BPOElks

This year marks the 51st anniversary of the Elks Lodge in Morden. Morden Elks Lodge is a fraternal organization that raises funds to support local community and children's needs along with supporting the Elks of Canada Purple Cross Fund. This fund is accessible locally to help out children in need of medical care where additional funding is required. While most fraternal organizations are struggling to find new members, the Morden Elks are fortunate to have had a large number of young men - 28 in total - join the organization in the past few years.

The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks Malden Lodge #965 is teaming up with Healthy Malden on Tuesday, Sept. 1, 6 p.m., and will offer the notMYkid substance abuse workshop, a national initiative of the notMYkid organization that educates parents, schools and children on substance abuse prevention.

The MV Elks Lodge recently organized a drug outreach at the Laguna Hills Mall. Drug Awareness Chairman Gloria R. LeCouvre set up a Community Booth to distribute Drug Awareness Brochures, Pamphlets, Coloring books, and American flags to the parents and children shopping for back-to-school items. Volunteers Nettie Bennington and Gerry Schiphorst were on hand to help during the 11 am to 6 pm project.

"Sometimes we don't have enough business to pay the bartender," said Bill Morris, a member of the Elks lodge in Riverdale. "People ain't got no money."

Another characteristic of our times is that social clubs such as the Lions, Masons, Elks, Rotary, Moose, etc. have been losing members since the 1960s. They are broad-based groups without a political agenda, where "brothers" are likely to hold a variety of views. Now, people tend to socialize in groups with sharply defined political goals -the ACLU, the Federalist Society, the Club for Growth, EMILY's List- and to spend hours in Internet discussions with like-minded associates.

After six years of fulltime travel, we have a heck of a time remembering details of the campgrounds and RV parks we have called "home". Did our Verizon phones work there? Which site were we in? What did we pay, and was it worth it?

They gathered Saturday at the Braintree Elks Lodge, the sound of music and smell of grilled meat filling the steamy air. Nearly 150 veterans went to the cookout from VA medical centers and shelters in Boston and Brockton

Here's a list of businesses who have lost lots of business or closed due to smoking bans. Includes some FL Elks

a Wassom has gotten used to Michelle Kelemen's daily visits to her tidy yellow kitchen in North Boise. On a recent afternoon, Kelemen, a driver for the Senior Nutrition program, or Meals on Wheels, dropped off a hot tin of cheese ravioli and fruit crisp, with a salad on the side. Kelemen brought in the newspaper. She loosened the lid on a bottle of Ensure nutrition drink for later, and chatted a bit with Wassom before leaning over to give her a hug.

Kids go to camp, thanks to the Elks DERRY - The Derry Salem Elks this year sent 28 children from the local area to Copper Cannon. Copper Cannon is a nonprofit camp located on 128 acres in Franconia Notch. The summer camp program teaches the children fundamentals of good citizenship, moral behavior, respect for themselves and others, and strives to instill a sense of self-esteem and pride.

Two local organizations have combined their resources in order to more adequately provide assistance to members of the surrounding community. On Friday, Modern Woodmen Representative JoLynne Stainbrook and Modern Woodmen Youth Service Club representative Adina Findley presented members of the Fort Scott Elks Lodge with a check for $500 that will be used for various Elks projects, according to Stainbrook.

HUDSON - Tranquility is what brings a balloonist to take to the sky in nothing but a basket, balloon and the power of hot air. ``It's a great escape when you're up there,'' said Bob Martel, a balloonist who helped coordinate the Hudson Elks' fifth annual Hot Air Balloon Festival.

Alley-White American Legion Post 52 and its Auxiliary Unit 52 have partnered with members of Mountain Home Elks Lodge 1714 to enhance each organization's ongoing commitment to send care packages to deployed servicemen and servicewomen. Advertisement Since joining forces last fall, the groups have shipped an average of 10-12 large flat-rate boxes per month to armed forces personnel in Iraq and Afghanistan. Recipients include family and friends of Mountain Home area residents and soldiers whose names were selected at random off the AnySoldier. com Web site.

Arthur Robinson is a big man, and when he laughs, the area around him seems to light up. Robinson had caught a 6-inch perch, his first fish of the day, and when I told him to "hold that monster up" for a photo, he broke up laughing. The fishing was slow, but no one could say we weren't having a good time on a beautiful summer day. Robinson, who lives in Muskegon Heights and was a C-130 transport plane crew member in Vietnam, was one of 46 veterans hosted last week by members of St. Joseph Elks Lodge 541 for a day of food, fishing and fun. The vets are all patients at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Battle Creek. The Elks rounded up 16 local boats, some run by charter fishermen and others by sport fishermen, to take the vets out. All volunteered their time.

Davis, 25, has lived in Lincoln Park for years. He walks past the building - a massive gray dome encircled by a hefty colonnade - almost every day. But while the Elks National Memorial and Headquarters, located at the intersection of Diversey Avenue and Sheridan Road, is open to the public seven days a week during the summer, Davis shrugged it off. "I just don't think I really know that much about the Elks," he said. "They're up there with Rotary and those other groups. You know, stuff your grandpa was in. But I don't really even know what the hell they do."

added a sticky note just to see how this works. Need to join the group however in order to see the sticky note which can only be seen at the message home page on elks.org

MANASQUAN - As 16-year-old Jiovanni stood on the beach Tuesday afternoon, he grabbed his camp counselor Jacob Gatley by the head and delivered a playful noogie. Advertisement "It's good to be here because I have my friend Jacob here," he said, as Jacob tried to break free from his grip.

DERRY - The Derry Salem Elks lodge recently held its annual Roast Beef Dinner for Veterans. Veterans from the Manchester VA Medical Center and the Tilton Home for Veterans were invited to attend. Seven veterans from Tilton and six from Manchester attended, along with several aides.

LOCKPORT-Bingo receipts totaling more than $8,200 were stolen Monday from the Elks Lodge on North Canal Road, Niagara County sheriff deputies said. A woman told deputies she arrived to clean the building at 4 a. m. and discovered a rock had been thrown through a window.

SEATTLE - Organizations like the Elks and Kiwanis are fighting a serious perception problem. Many people do not realize they are not just social