Together we can make a difference

From U.S. Presidents to famous actors, business owners and blue-collar workers, men representing a broad range of backgrounds and life experiences have been Shriners throughout the fraternity’s 150 years. While Shriners International is an organization rich in history and tradition, it is also evolving and advancing as new generations of members with different interests and cultures join us. Our Shrine Centers encourage members to build their own membership experience, customizing their fraternal involvement to reflect their personality and hobbies. While there are a variety of existing activity-based clubs and units to choose from, that list is continuously expanding as members bring their new ideas of ways to have fun to fruition.

Shriners International is a fraternity based on fun, fellowship and the Masonic principles of brotherly love, relief and truth. With nearly 200 local chapters and thousands of clubs on six continents, Shriners are known for their fellowship, brotherhood, compassion and generosity. The fraternity established Shriners Hospitals for Children as its official philanthropy in 1922, and continues to support it today, while striving to make the world a happier, better place.

Shriners International helps good men become better leaders, husbands, fathers, friends and community contributors. Brotherhood is the cultural foundation that distinguishes our fraternity from other groups and associations. When you become a Shriner, you join a network of nearly 200,000 brothers around the globe who are dedicated to helping and supporting each other personally and professionally.

The history of Shriners International is the story of individuals who came together in the spirit of fun and fellowship, who would lay the foundation for a worldwide fraternity and establish a globally recognized pediatric specialty health care system.

In 1870, a group of 13 Masons would regularly meet at the Knickerbocker Cottage in New York City. Often, discussion turned to forming a new fraternity for Masons, based on the tenets of Freemasonry but with the added elements of fun and fellowship.