Fraternal Advantage - September/October 2008

MEMBER SOCIETY NEWS

Woodmen Executive Receives Governors Award for Excellence

Daniel W. Rice, III of Kinston, North Carolina, and a director of Woodmen of the World/Omaha Woodmen Life Insurance Society (WOW), is the recipient of the 2008 Governors Award for Excellence for his contributions in public service.

Considered the highest honor a state employee may receive, the award will be presented to Rice during a ceremony in Raleigh on Oct. 20. Rice is the Director of Specialized Services at Caswell Developmental Center and the Executive Director for Caswell Center Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization serving individuals and families with developmental disabilities in eastern North Carolina.

Daniel W. Rice, III, was elected to the Board of Directors on July 27, 2001. He had previously served on Woodmen of the World's National Judiciary Committee since 1997.

Rice has served on Woodmen of the World's National Legislative Committee and as a National Representative. He has also served as Chairman of Trustees, Vice President and President of the Jurisdiction of North Carolina. A member and treasurer of the East North Carolina Woodmen of the World Youth Camp Board of Directors, Rice is also past president of the Bright Belt District Association. He also chairs the Jurisdiction of North Carolina's fraternal project, the Children's Home Program.

A member for more than 31 years and Past President of Kinston Lodge 46, Rice graduated from East Carolina University with a Bachelor of Science degree in social work and received his master's degree in social work from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Rice is the recipient of Woodmen of the World's Youth Program Award and Fraternal Spirit Award, and was awarded the Fraternalist of the Year Award twice by the North Carolina Fraternal Congress. He has also received numerous recognitions for service to his community including the Jaycees Distinguished Service Award, the Governors Award of Excellence for Volunteer Service, and the Boy Scouts of America Silver Beaver Award.

For more information about Woodmen of the World/Omaha, visit www.woodmen.org.

PNA’s General Counsel Les Kuczynski Passes Away

Leszek (Les) S. Kuczynski, General Counsel of the Polish National Alliance of the United States of North America (PNA) died August 19, 2008, at age 61. He is survived by his wife, Alice, and his son, Andrew.

Kuczynski received his B. A. Degree in Political Science from the College of St. Thomas, St. Paul, Minnesota; his J. D. Degree from the University of Minnesota Law School, Minneapolis, and his M. B. A. Degree (January, 1982) from the Keller Graduate School of Management in Chicago. He became General Counsel of PNA in 1985. In 1991, he became the National Executive Director of the Polish American Congress and the Polish American Congress Charitable Foundation. In this position, Kuczynski organized lobbying efforts on behalf of Poland for entry into NATO, led staffers of the U. S. Senate and House on a fact-finding trip to Warsaw to research the feasibility of NATO enlargement; participated in creating a claims program in the U. S. on behalf of the Swiss Fund for the Needy Victims of the Holocaust and coordinated aid efforts to hospitals, orphanages and rehabilitation centers in Poland. He served on the National Fraternal Congress of America Law Committee since 1995.

Kuczynski appointments and elective offices included participation in the Appeals Panel of International Organization for Migration (IOM) to review claims for slave/forced labor filed under the German Forced Labor Compensation Program and Personal Injury Claims, the IOM Steering Committee of Victims Organizations in Geneva, and the National Advisory Committee of the American Red Cross Holocaust and War Victims Tracing and Information Center. In 2002, he was elected President of the Council of World Polonia, representing Polish organizations established in 38 countries. He was also appointed by the President of the Polish Senate to the Consultative Committee for Relations with Polonia. In 2004, he was a founding Board Member of the Polish American Chamber of Commerce.

Kuczynski received the Officer's Cross - Order of Merit for service to Poland; Citizen of the Year by the Am-Pol Eagle; the Civic Award by the Polish American Historical Association; Humanitarian Award presented by the Polish American Congress - Illinois Division; the Cross of Officer of the Order for Merits to Lithuania, presented by the Lithuanian President Valdas Adamkus. He also received the National Ethnic Coalition of Organizations’ Ellis Island Medal of Honor.

For more information about PNA, visit www.pna-znp.org.

Cynthia Tidwell, Royal Neighbors’ CEO, Shares Insights on Selling to Women at National Conference

Cynthia Tidwell, President/CEO of Royal Neighbors of America, recently shared her expertise at the Senior Market Advisor Expo in Orlando, FL. Women are making most of the financial decisions for families today, and as head of a company with a long history of focusing on women, Mrs. Tidwell discussed how best to sell to them.

Speaking about “Women and Their Money,” she explained the different ways women and men think about money and the differences between how they approach the purchasing process. She also provided valuable insights and training tools for successfully reaching the female market.

Royal Neighbors Chapter Donates Thousands to Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation

Royal Neighbors of America Chapter 20003, Rock Island, donated more than $3,000 to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation on Friday, October 3, at Putters Pub and Grill in Rock Island.

A member of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation accepted the donation at the event meeting. Chapter 20003 held several fund-raising events this summer to drive donations. In August, the chapter held a car wash in the Royal Neighbors parking lot and in September, the chapter hosted a trivia night to raise funds.

For more information about Royal Neighbors of America, visit www.royalneighbors.org.

Catholic Order of Foresters Elects Officers and Trustees

Catholic Order of Foresters (COF), headquartered in Naperville, Illinois, held its 48th National Convention in Green Bay, Wisconsin. During the August 17-19 quadrennial session, 246 delegates met to elect three executive officers and 12 trustees, make Constitution and Bylaws’ revisions, and set the tone for the Order’s progress for the next four years.

Re-elected to serve four-year terms were President David E. Huber, Vice President David L. Krebs (previously a trustee), Corporate Secretary-Treasurer/CFO Stuart B. Buchanan, and Trustees Delores E. Klein, Alan M. Spilar, Thomas J. Munninghoff, Thomas L. Lepinski, James M. Demulling, Peter J. Lemire, Myron N. Deslauriers, and Gary E. Snell. Newly elected Trustees Joseph P. Maidl, Rodney W. Oligmueller, Eugene G. Even, and Larry L. Galles joined the High Court/Board of Directors. Board members’ terms will run from January 1, 2009 through December 31, 2012.

Catholic Order of Foresters' Employees Participate in National Denim Day Fundraiser

Catholic Order of Foresters (COF) raised more than $810 while participating in Lee National Denim Day. This marks the twelfth year employees have supported Denim Day, which raises money for breast cancer research, education, treatment and screening.

Employees who donated not only wore jeans to work on October 3, but also placed names on a giant denim pocket in memory of families and friends who survived, are still fighting, or lost their battles with cancer.

According to COF President David Huber, “As a fraternal organization, both our members (more than 139,000 nationwide) and home office employees invest countless hours supporting community, parish, school, and humanitarian causes. Besides Denim Day, employees this year also volunteered time packaging meals at Aurora’s Feed My Starving Children’s facility.”

For more information about Catholic Order of Foresters, visit www.catholicforester.com.

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