Dec 29, 2020 Newsletter #8

Hi Member, It's the holiday season, and a short newsletter today. A Message from the Supreme Orator Scholarship application deadline is here! Roy's Corner: Our Zoom gathering Have a safe, blessed, and healthy New Year!    A Message From The Supreme Orator Nicole Covelli Happy Holidays to my Royal Arcanum Family, For those of you who do not know me, I would like to introduce myself.  My name is Nicole Covelli and I am your Supreme Orator.  I have been in the Royal Arcanum since birth, which I will only tell you is a very long time! ☺ My grandparents, Ann and Samuel Leto, were very active in the society, as well as my mother and father. They are the reason I became involved in the Royal Arcanum.  I have met so many wonderful people in the society.  Everyone has been so helpful to me during my early years on the Executive Committee.  I have learned so much from all of you and I am truly grateful for what the Royal Arcanum has become to me.  As I look back upon this tumultuous year we have all endured, I really have come to put many things into perspective. First, I have counted the many blessings in my life starting with my wonderful family, including of course, my Royal Arcanum family. There were a couple of times this past year where I had thought about throwing in the towel, but then I thought about all the people that are struggling much worse than I was.  I have been so fortunate to work in such a wonderful organization where we are constantly helping people who are going through such rough times especially during the COVID-19 crisis.  As we approach the new year, I want everyone to remember all the blessings in their lives and how we as a fraternal organization can continue to help those in need.  We are all so lucky for the family we have made through the Royal Arcanum, and as we work through this current crisis, please see what you can do to make someone's day brighter.  I know I am trying to do that each and every day, and because we all have so many talents to share with the world, I know we can make it such a wonderful place to live. Wishing you all a wonderful New Year.  May you and your families all thrive in the upcoming year.  I can't wait to see all of you in the very near future. Warmest Regards, Nicole Covelli Supreme Orator    The Scholarship Application Deadline is here! The deadline for accepting scholarship applications is December 31! If you know of any members that intend to apply but haven't, it's not yet too late. Call us today at 1-888-ARCANUM or visit our web site's Forms area to find the application forms. But be sure to do this before the new year! Applications are due by December 31, 2020. Please include a photograph of yourself in your application that we can use for advertising winners. All components of the application must be submitted and completed by March 31, 2021.    Roy's Corner The  Zoom gathering on December 18 was very lightly attended, but was wonderfully fun! Errica & Joe Conforto, Joann & David Covelli, and Carl and Chris Krzystofczyk caught up and saw each other for about an hour. They shared stories, laughs, and Errica's Italian Pignoli cookie recipe! We thought we'd do this again because it was so much fun. Interested? Let us know if there's a better date and time than a Friday evening and we can plan another get-together in the new year.

 

Dec 15, 2020 Newsletter #7

Hi Member, We hope you are enjoying this season! Soon the winter solstice will be behind us and the longer days with more sunlight will be here. In the mean time, we hope this newsletter will add a bit of sunshine to your day. A Message From our Sitting Past Supreme Regent Thank you for the letters Join us this Friday for a Zoom gathering The Scholarship Deadline is approaching Roy's Corner and his recent adventures    A Message From Sitting Past Supreme Regent Errica Conforto As we head into the Holiday season, I can’t help but reflect on the past year, the unexpected challenges that we have faced, and the way we connected with each other during these unprecedented times. Holidays are all about tradition, family, community, and being together. I don’t know what this year's festivities will look like with Covid-19 concerns for all of us, with the effort to reduce the spread by staying at home and social distancing, but I’m sure it will be a memorable year. For us, one thing is for sure - celebrating at home with only immediate family members has more meaning than usual this year. Even if we can’t greet everyone in person, let’s aim our energies toward showing the rest of our families and friends how much we love, miss, and value them even if we can’t be at the same table and give each other hugs this year. Let’s try to focus on things that we are able to control. Normalcy will return soon and we will celebrate in person once again. Looking forward to getting together with all our Royal Arcanum families after all this is over. Wishing you and your families a health and happy holiday season, and a prosperous New Year.   Best Regards, Errica Conforto    Thank you for the Letters I wanted to express my sincere thanks to everyone who submitted a signed letter of support on behalf of our Fraternal Investment Bill currently in the Massachusetts Legislation.  These letters of support make a difference with Legislators  and shows the type of members we have within Royal Arcanum. The letters have already been sent to Speaker DeLeo and Minority Leader Jones as I anticipate having a hearing schedule in which I will testify on the bills behalf.  These letters of support will be used to demonstrate the importance of this bill for fraternals domiciled within the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.     Thank you again,   Nick Benoit      Join us and Say "Hi" Won't you join us on Friday, December 18 at 8:00 pm Eastern / 7:00 pm Central / 5:00 pm Pacific for a Zoom gathering to say hello to your Royal Arcanum friends? It's been over 2 years since we've been able to gather across all our jurisdictions, To join, just click on the link for the Royal Arcanum Holiday Get-together and say hello to friends that are missing you. Using Zoom is easy: just click the link on the phone, tablet, or computer that you plan to use for the gathering. If you don't have Zoom, it will guide you to download and install it, a process that takes about 5 minutes. For best results, use a device that has both video and audio (a smart phone works well, but so do most tablets and many computers). We're looking forward to seeing you on Friday!    Don't miss the Scholarship Deadline December 31 is the deadline for applications for the Royal Arcanum scholarships! Don't miss the chance to get in on this benefit of membership! To apply, call us at 1-888-ARCANUM or get the application from our web site.    Roy's Corner Roy has been staying safe while getting out of the house lately. Here are some of his adventures in the Rhode Island area. Thank you to Jackie Wudkiewicz for providing updates of Roy's latest escapades. Has he been busy anywhere else? If so, send us some pictures!

