General Information

Rainbow is a non-profit, service-oriented organization that teaches girls three basic virtues: Faith in a Supreme Being and other people, having Hope in all that they do, and Charity toward others.The seven colors of the Rainbow represent seven teaching that each member receives on her journey toward the pot of gold.

Red: Love - In all its forms.
Orange: Religion - Though Rainbow is not a religious organization.
Yellow: Nature - Its importance in daily life.
Green: Immortality - An understanding of death as part of life.
Blue: Fidelity - An emphasis on being honest and reliable.
Indigo: Patriotism - Encouraging citizenship.
Violet: Service - The lesson that ties all others together.

Our Assembly

Our Assembly is located in North Charleston, SC and is sponsored by Dorchester Masonic Lodge #369. The meetings are on the first and third Monday of every month at 7:30 p.m. The first Monday is a business meeting and the third Monday is our formal meeting. At formal meetings, we wear floor-length evening gowns. We have a prayer circle after every meeting, and most of the time we have social time afterwards.

We are a close group, and would love it if you would join us! Each month we try to organize a fun activity that we can do together, and also a service project to help out our community. With service projects, it is always true that the more people you have together, the more you can accomplish for your town.

How To Join Us

Petition
To begin the process of becoming a member of Rainbow is easy!! Simply, turn in a petition for the degrees. The petition is in essence a membership application to join Rainbow.

Initiation
A booklet called The Journey of Initiation is available from Supreme Assembly. It is a great help in providing some brief explanations of the principle lessons and teachings of Rainbow. This booklet may be shared with prospective members and their parents.The Initiation Ceremony is a solemn presentation that impresses an obligation on young women to live a good life and do right. This ceremony is by far one of the most impressive presentations a girl can experience.

Eligibility

Girls between the ages of 11 and 21 are eligible to join Rainbow. Prior to age 11, some assemblies have a Pledge group that teaches similar ideals to Rainbow and prepares girls for Rainbow duties.

While the teachings and ceremonies of the International Order of Rainbow for Girls use Christian scripture, and often quote Jesus' words from the New Testament, Rainbow is open to young women of all faiths. Membership requires only the belief in a Supreme Being, and prospective members can be assured that there is no pressure to become Christian during the Initiation ceremony, or as an active member. The Christian lessons are simply used to show basic values that are integral to many religions.

History

The International Order of the Rainbow for Girls was founded in 1922, by William Mark Sexson, a Christian minister and active member of the Masonic Lodge. The Rev. Sexson had spent his life dedicated to both fraternal organizations, and his ministry, and became aware of the need for a youth organization for young women who were from a Masonic or Eastern Star home.

The teachings that he wrote in the Rainbow Ritual are based on Christian scriptures and teachings, as his experience in the ministry gave him insight into the lessons that would be most meaningful and important to youth.In the book of Genesis, after the flood, God made a covenant with people that He would never again destroy the earth, and placed a Rainbow in the heavens as a symbol of that covenant. The Rev. Sexson believed that this symbol of God's love was an appropriate symbol for the Order, so the Rainbow and its colors provided the inspirations for both The International Order of Rainbow for Girls and for the lessons that are taught in the ceremonies of the Order.

Levels of Organization In Rainbow

Local Assembly
Rainbow Assemblies are sponsored by fraternal organizations such as the Masonic Lodge, Order of the Eastern Star, Order of the Amaranth, White Shrine of Jerusalem, or Clubs comprised of members of these organizations and Majority Members of Rainbow (our Alumni).The Sponsoring Body selects those who will serve for one year on the Advisory Board. The Advisory Board is comprised of Majority Members, Master Masons, Eastern Stars, Amaranth, White Shrine of Jerusalem, and member’s Parents, Grandparents, and Legal Guardians. These adults have a deep interest in helping young people, are respected leaders, and provide the core of the directly involved adult leadership.A Mother Advisor is selected from among the members of the Advisory Board. This is a woman chosen because she can inspire the girls of her Assembly. She works hand-in-hand with the girls and allows them to preside over the affairs of the Assembly with her direction.The Assembly is comprised of 20 offices, which are occupied by the Rainbow Girls. An Installation of these offices occurs every 4 to 6 months and is open for all to attend. Therefore, girls are given the opportunity to fill many different positions in a short period of time.Within these 20 offices are 7 that are elected by the girls and 13 that are appointed by the Worthy Advisor with the assistance of the Mother Advisor. The youth leader is called the "Worthy Advisor" who presides over the meetings and workings of the Assembly. A girl may wish to advance through the elected offices and eventually become the Worthy Advisor.

