Our Mission
As an organization, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows aims to provide a framework that promotes personal and social development. Lodge degrees and activities aim to improve and elevate every person to a higher, nobler plane; to extend sympathy and aid to those in need, making their burdens lighter, relieving the darkness of despair; to war against vice in every form, and to be a great moral power and influence for the good of humanity. The command of the IOOF is to visit the sick, relieve the distressed, bury the dead and educate the orphan.” Specifically, IOOF today is dedicated to the following purposes:
- To improve and elevate the character of humankind by promoting the principles of friendship, love, truth, faith, hope, charity and universal justice.
- To help make the world a better place to live by aiding each other, the community, the less fortunate, the youth, the elderly, the environment and the community in every way possible.
- To promote good will and harmony amongst peoples and nations through the principle of universal fraternity, holding the belief that all people regardless of race, nationality, religion, social status, gender, rank and station are valued as brothers and sisters.
Vancouver Odd Fellows Lodge 90 and Hemlock Lodge 8 provide opportunities for fellowship in all its forms, from hanging out and having fun, to discussion, to networking, to collaboration on creative and constructive projects, all with an eye not only on our own satisfaction but on what we might offer to the community at large. Vancouver Odd Fellows Lodge 90 and Hemlock Lodge 8 are great groups to find a lot of positive energy and where we encourage all members to contribute their share.
The Odd Fellows Creed
Genuine Friendship, which hears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things, is the first step toward progress and personal enrichment, and the teachings of Temperance, Prudence, and Justice. Love is the basis for all life’s ambitions, service to humanity, and more family oriented. Truth, the imperial virtue, promotes economic stability, equality under law, freedom of enterprise, the highest of ethical standards, and lasting peace, the ultimate goal of fraternity. Universal Brotherhood of man under the Fatherhood of God is imperative to the survival of the World, and can be accomplished only through the practice of fellowship and understanding among all peoples and nations.
Odd Fellows Valediction
I AM AN ODD FELLOW: I believe in the Fatherhood of God, and the Brotherhood of Man; I believe in Friendship, Love and Truth as basic guides to the ultimate destiny of all mankind. I believe my home, my church or temple, my lodge, and my community deserve my best work, my modest pride, my earnest faith, and my deepest loyalty, as I perform my duty “to visit the sick, relieve the distressed, bury the dead, and educate the orphan” and as I work with others to build a better world because in spirit and in truth, I am, and must always be, grateful to my Creator, faithful to my Country, and fraternal to my fellow man; I AM AN ODD FELLOW!