Our Sovereign Grand Master, the Honorable Gerald V. Workman of West Virginia, sat down with us for a wide-ranging discussion about his path in Odd Fellowship and how it led him to the top job in the Order. He tells about his early days joining the Junior Lodge, his many years working in his local lodge, his eventual path through the chairs of the Grand Lodge of West Virginia, and his journey into the Sovereign Grand Lodge. Along the way, he has been guided by his strong belief in the principles of Odd Fellowship and his religious faith, both of which work together to guide his world view. He shares some amazing insights gathered during his time going through the chairs of the Sovereign Grand Lodge and has plenty of inspiration to share. The Shoutout goes to Durant Lodge #57 of Oklahoma, which is now meeting. We featured them on Episode Three of this season and it's great that they are getting the lodge functioning. Toby gave an update on the Christmas Episode and asked listeners what Three Links Odd Cast merch they might like (hint: tote bags and luggage tage!) if we were to offer some. In the Odd Podge, Toby gave a preview of his double-dip of Degrees hosted at his associate lodge, Ainslie gave an update on the Odd Market in Tuscola (complete with fezzes), Sovereign Grand Master Workman thanked us for inviting him on the podcast, and Mike showcased his new project, the Odd Times.

As has become tradition at the Three Links Odd Cast, we like to take a turn to the spooky for Halloween and talk cemeteries. We're joined by Brother Michael Duplantier to discuss the progress on restoring New Orleans' famous Odd Fellows' Rest Cemetery. Brother Duplantier does a wonderful job of giving us the history and background on the cemetery and how it fell into disrepair along with the recent efforts to restore it and make it an attractive place to honor our deceased brothers and sisters. The interview covers a surprising amount of history and culture of New Orleans and the travails of restoring a cemetery that's nearly two centuries old. The Shoutout goes to Manuel Bosakewich Lodge #70 in Florida, a new Spanish-speaking lodge in the Miami area. In the Odd Podge, Mike shares the Odd Fellows' connection to West Virginia's Flatwoods Monster, Ainslie previews the tattoo fundraiser at the upcoming Tuscola Odd Market, Michael marvels at how the antiquity of Odd Fellowship is one of its best aspects, and Toby shares a story of his associate lodge helping a brother in need.

Usually, by the time we at the Three Links Odd Cast hear about a new lodge being chartered, it's already meeting regularly. However, in this instance, we got to talk to Brother Garrett Hite of Oklahoma as he's in the process of re-chartering Durant Lodge #57. Brother Garrett shares his story of how he first came to join the Odd Fellows, his time away from his home lodge, and the eventual need to form a new lodge in his new home town in Oklahoma. He gives a great amount of insight into the process of chartering a lodge, from finding a meeting space to rounding up new members. The Shoutout goes to a new lodge in Arkansas, Heber Springs #17, which was recently re-chartered. In the Odd Podge, Ainslie talks about his lodge's visit to the drive-in movie theater, Garrett promotes the upcoming car show his home lodge in Texas is working on, and Toby reveals a major life change in the works.

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT: Auditions are now open for the Christmas Episode of the Three Links Odd Cast, entitled "It's A Wonderful Lodge." Anyone interested in auditioning can request a script excerpt and record an audition. Excerpts can be requested at our email address, 3linksoddcast@gmail.com. All auditions are due by October 28th so be sure to get the script and record your audition!

Mike, Toby, and Ainslie are all safely home from their trip to Pittsburgh and back to their usual lodge activities. The brothers got together to discuss their experiences at Sovereign Grand Lodge and how they felt the Order was progressing as a result. They all had wonderful experiences at the event and enjoyed the fellowship and are energized with all kinds of great ideas for the future. They discuss all those ideas in this episode and give some thoughts about how they may be implemented as soon as next year's session. The Shoutout goes to another new lodge, this time Sioux Falls #56 in South Dakota. It's the second lodge in that city, having formed in response to those who wanted to attend lodge earlier in the evening right after work. In the Odd Podge, Toby talks about attending the Oregon Encampment Weekend, Ainslie previews his Odd Fellows Tattoo Summit in November, and Mike gives some insight into his writings as the new Sovereign Grand Chaplain, including a recurring submission to the IOOF News and work on a new Chaplain's Manual.

The 2024 Annual Communication of the Sovereign Grand Lodge was noteworthy for many reasons, not least of which was our live recording of the first episode of Season Five of the Three Links Odd Cast. We had a packed meeting room full of members from jurisdictions all across the US and Canada on hand for this lively discussion of the state of Odd Fellowship today. Mike, Ainslie, and Toby had a great time directing the discussion and responding to the audience members' questions and comments. We heard about new lodges in Nova Scotia and South Dakota, the hot air balloon in New Mexico, learned to pronounce "Skookumchuck," and generally had a great time. The Shoutout for this episode goes to the newly rechartered Lone Star Encampment #1 of the Jurisdiction of Texas.

Our recent episode on inclusion of the Lord's Prayer in the lodge opening generated some of the greatest volume of feedback from listeners we've ever received. We went through dozens and dozens of listener emails, Facebook posts, Instagram messages, and other communications and read them all and then came up with our responses. This is a long episode but we think it's worth hearing all the way to the end because of the careful, detailed discussion. The Shoutout goes to a new Rebekah Lodge in Illinois: Gem City Doves #27. For the Odd Podge, Ainslie recounts recent lodge social activities, Mike tells us about the records from various lodges in West Virginia going to the Center on Fraternal Research in Indiana, and Toby shares his recent musical trip to Idaho which, of course, included Odd Fellowship.

The Grand Jurisdiction of Texas is on an upswing. Its membership is growing and getting younger and they are chartering new lodges. Grand Master Charlie Stephenson and Brother William Plotts join us to talk about the chartering of Brazos Valley Lodge #76. They share how the Grand Lodge supported their efforts, how what they learned from the failure of the new lodge in El Paso helped their efforts and how the experience of re-chartering Plano Lodge #114 provided a helpful template. The Shoutout goes to the aforementioned Plano Lodge #114 for their upcoming car show in June. In the Odd Podge, Toby updates everyone on the success of the recent Fraternal Fair held in his jurisdiction, Mike tries to contact the Odd Fellows Riders Association in Ohio, Ainslie previews the updated District Deputies' Guide from Heart In Hand Institute, William shares his lodge's first fundraiser event, and Grand Master Charlie reveals how Odd Fellowship helped him build his confidence as a leader and public speaker. NOTE: we are still collecting feedback about our Lord's Prayer episode and want you to contribute your opinions. Be sure and email us at 3linksoddcast@gmail.com or hit us up on Insta or Facebook to share your opinion. We're putting your opinions together for our next show when we'll discuss them and respond.