By: Judi Hopper
Golden Realm was a brand new assembly in 1963 and we were so excited to be on our way to Grand Assembly. But that was then and this is now… Then – because of the number of members in California, every assembly was only allowed to send eleven girls to Grand Assembly. Now – we can bring our whole assembly to enjoy the week. Then – most assemblies joined with other assemblies in their District and came to Grand Assembly by bus. Each assembly had an assembly song that they sang all the way there and drove their chaperones wild. Now – assemblies come by car, van, bus and plane and still love to see the chaperones beg for mercy. Then – Grand Assembly always started with a Devotional service and every girl wore a suit, hat and gloves. Now – we start with an amazing Informal Opening planned by the Grand Drill Leaders. Then – we did not have an Informal Opening, but on Tuesday afternoon the Grandies were allowed to have a Theme March. Our Grand Worthy Advisor, Vickie Dennis, chose a bedtime theme and we all wore our hair curlers onto the Grand Assembly floor. Now – I don’t think that would go over very well! Then – the Grand Choir was made up of girls from the assemblies that were not yet fully constituted and were meeting under Letters Temporary. Now – each assembly has the opportunity to send one or two lucky girls to Grand Choir. Then – Revelations was one of the most exciting events at Grand Assembly. Now – “Ditto!” Then – a newly appointed Grandie got her mascot naked and dressed it herself. Now – the Grand Officers work for weeks planning a great outfit for a mascot they haven’t even met yet. Then – each new Grand Officer was whisked away on the night of Revelations to a party with just the new and ‘old’ Grandies. Now – everyone is invited to the Revelation Party. (Have you seen Mr. Hopper cookie scouting?) Then – the 1964 “Pink Ladies” were excited to be the first to wear traveling shifts. They were pink and white striped and were so short they would not meet today’s Dress Code. Now – one of the new Grand Worthy Advisor’s first decisions is to select the new travel outfit on Monday afternoon of Grand Assembly. Then – we voted on our Grand Service Project and were dedicated to our task of building up the Rainbow Scholarship fund. Now – it is a thrill every year to hear how many girls receive Rainbow scholarships and think we had a small part in that. Then – our Grand Officer dresses were mailed to us weeks before Grand Assembly and we were in charge of keeping it a secret and getting them altered if needed. Ours were a gorgeous bright pink with a pale pink overlay of embroidered eyelet. Now –the dresses are a secret to the Grand Officers until the weekend of the Grand Worthy Advisor’s reception. Then – Rainbow was a happy place in our lives where we worked together with dedicated adults, learned important lessons, had great fun and made life-long friends. Now, over fifty years later –well, some things never change!
