dollars.
Perhaps our
most visible and involved project is the Annual United Nations
Pilgrimage for Youth Tour. Our Order is the only fraternal society
given the privilege to organize, sponsor and conduct tours for high
school students age 16 or 17 into the United Nations Complex. The tour
lasts for 11 days, covering historic and educational sites in Canada
and the Northern United States, with a five-day stay in New York City.
While there, the students receive special briefings in the United
Nations boardrooms, and they enjoy a question and answer period that
sharpens their comprehension of United Nations affairs. The students
are also permitted to see, bear and question members of national
delegations and specialists from various departments of the
International Secretariat. The cost of these tours is fully paid by
local Odd Fellow and Rebekah Lodges.
In Ontario,
the Odd Fellows and Rebekahs are quite involved in providing funds to
the University of Toronto, Department of Ophthalmology, as well as the
Ontario Eye Bank Laboratory. During the decade of the 1980's, the Odd
Fellows and Rebekahs donated $ 200,000.00 to the University of Toronto
for their eye research projects. We entered the 1990's with an initial
pledge of $ 20,000.00 to this ongoing project, each year. This Ontario
Committee also recently established an annual scholarship for a
student specializing in ophthalmology research at the University of
Toronto.
The Odd
Fellows and Rebekahs of Ontario also provided the initial funding to
organize and operate Camp Trillium. These camps provide summer and now
winter camping enjoyment for young people suffering from Leukemia. Our
support of this project is ongoing, and has increased each year since
its inception. We also provide support for Leukemia Research in the
amount of $ 1,250.00 per month all year round.
Many local
committees provide various items of hospital equipment for use by
needy individuals, for as long as they need them, without cost.
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