The NFCA State Fraternal Congress (SFC) “Go for the Gold” Achievement Awards Program annually honors state fraternal congresses for programs and activities that promote fraternalism; educate member representatives on products, leadership and sales ethics; and involve members in volunteerism.

As part of the award guidelines, state fraternal congresses received points for activities, including volunteer projects, a fundraiser or donation to a charitable organization, the planning and execution of an annual meeting of the state fraternal congress, the production of a newsletter, or a social or networking outing for member-representatives. Additional bonus points were awarded for having an elected public official present at a state fraternal congress event or participating in a JOIN HANDS DAY activity on May 6, 2006.

State fraternal congresses were asked to prepare and submit an entry form for activities held August 1, 2005, through July 31, 2006.  State congresses received awards using the following levels:

• 105 or more points receives the Gold Award
• 55 to 100 points receives the Silver Award
• 15 to 50 points receives the Bronze Award

The following 16 state fraternal congresses earned the Gold Award:

• California Fraternal Congress,
• Chesapeake Fraternal Congress,
• Florida Fraternal Congress,
• Illinois Fraternal Congress,
• Iowa Fraternal Congress,
• Louisiana Fraternal Congress,
• Michigan Fraternal Congress,
• Missouri Fraternal Congress,
• Nebraska Fraternal Congress,
• New England Fraternal Congress,
• New Jersey Fraternal Congress,
• Ohio Fraternal Congress,
• Oregon Fraternal Congress,
• Pennsylvania Fraternal Congress,
• Texas Fraternal Congress, and
• Wisconsin Fraternal Congress.

The following three state fraternal congresses earned the Silver Award:

• Indiana Fraternal Congress,
• Minnesota Fraternal Congress, and
• South Dakota Fraternal Congress.
  

The following two state fraternal congresses earned the Bronze Award:

• Arizona Fraternal Congress, and
• Virginia Fraternal Congress.

“Congratulations to all of these state fraternal congresses for their efforts over the past year. These awards represent countless volunteer hours, social and community events and contributions to the cause of fraternalism,” said NFCA State Fraternal Congresses Section President Lee Berg, Catholic Knights, who presented the awards.  “Thank you, all, for the commitments each of your state fraternal congresses made and for the societies that support them.”

Material on the 2007 NFCA State Fraternal Congress “Go for the Gold” Achievement Awards will be sent to all state fraternal congresses before the end of 2006.

About the NFCA
The 120-year-old NFCA unites 75 not-for-profit fraternal benefit societies operating in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Canada. The association represents 10 million people in 36,000 local chapters, making it one of America’s largest member networks. Fraternal benefit societies provide their members with leadership, social, educational, spiritual, patriotic, scholarship, financial and volunteer-service opportunities.  Combined, the NFCA’s member-societies maintain more than $324 billion of life insurance-in-force and, in 2005 alone, contributed almost $400 million to charitable and fraternal programs.  In addition, fraternalists volunteered 93 million hours toward community-service projects during that same period.