September 5-7, 2025 was only my second time visiting Yreka for the cave degrees. It was interesting being there when some wildfire smoke was afoot, and as COVID rates were continuing to rise. I arrived halfway through the Odd Ball, changed into my dress, and from there the camaraderie and ritual fun continued. Thanks to Degree Master Mason Wolf’s advance warning, a HEPA filter in my hotel room brought from home ensured less inhaled smoke.
Over the weekend I helped out wherever it was needed. Initiatory degree needed spare hands to move the Important Fixture that initiates contemplated when they Remember Their End. First degree needed another guard. Second degree occurred in the cave, and was, as always, a delight to watch. There were so many initiates that all the wooden benches were moved to accommodate the mass of people! Third degree, by comparison, was quiet, a peaceful conclusion to the weekend.
There was more in store, still! Some Odd Fellows received the Rebekah degree Sunday morning. On Sunday afternoon I joined a handful of initiates to receive the Encampment degree. We trekked back out to the caves for this degree, and seeing the cave and path leading to the cave in broad daylight was extra wonderful, after being there at dusk and night Saturday evening. We had live music via Toby Hanson, and a band of troubadour shepherds singing as they passed. Being with the small contingency of people receiving the Encampment degree, I felt a sweet bond, knowing everyone at the cave had received this degree, and had been working in this segment of Odd Fellows community for one or more years. I had been advised ahead of time by a friend who had received the degree last year, that it was important to remember all my signs and passwords from the previous degrees. It turns out I shared this information with everyone except the one person who was chosen to represent the initiates. She knew her signs and passwords, thankfully.
The ritual steps and specifics are kept under wraps, but as we left the cave as new Encampment initiates, I felt a warm sense of camaraderie. There are too many rituals that are not spoken of, not discussed, no praises sung often enough. I hope the Encampment degree gets its share of attention and appreciation from our community. I felt the thread connecting us as we walked the path back to our cars, and organized our drives back to the Yreka lodge, and our trips homeward.
Only after I was initiated, at my first Encampment meeting the following week, did I fully realize that the Encampment degree is also called the Patriarchal degree. I am, unexpectedly, a Patriarch! I’ve identified as a feminist my whole life, and here I am. I understand the Patriarchal degree is a symbol of community leadership, bridging communities and lodges that might otherwise be isolated, mobilizing and uniting individuals to create a greater whole. I look forward to it, and to visiting with the other Encampment lodge in Berkeley, Golden Gate 1. The Grand Patriarch will visit the Berkeley lodge October 27, and I look forward to communing with those in the East Bay. (I also look forward to a sweet perk of the Encampment degree: a fabulous purple fez. Huzzah for fun Oddfellows bling!)
— By Rebecca “Bex” Clark, TF52