 

Dec 01, 2020 Newsletter #6

Hi Member, Highlights of this newsletter A Message From the Executive Committee Scholarship deadline approaching Urgent call for letters Year-End Reminders Roy's Holiday Zoom Get-together    A Message From Executive Committee Member Janice Brazas With the Christmas Season fast approaching and even though we will be celebrating different than last year due to COVID-19, we cannot give up on faith and hope.  We have our family and we might not be able to visit face to face, however, we have so many other ways to keep in contact with them.  We have the hope of a vaccine that will be available soon, which we will help us be able to go back to some sense of normal.  Just think what things would be like if we did not have the technology we have today.  Back a hundred years ago when the Spanish flu hit, those folks were really isolated.  Today, we can face time or zoom call family & friends, order dinner and do shopping online.  What would this pandemic be like if we did not have this technology?  As you prepare for Christmas, let’s remain hopeful and find strength within your faith that 2021 will be a better year! Merry Christmas & Happy 2021! Jan Brazas Elected Member of the Executive Committee      Scholarship Deadline Approaching! The deadline for accepting scholarship applications is fast approaching! Get the word out and have your members apply before this month is over. To apply, call us today at 1-888-ARCANUM or visit our web site's Forms area to find the application forms. Applications are due by December 31, 2020. Please include a photograph of yourself in your application that we can use for advertising winners. All components of the application must be submitted and completed by March 31, 2021.    Urgent call for letter writing The Massachusetts legislature is nearing a vote for our push to have the investment rules adjusted so that fraternals such as the Royal Arcanum can make investments to take better advantage of today's market. If you haven't yet responded to our urgent call for letters, please take the time today and send your letters to the Home Office. We will ensure the letters get to the legislature. If you need to email them, please do so. Thank you for your help!    Some Year-End Reminders It's a good idea once a year to check on things to make sure your policies are in order. Take the time to check your policies and see if things are up to date: Beneficiaries: Check to ensure your beneficiaries are up to date. The law requires we pay beneficiaries as listed, or to the estate of predeceased beneficiaries, and changes cannot be made after death. Please be sure your beneficiaries are correct. Contact information: Do we have your most up to date address, phone number, and email address? If not, update the information with us now. Are your policies using CHECK-O-MATIC? If you have or are planning to change your bank account, be sure to update your auto-payment information    Roy's Corner Roy has been getting lonely and wants to see his Royal Arcanum friends. Would like to join a Zoom meeting with him to say hi? Just click on the link for a Royal Arcanum Holiday Get-together on Friday, December 18 at 8:00 pm Eastern / 7:00 pm Central / 5:00 pm Pacific. If you're new to Zoom, all you need to do is click the link on your smart phone or computer to use the phone/computer audio and video. If you don't have the app, it will prompt you to download and install it (installation usually takes about 5 minutes). There's no special agenda, just a chance to see each other and say hello. Put it on your calendar!