A Friend of the Order is a formalized relationship between individuals (of any faith or non-faith) with the British Columbia Commandery in which the annual charitable oblations (donations) are directed towards a local project or local initiative such as a hospice or care facility or some other initiative sanctioned by the Commandery. The annual funds collected pass through the Order of Saint Lazarus (which issues the tax receipts if requested) and are directed to that specific project. Friends of the Order are grouped into "Houses" in which the formation of that House is directly related to that local project or initiative. For example, Friends associated with Vancouver would have their annual oblations directed towards a local project. Or, Friends of the Order in the Mainland area, would be associated with a local hospice or related project in which oblations collected from Friends attached to that House are directed towards that local project.
As a Friend of the Order, you would have opportunities to share your interest and passion with other Friends and Members of the Order through advocating, developing and supporting palliative and hospice care in your community or exploring/preserving the history of the Order. Engagement with other Friends and Members of the Order increases the probability of successful implementation of a viable and sustainable palliative and hospice care program in your area. This dovetails with the original mission of the Order of Saint Lazarus, an international chivalric Order, which for the past 900 years has been steadfast in their primary mission to aid those in need.
As a Friend of the Order, your network could expand to access other Friends and Members of the Order including professionals, care workers, doctors, nurses, political representatives, business people, military and civilians at Order events; socials, special presentations, lectures and meetings pertinent to palliative and hospice care initiatives. Friends of the Order would enjoy certain discounts on registration fees if applicable.
As a Friend of the Order, your minimum annual oblation (donation) of $50.00 ($85.00 in the first year only) is to be submitted by the end of each calendar year by e-transfer to the email address: . Ensure to include in that email, your full name, address and phone and indicate the project to which your oblations should be directed to and that a tax receipt is requested. The benefits of becoming a Friend of the Order include:
- Volunteer in/Support Projects opportunities in your local community that is attached to the Friend of the Order's respective House - making your community a little bit better by helping those in need,
- House e-newsletters are published semi-annually conveying the good works in their localized Houses within its respective Commanderies,
- Social Media access by invitation to the respective House Facebook group providing an avenue for conveying updates and highlights in local projects,
- Socials and Networking opportunities via invitations to Commandery events, such as an annual fundraising formal dinner event or Commandery summer BBQs or information sessions on progress of local initiatives the Commandery or Houses are engaged with.
As a Friend of the Order, your contributions and engagement with the Order will facilitate the Order's mission to establish, advocate and/or support palliative and hospice care programs across Canada and in particular, the island and mainland. In addition, if military/history is your interest, there are opportunities to explore the history of the Order and manifest this into reality with opportunities to keep the history alive through period authentic 12th Saint Lazarus knights at presentations and events.
For more information or if interested in pursuing the Friend of the Order, please contact us via email with: . You can also download the Friend of the Order application form by clicking on the icon 
. You can then fill the form on your computer viewing the form using standard Adobe PDF reader. Save the file to your computer and then email it as an attachment, along with an attachment of a recent portrait to: (don't forget to attach your completed PDF file to the email before sending!)
