Grand Lodge officers: These are the Grand Lodge officers of the new Odd Fellows Lodge 2009 who installed the officers of the newly formed Odd Fellows Lodge in Lehigh. They are from left to right, back row, John Zelany, grand marshal; Jose Garora, past grand master; Ernst Blatter, past grand master, John DeVore, grand chaplain. Front, Hestor Obregon, grand warden; Ed Potter, grand master, installing officer; Horace Le Prell, deputy grand master; Aldo Farradaz, grand secretary; and Ed Morrow, grand treasurer. Photo provided

Lehigh Acres Odd Fellows Lodge No. 2009 of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, under the jurisdiction of the Florida Grand Lodge was recently instituted in Lehigh by the Florida Grand Lodge officers.

Meetings will be held on t he third Tuesday of the month at 3 p.m. at the Masonic Temple on Ashlar Ave. Anyone wishing to become a member can stop at the hall and pick up an application form or contact a member.

This is the first Odd Fellows lodge in Lehigh, according to spokeswoman Ada M. Thompson . There has been a Rebekah Lodge here since February of 1975, she said. The nearest Odd Fellows Lodge is in Punta Gorda.

The Odd Fellows is a fraternal order, originating in England as a universal brotherhood established to protect the widow and the orphans; to bury the dead, to help each other in want, to improve and elevate the character of man and woman. Thompson said the IOOF is identified with thee links of “friendship, love and truth.”

Fifteen people received the four degrees of Odd Fellowship in a one-day session, through the technology of a modern DVD issued by the Sovereign Grand Lodge.

The unwritten work was exemplified by Bill Martin of Lehigh, a past grand master.

Grand Lodge officers installed the following people of the local lodge:

Noble Grand, Bill Martin; Vice Grand, Michael Crouchelli; Secretary, Gerald Pokoray; treasurer, Janice Martin.

Right Supporter, Noble Grand, Ernst Blatter; Left Supporter, Noble Grand, Rebecca Darcy; Right Supporter, Vice Grand, Ed Potter; Left Supporter, Vice Grand, Helena Drazez; Warden, Geneva Griffis; Conductor, Ada M. Thompson; Chaplain, May Thurston; Inside Guardian, Arthur Pokorny; Outside Guardian Fran Lanzetti; Right Scene Supporter, Alice Ledicauskas; Left Scene Supporter, Aletha Chalker.

The installation team of Grand Lodge officers include: Grand Master, Ed Potter, Cape Coral; Deputy Grand Master Horace LePress, Jacksonville; Grand Secretary, Aldo Farradez, Hialeah; Grand Warcen, Hector Obregan, Miami; Grand Chaplain, John DeVore, Tarpon Springs; Grand Treasurer, Ed Morrow, Tallahassee; Grand Parliamentarian, Pepe Garcia, Miami; Assistant Grand Guardian, Charles Adams, Winter Haven; Grand Marshal John Zeleny, Miami; and Grand Herald Ernest Blatter, Punta Gorda.