Material Type

Artifact

Other Name

ORATOR COLLAR MEDAL

Date Range From

1960

Date Range To

1970

Materials

COTTON, POLYESTER, METAL

No. Pieces

1

Length

53.6

Width

17.7

Description

COLLAR MEDAL; RED RIBBON WITH GOLD-FINISHED MEDAL AT THE END. MEDAL IS COMPRISED ON TOP GOLD BAR WITH INDIGO BACKGROUND AND GOLD TEXT “ORATOR” AND GOLD, RED, INDIGO AND WHITE CROSS OF INDEPENDENT ORDER OF FORESTERS ATTACHED TO BAR WITH TWO METAL CHAINS. CROSS SHOWS, CLOCKWISE: AT TOP A WHITE BACKGROUND WITH AN OPEN GOLD EYE, A RED BACKGROUND WITH A GOLD FEMININE SILHOUETTE ON PEDESTAL, AT BOTTOM A WHITE BACKGROUND WITH GOLD TEXT “L.B.C.”, A RED BACKGROUND WITH GOLD FEMININE SILHOUETTE HOLDING SKIRT HEM ON PEDESTAL, AND IN CENTER ON INDIGO BACKGROUND GOLD TEXT “IOF”. RED RIBBON COLLAR HAS STITCHED SEAMS ACROSS TOP RIGHT AND LEFT SIDES, AND AT BOTTOM ABOVE MEDAL TO CENTER OF COLLAR LOOP. RIBBON IS CREASED ON BACK. OVERALL EXCELLENT CONDITION.

Subjects

PERSONAL SYMBOL

Historical Association

ASSOCIATIONS

History

ON AUGUST 21, 2018, COLLECTIONS TECHNICIAN INTERVIEWED LLOYD CAREFOOT REGARDING HIS DONATION OF MEMORABILIA RELATED TO COURT WINDY WEST (#562) LETHBRIDGE CHAPTER OF THE INDEPENDENT ORDER OF FORESTERS. CAREFOOT WAS ACTIVELY INVOLVED WITH THE FORESTERS WHILE HE LIVED IN EDMONTON, ALBERTA, AND CONTINUED HIS INVOLVEMENT FOLLOWING HIS MOVE TO LETHBRIDGE IN 1963. ON THE PURPOSE AND HISTORY OF THE MEDAL, CAREFOOT NOTED, “[THE MEDALS INDICATED] THAT WAS YOUR STATUS. THIS ONE WAS A TRUSTEE. A TRUSTEE WAS…A BOARD OF DIRECTORS; IT WAS ONE OF THE DIRECTORS.” “WHEN THEY SET UP THEIR ROOM, FOR THE RITUAL, THEY HAD LITTLE TABLES AND [A] COVER FOR THAT LITTLE TABLE…THIS WAS THE ORATOR…THERE WOULD BE FOUR TABLES.” “THERE’S THE PAST CHIEF RANGER [PAST PRESIDENT]. VICE CHIEF RANGER…THEY USED THEM AS DEEMED DEPENDENT ON WHO WAS DOING WHAT…THE ORATOR…[WOULD BE SIMILAR TO] THE SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE…THAT’S THE BEST WAY FOR ME TO DESCRIBE IT.” WHEN ASKED ABOUT HIS TIME SPENT IN THE FORESTERS, CAREFOOT RECALLED, “WE [WIFE RUTH AND LLOYD] WERE INVITED TO [AN] ACTIVITY. [IN THOSE] DAYS THERE [WERE] SOCIAL PARTIES…SOMEBODY THAT I KNEW INVITED ME TO COME AND I HEARD WHAT THEY WERE DOING. IT WAS SOMETHING THAT RUTH AND I THOUGHT…WOULD BE SOMETHING WE’D LIKE TO BE INVOLVED IN…MY FATHER WAS A MEMBER OF THE CANADIAN ORDER OF FORESTERS WHICH WAS A STAGE BEFORE THE INDEPENDENT ORDER OF FORESTERS.” “I BECAME A MEMBER IN EDMONTON… I WAS ONLY AS ASSOCIATE AT THAT TIME. WHEN WE MOVED DOWN HERE, WE BECAME MEMBERS HERE…MY FIRST WORKDAY WAS THE SECOND OF JANUARY, 1963 [IN LETHBRIDGE]. I WAS A FULL-BLOWN MEMBER IN 1966.” “[I JOINED BECAUSE OF] THE SATISFACTION THAT IT’S A STRONG CHARITABLE WAY OF DOING THINGS TO GIVE BACK. THAT’S PART OF MY PHILOSOPHY; JUST GIVE A LITTLE BACK FOR THE GOOD LIFE I’VE HAD.” “I WAS THE PRESIDENT OF THE LEAGUE…OF [THE] LETHBRIDGE CHAPTER. AND [I] WOUND UP WITH [THE TRUNK] AND IN IT [WERE] THESE THINGS. IT PRE-DATES ME.” “MOST OF THOSE THINGS WERE FOR MY PERSONAL USE…EITHER IN EVENTS OR A POSITION I HELD IN THE FORESTERS. I LOOK AT [THE OBJECTS] AND I SMILE.” REGARDING HIS DONATION, CAREFOOT ELABPRATED, “THE FORESTERS IN THE COMMUNITY DID A LOT OF CHARITY WORK AND I THOUGHT IT WAS A WAY OF COVERING FOR THE FUTURE [ABOUT] THE THINGS THAT WE DID, OR STILL DO. THAT WAS, MORE THAN ANYTHING ELSE, MY REASON FOR [DONATING IT] – A WAY OF PASSING IT ALONG SO IT JUST DIDN’T GET SHOVED IN THE JUNK…TO SOMEBODY IN THE FUTURE, IT INDICATES SOMETHING OF WHAT WE DID AND SOME ILLUSTRATION OF THINGS THAT WE DID. FOR MORE INFORMATION INCLUDING THE FULL INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPTION, PLEASE SEE THE PERMANENT FILE P20120045001-GA.

Catalogue Number

P20120045010

Acquisition Date

2012-12

Collection

Museum

Less detail