Grand Assembly
Each Jurisdiction (a state or geographic region) has its own business to conduct. These affairs are under the direction of a Chief Executive Officer, the Supreme Inspector or Deputy of that Jurisdiction, who works with the Grand Executive Committee of that Jurisdiction to conduct all business including preparations for the annual Grand Assembly Sessions. Grand Assembly meetings are led by a corps of Grand Officers who are selected according to the By-Laws of each Jurisdiction.

Supreme Assembly
Internationally, Rainbow is guided by a group of ladies and gentlemen who make up the House of Gold. This prestigious group of inspirational leaders is directed by the Supreme Worthy Advisor. Every two years a Supreme Assembly is held. All Jurisdictions are encouraged to attend this international convention.The Rainbow Supreme Temple is located in McAlester, Oklahoma. This lovely building houses the offices of the Supreme Assembly, and contains Rainbow treasures from around the world. Any Assembly paraphernalia or supplies can be ordered from the Supreme Temple.

Updates from September 19th

Initiation

We welcomed Amber into our assembly. We also helped initiate Julie from Berkeley. We would like to extend the greatest appreciation to both Berkeley and Summerville Assemblies for all of their help and fellowship. Together, we put on a beautiful initiation for our newest members. After the meeting we all had an ice cream social and got to know each other better.

Business Updates

We have the cookie dough forms for each girl. Sell some cookies! You will need to collect the money with the order, and then the assembly will make one order from the company. We also have a few of the Charleston coupon books, but we expect to get more shortly. The coupon books cost $12 each.

Lauren got the softball shirts from Sports Authority for our softball game with Summerville on October 15th. We will need to personalize these shirts before the game.

Updates from the September 5 Meeting

Regular Meeting

We will meet in the Arby's parking lot at 8 am to go to the School of Instruction on September 17th. We should be back around 5 pm that afternoon.

We voted to sell the 2006 Charleston Coupon Books for $10 each and we will sell cookie dough as fund raisers. Neither of these fund raisers require a minimum number of sales or money up front, but we do hope that everyone sells as much as possible so we can raise money for our charities and our Assembly.

We balloted on the petition for Amber, who should be initiated on September 19th. Congratulations and welcome, Amber! Summerville Assembly has agreed to help us with the initiation.

We need to make sure that we call our missing members to ask them to come back to the meetings. We need to make an effort to keep the members we have, as well as spread the word of Rainbow to other girls.

Thank you, Mr. Harden and Mrs. Brady, for baking cookies for us after the meeting.

Investigation Report for Amber

Mrs. McFann, Kayla, Rayvn, Andrea, Claudia, Cathy, and Mrs. Shaeffer went to visit with Amber's parents on August 17, 2005.  Claudia brought another friend, Jessica, who intends to petition our assembly as well and wanted to learn more about what we do. 

 

Amber's dad asked lots of questions about what we do, what we stand for, our mission, etc.  He compared it a lot to the cub scouts (Amber's brother is active there), and I agreed.  He thinks it will be good for Amber to get involved in a group and it sounds like ours is good clean fun, good people, and will be really good for her.  In so many words he seemed excited, and said that he will be there on the 19th to see her initiated.  Also, her dad said that he found out that Amber's grandma used to be a Rainbow.

 

Rayvn and Andrea also brought the scrapbook.  Claudia's friend, Jessica, got excited looking at the scrapbook, and is looking forward to being initiated with Amber if possible (we'll have to get a dispensation to ballot on initiation night for that). 

September 17, 2005 - School of Instruction

We will go to Columbia for the School of Instruction on Saturday. We may have a fun activity and a slumber party on the Friday night prior. More updates to come.