On July 19, 2026, Virginia DeMolay had their annual Honors Investiture ceremony. This event was held at the George Washington Masonic National Memorial in Alexandria. There were 3 ceremonies performed by active DeMolay and past DeMolay members. These ceremonies include the Legion of Honor, Chevalier, and the Cross of Honor. This year is the first time in Virginia history where a non Masonic member was able to get the Legion of Honor. Our very own Mom Cristina and Mom Jenkins were awarded this honor. 

I’m so happy I was able to attend this event again. I really wanted to go because some of the people who got awards mean so much to me. I’m so proud of all of the recipients. Every time I tell someone congratulations, they always say,”I don’t deserve this”, which shows that they care more about their dedication to the order. To me, each person was deserving of the awards that were handed out. Thank you to all the recipients who went above and beyond for the Order of DeMolay!

Macie R. Norfolk Assembly #15

On July 18, 2026, at Ashburn Masonic Lodge, Ashburn Assembly had their Installation of Officers. Gioja May went in as Worthy Advisor. The decorations were based on the Queen of Hearts. Her theme for the term is “Imagination is Key”. Her motto is “A dream is not reality, but who’s to say which is which.” The mascot of the term is a white rabbit. Her honor stations are Hope and Nature. The Charity is “Unite for Her” which focuses on helping people with breast cancer get the support they need. 

This was a really fun Installation! Although I was a little late because of traffic, I got there just in time to watch the crowning of the Worthy Advisor. I’m so happy that I have gotten to see Gioja May grow up and become the leader she is today. I’m so glad I was able to attend this event and see all that Gioja May will do for her Assembly!

Macie R. Norfolk Assembly #15

On July 8-12, 2026, Pennsylvania Rainbow girls hosted their annual Grand Assembly at the Jaffa Shrine Center in Altoona, PA. Their theme for this year was “Friendship Takes Flight with Pennsylvania Rainbow.” For their Grand Worthy Advisor Sarah’s term, her mascot was Dumbo the elephant. Dumbo went with her throughout the year, going to state wide events and bringing joy everywhere he went. Her symbols were Magic Feathers, Bubbles, and Hot Air Balloons. The flower of the term was a yellow sunflower, which was all over the Grand East. Her colors were Baby Elephant Blue and Roundtop Red. These colors were worn by the Grand Representatives on the grand floor all week long. Her service project was the Children’s Miracle Network. The state’s Charity for the year was “My Stuff Bags”, which PA raised over 16 thousand dollars for!

Day 1, on July 8th, the Grand Officers and Representatives had practiced all day to prepare for the informal opening later that night. My mom and I got on the road around 10 am. Although the car ride was 6 hours long, we made it fun. We told stores, listened to music, and looked at the mountains. When we got there, my counterpart Katelyn welcomed my mom and I with open arms. She introduced me to all of her Assembly and other girls. After dinner, we went to Jaffa Shrine Center for the informal opening at 7 pm. The Grand Representatives and Officers had their own walk-in, like a little cavalcade. Then, the Reps and Officers walked in together and sat in their positions. One thing I noticed is that the Reps have their own dresses and get to sit on the Grand Floor. After the meeting, we went downstairs to have dinner and a dance!

Day 2, on July 9th, we had a formal opening in the morning. During this meeting, all other out of state guests did their speeches. Their formal opening is very similar to what we do at VA Grand Assembly. There is a difference, however, where the Grand Officers ballot on new initiates before the Initiation Ceremony. After the meeting, my counterpart and I had lunch together at Olive Garden with our families. Then we headed to DelGrosso’s Amusement Park, which is like a way smaller version of Kings Dominion. Katelyn and I hung out in the lazy river with other Rainbow girls for a while. When we were done with that, we got some lunch and headed over to the dry part of the park. We went on a couple of rides like the Mouse Trap, Swings, and the Ship ride. Once we were done with the rides, both of our families went and played some carnival games. Later that night, Reading Assembly #33, which is Katelyn’s Assembly, invited me to have ice cream with them at The Meadows.

Day 3, on July 10th, we had initiation. They initiated 9 girls into IORG! It was really cool seeing how they do floor work with more than 7 girls, since there are only 7 color stations. What happened was that the active candidate went to Love and Service, while 5 other girls did the other bow stations. Instead of the active candidate going to Hope and WAA, a girl who did not do the bow lectures, went to those stations instead. All the girls went to Charity, like normal. The initiation felt very short compared to Virginia’s. After that, we had the Cross of Honor lunch that everyone could attend. But then everyone who wasn’t allowed to see the Cross of Honor ceremony either went back to the hotel or played games in the basement area. My mom and I decided to go back to the hotel. My mom went to the pool and the outside area to relax and read. I wanted to stay in the hotel room in bed, so that’s what I did. After a couple of hours, Reading Assembly had dinner at a steakhouse and invited us to come. The food was delicious!. Plus, they had a claw machine with rubber ducks in it! The thing is, you win no matter what, so, I got 2 ducks, and my mom got 1. After dinner, the girls climbed up a rock hill to get to the Masonic Lodge, where they had the Charity carnival games. They had a little dunk tank, ring toss, shoot the duck, and snacks inside. Then we went back to the hotel and went to bed. What a great day of fun activities!

Day 4, on July 11th, we had a bowling competition in the morning. Luckily, I was able to join Katelyn’s team, and I had so much fun bowling with them! We didn’t win, but that did not stop our fun, where we got a couple of strikes and spares. After we were done, we had to get ready for Majority Service and Installation. For the Majority Service, they take the girls behind the bow, and then their parents come down to walk with them. Once the parents are with them, they walk to the East and say goodbye to their parents. Then the girls make a circle around the Altar, while all the Majority Members make a big circle around the room. It is a very short ceremony, but it’s a cool one. For their Installation, they do the same thing we do, but after everyone is in their new positions they start calling the past GWA’s and their officers to stand behind the bow and introduce themselves. They went back 50 years of GWAs! The GWA from 50 years ago had her Mother Advisor with her, too. It’s a very long ceremony but very cool. After all the ceremonies, we go down to the basement to have dinner. Then we headed back upstairs for coronation. Coronation is where the past GWA gives the new GWA the crown. They don’t use the regular rainbow crown, instead, they use a huge sparkly crown. They also had banners, boards, and art contests. After all of that, we all went to the hotel to go to bed.

Day 5, on July 12th, they had a little church service. Unfortunately, I didn’t go since I had to leave really early in the morning to be back for my Assembly’s initiation! We initiated 2 new girls into Norfolk Assembly. I was so happy, but also very tired and ready to go home from my long car ride!

Overall, I had such a great time! I met so many people and can’t wait to continue connecting with my Rainbow sisters in Pennsylvania! 

Macie R. Norfolk Assembly #15 

On July 4th, 2026, I spent my 4th of July by going back to the Langley Speedway and seeing the racing cars. At this past Grand Assembly, the Grand Master invited all of Freemasonry to the upcoming race. He stated that there were 1,000 tickets available for anyone who wanted to go to the race, so of course, I wanted to go! I had so much fun last year during Emily’s term, that I just had to go again! I was sitting with some of our DeMolay brothers from Kempsville Chapter. After every race, the Grand Master would give the trophy to the winner on the track, which was very cool! 

I had so much fun at this event! Even though it was a little hot, we had a nice breeze to cool us down! The races were so much fun to watch. There were about 7 races with different events involving mini cars, cars with wings, and pick-up trucks. A big thank you to the Grand Master for helping us go for free!

Macie R. Norfolk Assembly #15