Sep 23, 2016 1 min read

Franklin Winters, a member of Washington Lodge 22, Loyal Order of Moose, recently received the Pilgrim Degree of Merit, the highest honor that can be bestowed upon a member of the Loyal Order of Moose. The conferral was held in the House of God in Moose-heart, Ill.

The degree, held by less than one-half of 1 percent of the members of the fraternity throughout the United States, Canada, Great Britain and Bermuda, is the order’s ultimate reward for exceptional devotion to the principles and ideals of caring for children and senior members, and is earned only by members who have given years of “above-the-call-of-duty” service to the Loyal Order of Moose and its principle philanthropic endeavors of Mooseheart, a city for children in need, and Moosehaven, a retirement community for senior members in Orange Park, Fla.

Winters is entitled to wear a gold blazer, which will be presented during a special ceremony at 3 p.m. Nov. 12 at Washington Moose Lodge.