In 1917 at the dedication of the Memorial Tablet at Iowa Wesleyan College in honor of the seven Founders, Alice Bird Babb said: “Forty-eight years have passed since, in this old music room, Ella Stewart read to me the oath of P.E.O., and I in turn to the other six. There was no reason why I should take the oath first, except the fact that I had written our primitive constitution, including the oath…The foundation stone of P.E.O. was placed in an ordinary way, but I have felt, as the years pass, that there must have been granite in that foundation.” For P.E.O. today the “granite” in that foundation is the Objects and Aims.

Alice Bird’s constitution contained the “object and principal objects of this society.” The words of the first constitution and the 1881 revision pattern the Objects and Aims recited today. In the beginning the words were not recited at each meeting, however, the constitution was read to each initiate. Therefore, “the objects” were early engraved in every P.E.O. heart.

In the 1903 and 1919 revisions of the constitution the “objects” were known as “Objects and Aims” and the “principal object” as “Chief Duties of P.E.O.”  Many early conventions recited both “objects” from the constitution. In 1922, in an address to the California convention, past state president Stella Carver described our Objects and Aims as “…words every P.E.O. should be required to know and know thoroughly, that they may be embodied in the daily thought and habit.”  She continued, “I wish they might become a part of the regular opening exercises.”  By the mid 1920s the Objects and Aims did become a part of the opening exercises of local chapter meetings. At the 1927 Convention of Supreme Chapter, President Alice H. Scott printed the “Objects and Aims of P.E.O.” on cards and inserted them in every program. The last paragraph, “The Chief Duties of P.E.O.” was not printed but memorized and recited as a part of the Objects and Aims. In 1975 a revised last paragraph was adopted and immediately implemented by all chapters in the Sisterhood but not printed until ratified by the convention in 1977. With only a few changes in wording and rephrasing, the “objects” are those penned by Alice Bird in 1869.

Not only did Alice Bird set in “granite” the “objects” but she also reinforced the same foundation with the oath used in the first initiation ceremony. The oath Ella read to Alice, who then read to the other six, consisted of 35 words and was a simple pledge of secrecy. It was used for initiation until 1877 when a sentence was added concerning pins of expelled members. Nellie Ambler Campbell of Chapter A was largely responsible for the “regular ceremony” written in 1882. Before Chapter A adopted the regular ceremony the words “Hope” and “Fidelity” were changed to “Justice” and “Truth.” This version included the original oath.

Effie Hoffman Rogers, an influential, forceful member in the Sisterhood since her initiation, attended the convention in 1886 as a delegate of Chapter D. Although not a member of the previously appointed revision committee, she brought an enlarged revised version of the initiation ceremony; this expanded revised version was adopted and she was elected president of Grand Chapter. In 1887 all old constitutions, rituals and ceremonies were ordered destroyed but Chapter A obtained permission to retain this part of history. The 1890 convention body adopted several small but significant changes in the initiation ceremony and also adopted “that a lady shall be told before joining the Society some of its objects”—a forerunner to preacceptance counseling.

At the 1897 Convention of Nebraska Grand Chapter, Ida B. Johnson of Chapter K demonstrated the star ceremony which she originated. Although short-lived, according to Nebraska history, the first initiatory emblem was a floor star. A table was placed in the middle of the star and the officers stood between each point. The table held all officers’ parts, which were read. In 1897 the floor star was changed to a “pillow,” handmade by each chapter, and memorization was required. At Supreme Grand Chapter in Chicago in 1899, a candidate was initiated using this star ceremony. It was approved and a committee was appointed to standardize its use in all chapters. By 1903 Supreme Grand Chapter was the supplier of new star emblems, but the existing chapters were allowed to continue to use their handmade “pillows.” Eventually all chapters were required to use handcrafted emblems purchased from Supreme Chapter.

The 1907 executive board, recognizing the need for minor revision of the initiation ceremony, appointed a revision committee, which included Nellie Ambler Campbell. Although it was a surprise to the convention, the revision was adopted, including the unexpected change of the password. In 1915 a recommendation was approved that Supreme Chapter include in the supplies official copies of the officer’s initiation parts and that the presidents of each chapter be held responsible for these copies.

The password change held until the revision in 1921 when the original password was restored. Virginia Corbett, from Colorado and chairman of that committee stated, “we were told that the ritual, adequate at first for a group of college girls, and the one formed later for the chapters and state organizations of a dozen years ago needed revision in order to meet the need of this new day for womanhood…any who can remember the original ceremony will recognize some of the same words used. Others will find some part from each of the ceremonies we have used, and the same general plan which has helped to develop the type of women we all know as P.E.O.s has been followed, enlarged and, we hope, improved to meet the needs and responsibilities of the women of this new day.”  

