by Nathan Ward
The first snowstorm of the winter whipped across Salida but the lights blazed at the Poncha Springs Grange hall. The smell of fried chicken floated out through the snowflakes as a few hearty souls gathered to meet Frank Pegoraro, the Colorado Grand Master of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows (IOOF). He and fellow member Doug Pittman, also known as the Grand Secretary for the Order, had traveled to Salida from Canon City with their families to stir up interest and hopefully sign up a few new members for the flagging local Odd Fellows organization.