Hello! My name is Manuela, a member of Norfolk Assembly No. 15, of the International Order of the Rainbow for Girls in Virginia. I had the pleasure of attending the Virginia DeMolay Conclave on July 26th, 2025, at the Newport News Marriot. DeMolay is the brother organization of our masonic youth here in Virginia. An organization that is committed to helping young men in the hopes of making them prepared to become successful leaders in their careers and communities.

This year’s Conclave featured a banquet, many presentations by our Masonic adult leaders, presenting scholarships, and a few awards to the young men. Also included in the conclave, was the installation of the new, State Master Counselor (SMC), and the Deputy State Master Counselor (DSMC) who serve as the leaders of their jurisdiction. Afterwards to celebrate the installation, there was a dance! Our Rainbow sisters came out to support their DeMolay brothers including members from, Ashburn Assembly, Hampton Assembly, Manassas Assembly, and Norfolk Assembly. As well as some girls from our other sister organization, Job’s Daughters International. In the end, we all had a great time together and look forward to seeing our partnerships in the future! by Manuela H.

On July 20th, I had the honor of attending Greensboro, North Carolina for Greensboro Assembly’s Installation of Officers. Marisa T’s “Meet Me at Midnight” installation was a fun combination of Cinderella and Taylor Swift. For the upcoming term, Marisa has picked “Caring for NC’s Kids,” a statewide diaper drive for North Carolina’s partnerships for children. Her service project ties into their Grand service project, which was selected by Grand Miss Service, Shayna T.. A few girls from Virginia came to support, which means we brought our countdown tradition for the mascot presentation. Of course, many were confused by our sudden bursts of counting, but Marisa was excited to hear the countdown begin as her Cinderella mouse was presented to her. In connection with Virginia Rainbow visiting, Marisa dedicated her term to Alyssa K., one of our amazing PGWAs, who was quick to offer Marisa a warm welcome back when she was appointed Grand Representative to Virginia. The installation was beautiful, and I am so excited to watch their assembly grow and flourish throughout this term.

On July 12th, I had the pleasure of attending Manassas Assembly’s Installation of Officers. Darcy, the newly installed Worthy Advisor chose to support and raise money for the Shriners Children’s Hospital in Mexico during her term, a nonprofit organization that focuses on helping children who are sick, regardless of their ability to pay. Her theme is inspired by “The Book of Life,” and she uses the themes and messages from the movie to tie into her term, as well as embrace her heritage. The installation was brought to life with the beautiful décor and music, connecting to her theme. Darcy, as well as the other newly installed officers, did an amazing job. I look forward to watching each girl flourish in their new offices, as well as the success of the new term.

On July 21st, Yorktown Lodge No. 205 held a mock lodge for the youth groups. This meant that they let the three youth groups: Demolay, Job’s Daughters, Rainbow act out what they think happens during the Masons’ meetings. We even got to dress up and look like the Masons. Overall, it was a super fun night, and the Masons enjoyed hosting the youth groups. I hope that in the future, more lodges will give us the opportunity to do an event like this.