[ncjwr]

i was a rainbow girl when i was 14...had no idea what it was...just didn't want to be there at 14. i even got in lots of trouble at camp!

if my grandfather was a mason/grandmother in easternstar...does that mean my daughter could be in rainbow?

[accer]

All your daughter needs is an invitation. No family affiliation is necessary.

Like you, I was a member....wasn't a good member...but a member.

[ncjwr]

it was a teenage thing...my grandmother was really disappointed with me...and she was such a sweet lady. sometimes i still feel badly. however, my daughter is a better rule follower than i was and i think it is something she would enjoy

[reviewer]

What sort of activities does the Rainbow Girls group do? My kids have been involved mostly in the Girl Scouts.

[accer]

I wasn't good at it because I wasn't an obedient, do whatever adults said because they are adulats and said so, kind of child. I also had nothing in comon with the other girls.

[accer]

Reviewer,
It really depends on the particular group. Mostly it involves chartiable work. What got me were the meetings where you had to wear a dress and the installations where you had to wear a long formal gown. It seemed like it was more a fashion show than anything really meaningful. Of course this was in the mid 1980's and I was in the mid of 80's teenage angst.

I had much more fun in the Girl Scouts!

I have heard however that other groups were much more fun than the one I was in, so who knows.

[Jccze]

i would have to agree with you on that ..I think the parents should do some investigating into what a particular group does... the rainbow girls that i was apart off didn't really do anything ....well not what i expected ...and when it came to the formal gowns it was more like a popularity contest... who had the better dress .

[accer]

Jccze,
Exactly! It was that way for every meeting...who had the best dresses....who never missed church. It was more important to GO than to get anything out of it. And you had to go to the "right" church. It was so stupid. The rituals were stupid because they were done for their own sake as opposed to having any real meeting. If anything, the group I belonged to was a danger to my faith instead of enhancing it.

And don't even get me started on the antics that went on at the Grand Assembly....

[LindenSwanson]

I see this is an old post. However, I can offer a differant point of view to Rainbow.

The assembly I'm involved with is very active. They do things like put together mayday baskets and then have a sleepover. Their event a couple of weeks ago was a bowling marathon for Womencare. They had so much fun bowling in their formal gowns and, they raised $400. They enjoy going to Tri Youth events such as dances with Demolay. We have several girls that cry when they describe their experiences with Rainbow and how much it has meant to them.

I suspect differant areas and assemblies are differant. Rainbow can offer much, but only to those that get involved. The ritual work is very similar to OES and the girls work hard at it. We try very hard to let the girls plan and run their own assembly including events and finances. I think the girls leave Rainbow with much. I've seen skills like public speaking, the ability to plan, memorization improve tremendously in many girls. One of my favorites is to see the girls learn how to dress appropriately for differant occasions.

We have several girls that lack a positive male influence in their life. What better place to be exposed to men in a positive light than a masonic lodge?

The kids don't screw up the youth groups; the adults do! Take a look at the Rainbow Girls Supreme website and see what current and former Rainbow girls have to say.

Linden Swanson
SC Board Chairman
Master of the Grand Cross of Color

[Ashlar2006]

Thank you for the input Linden .