Shriners Convention: Imperial in St. Louis '08

Shriners Convention
Golf Shirt

St. Louis '08
Imperial Council Session
Tote Bag

The Shriners will descend on St. Louis in force at the end of June this year, for the annual Shriners Convention, aka the 134th Imperial Council Session. Actually, there are many Shriners conventions across North America throughout the year, but only one rates a capital "C" in Convention -- the annual Imperial Council Session. The Big One. In the eyes of many, the Only One.

When I worked for the Shriners, I attended a few Imperial Council Sessions, and one of them was in St. Louis in 1997. Being part of the Shrine's Imperial Council Session is an experience never to be forgotten -- but I have to confess, some of the details can get a little blurry.

I think the Session in St. Louis was the one where a colleague and I walked through a fountain on our way back to the hotel one night, after enjoying too many Goldschlagers. The next morning, I called my colleague to ask if he had any aspirin, and he asked me if I had any idea why his shoes were soaking wet. Or maybe that was at the Session in Indianapolis. As I said, the details can get a little blurry.

Shriners and their Ladies who attend the Imperial Session in St. Louis might be interested in a St. Louis '08 golf shirt or Session tote bag. We also have Session boxer shorts, baseball caps, men's and women's t-shirts and more.

Shrine Temples, Units, Clubs, Shrine Associations, and other groups might be interested in ordering a supply of Session Buttons or Session Bumper Stickers for the whole group.

A wide assortment of general Shrine merchandise can be found at Shriners Memorabilia.

For more information about the 2008 Imperial Council Session, visit the Official Moolah Shriners 2008 Session web site.

Ray Stevens always makes me laugh with his "Shriners Convention":

Shriners Memorabilia

The Masonic Memorabilia site has proved to be quite popular. Many Masons have visited the site to find Masonic rings, tie pins, badges, wallets, and other Masonic items.

The site logs show that many Shriners have been visiting the site specifically looking for Shrine rings, fezzes, and other Shrine-related products. So I have created a new site, Shriners Memorabilia, which presents only products that are Shrine-specific, so that Shriners don't have to go hunting through all the Masonic stuff to find the Shrine merchandise.

The Shriners Fez

The Shriners are sort of a sub-set of the Masons. In order to become a Shriner, one must first be a Mason -- but the Shriners operate independently of the Masons and have their own governing body, the Imperial Council.

The Shriners have a whole 'nother set of logos and graphics, including the Sword & Crescent, which constitutes the official logo of the Shriners, and the widely recognized Shriners Fez, which is the "official headgear" of the organization.

There's a somewhat amusing collection of Shriners Fez items for sale on eBay. There are, as might be expected, regular garden-variety Shrine Fezzes that can be bought or bid on. But in addition, there is a fez-shaped Ezra Brooks decanter, a set of Shriner Fez pendants and charms, a Michelob Shriners Fez (complete with tassle), a rhinestone-studded fez pin, and even a very old (dare I say antique?) 32nd Degree Mason's Hat.

How about a coin bank in the shape of a fez-wearing dog? Or a teddy bear wearing a fez studded with Swarovski crystals? Fez lapel pins, fez earrings, and fez iron-on patches...... You can find it all on eBay!