Official Organ Of the Slavonic Benevolent Order Of The State Of Texas. Founded 1897. BENEVOLENCE
VOLUME 56 — NO. 10
HUMANITY
BROTHERHOOD
Postmaster: Please Send Form 3579 with Undeliverable Copies to: SUPREME LODGE SPJST, POB 100, TEMPLE, TEX. 76501
MARCH 6, 1968
FROM THE EDITOR'S DESK CONVENTION NOTES.
THOUGHT . . .
February is gone; we're well into March, April and May will slip by, and June and the XXth Convention will be upon us. We thought this might be a good time to set out some of the more pressing problems that will face the delegates to this convention. There will surely be other things that will need to be resolved, but these are those that will probably consume most of our time. The following is based on conversations with various committees, including our 08.M. Committee, officers at all levels, and rank and file members.
Every now and then go away, have a little relaxation. When you come back to your work your judgment will be surer because if you remain at work constantly you will lose your power of sound judgment. Co some distance away and the work will appear smaller and more of it can be taken in at a glance, and a lack of harmony and proportion is more readily seen.
1. New Headquarters Building. The movement to build a new Supreme Lodge office building got started at the last convention in Waco, although some probably realized the eventual need for new quarters before that. The 08.6A Committee is looking into the matter and will make their recommendations at the convention, if not before. There seems to be general agreement that we need a new office building, and the only thing that will take some time is the selection of the site, cost, and other usual construction details. A building and site coinmitte will probably be selected at the convention to translate our desires into action. Possible sites that
—Leonardo da Vinci
have been suggested include Houston, Temple, La Grange, and, Austin. I believe that the 08th Committee will recommend Temple, the present site of our headquarters office building. They will support their proposal with appropriate figures and facts. One thing is for sure: the present building is pretty much a "white elephant" and we are on the verge of losing money insofar as rental income vs. expense are concerned. 2. Museum-Archives-Library. There is a great deal of interest in the inclusion Of facilities of an SPJST Archives, Library, and Museum in the new building. If this is approved (and there have been 20 years of talk on the subject) then there will have to be some sort of appropriation made to
sustain the project over a 4-year period, which would not have to be very big. Architectural plans would have to include this , project in the proposed building plans. 3. Direct Billing. This item may or may not get a full airing at this convention. The experience other fraternals have had with direct billing has been very favorable. It would probably be on a voluntary basis, but experience has shown that a large majority of lodges have gone in for this system. In a nutshell, this would involve billing for premiums from the Supreme Lodge, relieving the local financial secretary from having to collect premiums. Some argue that this tends to "demote" the local lodge system, but it has also been argued that local lodge activity has increased because of less time and worry with the collection process. 4. Consolidation of Offices in the SL. There seem to be conflicting opinions about the wisdom of consolidating the functions of treasurer with one of the other offices. A change in some of the titles may also be contemplated, but titles in themselves mean very little; it is the division of responsibilities that really matters. We will have to await further information and recommendations on this item before and during the convention.