We will continue to be open every Wednesday, Thursday and Friday night from 4:00 – 9:00 pm throughout the month of April. The Board of Trustees will meet at 5:30 p.m. on the 14th and 28th of April while the Lodge Officers will meet at 6:30 pm on the same days.
The current trustees are Calvin Cook, Sally Damm, Donald Simmons and Mike Peterson, who will be staying on until we can find his replacement. Another trustee position is still vacant. In the chairs we have, Jerry Bergum, ER; Phil Baker, Loyal Knight; John Ruffolo, Lecturing Knight; Donald Myers, Esquire; Shirley Bergum, Chaplain; James Smolik, Inner Guard; James Steen, Tiler; Patricia Solsaa, Secretary; William Zink, Treasurer. We would like a past ER to step forward and volunteer to be the Leading Knight for this year and we need two individuals to be trustees. Once all the positions are filled, we will only need two new individuals every year. Think about giving the Lodge or Club one hour per month of your time. WE NEED SOME HELP.
Meals on Membership Nights:
Hy-Vee will continue to cater the meals on a first come first serve basis every Thursday night from 6:00 – 8:00 pm. For the month of April, we are going to try a couple of new meals all priced at $6.50 per person. We are now having 35 catered meals.
Here are the meals for the month of April:
| April 7th | Zesty Lasagna, Tossed Salad, and Hot Vegetables |
| April 14th | 3 pieces of Golden Fried Chicken, AuGratin Potatoes, and Green Beans |
| April 21st | Stuffed Boneless Pork Chops, AuGratin Potatoes, and Cole Slaw |
| April 28th | 8 oz Sirloin Steaks, Baked Potatoes and Fresh Fruit Salad. Ron Deutsch and Roger Mellendorf will grill the steaks and potatoes at the club. |
Come down and try the meals. Bring a friend, especially one interested
in being an Elk. Coffee is free!!!
Renewal of Dues
As of March 28th, 247 individuals renewed their dues for the upcoming
year. There are still 147 individuals that paid their dues for the year
2004 but have not yet renewed their dues for the year 2005. PLEASE HELP
THE LODGE BY RENEWING YOUR DUES. SEND IN YOUR CHECK TODAY.
Unfortunately, we lost 175 members that have not paid their dues since
April 1, 2004. In fact, since April 1, 2000, we have lost 476 members
who took a demit or were dropped for failure to pay their dues. This year,
we need to work at reinstating those who quit paying their dues as well
as those that took a demit. A list of these individuals will be posted
on the bulletin board inside the front door of the Lodge. We need to encourage
these members to return to the Lodge so look at the list, pick out an
individual and get them to come back. Help the Lodge and Club by getting
a former member to return. If you find one interested in returning let
Wendy or Jennifer know and they will take care of the paper work.
Hoop Shoot
Tanner Odegaard took first place at the Rapid City Regional hoop shoot
in the 10 to 11-year-old boys division, hitting 25-out of-25 from the
stripe. Hence, Tanner will be going to the National Hoop Shoot in Springfield,
MA from April 21 – 24. Tanner, we wish you the best of luck.
Alec Johnson took second place at the Regional hoop shoot in the 12-13-year-old
boys division making 20-out of 25 shots. He was one shot short of a tie
for first place. Send Tanner a good luck message at http://www.elks.org/hoopshoot/greetings.cfm.
Essay Contest
If you check the February newsletter, on the home page, you will find
the names of the top four local winners that wrote excellent essays on
“What Old Glory Means to Me”. The essays of these four 5th
to 8th grade students were then sent to the state level of competition.
One of these four students, Lindsay Full from Canby, Minnesota, has had
her essay sent on to the national level of competition. Let’s all
wish Lindsay good luck at the national level.
Home Page and e-mail Addresses:
Check out the new Lodge and Club homepage at www.brookingselks1490.org,
as it will always contain the most recent newsletters as well as other
pertinent information concerning the Lodge and the Club. Any member that
has access to the Internet will be able to read all the posted information.
Our e-mail address is Elks1490@mchsi.com
and this can be used to contact the Lodge Secretary or the Exalted Ruler.
If you see any errors on the home page or feel that something should be
added let us know.
Elks National Foundation
If you are interested in how much the Elks National Foundation spends
nationally or at the state level look at http://www.elks.org/enf/appropriations.cfm.
One thing you will notice is that we receive, as a state, much more than
we give with most of the money going to students, veterans and children.
Recently, we have received $750.00 in donations from Lodge members for
the Elks National Foundation. New members are encouraged to give a gift
of $10.00 per year for ten years. Have you made your pledge to the Elks
National foundation? See the list of donors on the west wall of the Club.
Jerry Bergum, ER