Throughout the revisions from 1869 to 1921, the content in thought and original oath remained consistent. Grammatical corrections were permitted in 1939 and amendments have been adopted since that time to change wording and phrasing. In 1975 an amendment to the P.E.O. procedure for chapter meetings made possible the appointment of one or more substitutes, including the president. The 2009 Convention of International Chapter adopted amendments to allow, at the discretion of the chapter, the ceremony of initiation to be read from an official booklet and the ceremony to be conferred upon up to three candidates at one time.

In 1907 Franc Roads Elliott spoke these words: “And will you allow me to say a word about precedents, about what has been. Do not try to preserve them because of sentiment, for new times demand new needs. Evolution and growth mean life to organizations, as well as individuals…true loyalty to those gone before you in P.E.O., to the Founders if you will, lies in improving the unfinished structure they bequeathed to you, for P.E.O. is only yet in its beginning.”   

Three of our Founders celebrated 50 years of the P.E.O. Sisterhood. Mary Allen Stafford, Alice Bird Babb and Franc Roads Elliott experienced these changes in the Objects and Aims and the Ceremony of Initiation. The “granite” in the foundation of P.E.O. was firmly set, but the structure ever expanded and grew to meet the needs of the Sisterhood and the women of today and tomorrow.

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“Improving the Unfinished Structure”

If the Objects and Aims were written today they would surely be titled “The Mission Statement”: a statement of purpose and goals to attain.  Every endeavor that is worthy of attention has an object, an aim, a goal toward which to strive.  Since the first P.E.O. Record articles continue to be written which describe the Objects and Aims as the “instructions”, “qualifications”, “attributes” and “the psychological effects of the oft-repeated words”. These words are engraved on the heart in order to fulfill our purpose and expand our horizons through the years.

While changes have been made in procedures and ceremonies, very few have been made in the Objects and Aims.  The “purpose” our Founders gave the Sisterhood has never failed to meet the needs of women through the ages: Improvement of self;  Growth in character;  Comprehension of our obligations; Adherence to cardinal virtues;  Self-control and patience;  Serving not only the Sisterhood but also the women of the world and Consideration of others.  Franc Roads Elliott said, “The older I grow the more firmly I believe that the social and economic problems of the day will be solved by organized womanhood.”  The Objects and Aims have given the Sisterhood the foundation to carry on Franc’s words.

In addition to our Founders, Effie Hoffman Rogers stands as one of the great pioneers of P.E.O.   At age 17 Effie went from Oskaloosa to Mount Pleasant, Iowa, to attend Mount Pleasant Female Seminary.  It was there she was greeted by her dear friend Ella Stewart.  In the article Effie’s Record, from the January 1963 Record, Eleanor Hoffman Smith stated, “to celebrate the reunion Ella promptly initiated her into Chapter A.”  After graduation Effie went back to Oskaloosa to teach.   During this time she organized Chapter D.  Early day chapters could be formed “as soon as one could find the right girls for members.” Effie did write Alice Babb and Ella Stewart mentioning the new chapter.  At the “old maid” age of 27, Effie surprised Oskaloosa by marrying John Rogers. The couple made their home in Kansas.   After several years and two children, tragedy struck the family with the death of her husband and infant son.  She and three-year old daughter, Emily, moved back to Oskaloosa to live with her parents.  Smith stated, “The future possibility of her Sisterhood and all that P.E.O. stood for were often on her mind during the dreary months when she nursed a dying husband and infant son.”   The return to Oskaloosa accelerated her lifelong work for the P.E.O. Sisterhood.  She began by publishing the P.E.O. Catalogue which listed all members of each of the eighteen existing chapters.  She worked on revision of the Constitution and wrote a revision of the Ceremony of Initiation.   With Effie’s assistance, Chapter D performed many trial runs before she presented the revision at Convention of Grand Chapter.    According to Clapp’sOut of the Heart page 126-127, Effie Hoffman Rogers proved to be an amazing part of the 1886 Convention of Grand Chapter, her first convention.  Even though she had not attended the first three conventions she had been a vital force in the growth of P.E.O.   At the 1886 convention Effie read scriptures, served on committees and talked from the floor in addition to presenting the revision of the Ceremony of Initiation.  Recognized as a very capable leader, the Convention of Grand Chapter elected her president, an office she held for three very “action packed” years.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

“The Unfinished Structure”

(Books)

1.        History of the P.E.O. Sisterhood.  (The White History—out of print),           
           Egberts, Fidler and Chambers, Davenport, Iowa, 1903

2.       The Story of P.E.O.,  Reeves, Winona Evans

a.       Volume I, Second Edition, 1869-1923

b.      Volume II, 1924-1936

3.        Out of The Heart, A Century of P.E.O. 1869-1969, Clapp, Stella,  Lincoln,
           Nebraska: The P.E.O. Sisterhood, 1968

(Periodicals)

4.       Issues of The P.E.O. Record, 1889-1998

(History and Proceedings)

5.       History Collection of Original Chapter A, Mt. Pleasant, IA — constitution/ceremonies

6.       A Star in the Window,  Nebraska State Chapter History

7.       Proceedings of

a.       Supreme Chapter

b.      International Chapter