At our last fraternity meeting, we had a representative of the regional organization.
She had some positive observations. She also suggested that we work at promoting the fraternity to attract more members - and to help more people discover the Secular Franciscan Order and to discern if they have a calling.
Indeed, there may be people who would be attracted, who are called, but have never even heard of the SFO.
After I left the meeting, I thought of my father.
He was a very successful insurance salesman who won awards for the number of policies he sold.
Dad was never "off." He'd chat up people and distribute his card no matter where we were. Many a waitress got a generous tip and his business card when we went out to lunch, for example. Fix his car? You got his business card. Sell him some tools or grass seed? He'd leave a card with you. He'd even mail greeting cards to customers and even prospective customers to help mark significant events - marriages, births, new homes, and so on - just to keep his name before them.
I and my fellow SFOs could learn a lot from him about reaching out to others.
The representative suggested that we leave information about the fraternity in various places. There was even joking about leaving some at dentist offices.
I've been taking her advice. I ran off some of the fraternity's trifold brochures and have been leaving them in churches I visit and the St. Padre Pio Chapel. I'll be taking some to the local Catholic bookstore, and this Saturday I'll give one to each of the persons gathered at Planned Parenthood to pray.
I'll keep on looking for places to leave them.
Pax et bonum
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