Event News
LODGE ACTIVITIES By Jan Trudeau
Well, this year is humming along. It’s May already and here’s what we have in store for you this month.
Saturday May 2nd we have the Youth awards at 11 AM. We will award scholarships and recognition to local youth. Come check it out.
The Derby Day party will follow at 1 PM. Come and watch the horse races and wear your favorite derby bonnet!
Bingo will be on Saturday the 16th at 1 PM. Please note the new times for Bingo. They will start at 1 PM going forward.
Texas Hold ‘Em card games are on SATURDAY May 9th and then on the regular day Sunday the 24th. The games start at 1 PM. Please sign up in the lounge so we know haw many tables to set up.
Mother’s Day is Sunday May 10th. Our ceremony will begin at 10 AM. We will celebrate and honor all Mothers, both here and departed. It’s a very moving ceremony. Consider checking it out. A light meal will follow.
Saturday the 23rd, Iron Chef Elk cooking contest is back. Last month we had yogurt as our re-quired ingredient. Kim McIlonie won with her quesadilla and Baja sauce. We raised $85.00 and her charity of choice was the mortgage pay down fund. This month, the required ingredient is pepperoni. Come down and make something, or come and taste/judge. It’s only $5.00 to be a judge. It all happens around 3-3:30 PM.
Memorial Day is on Monday May 25th. We will put the flags up on Oracle road. They go to half- staff at 7 AM, all the way up at noon, and come down at 5 PM. Please come and help with this patriotic event.
Darts are on the back patio every Saturday at 4 PM. Wednesdays are the usual-Tacos and trivia on the second Wednesday May 13th, and the full dinner and music bingo on the fourth Wednesday, May 27th. All the others are a light fare as are Fridays during the Queen of Hears draw-ing. Check the calendar and the bulletin board in the lounge for weekly menus.
COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES
For our next community activities project we will collect pasta, any kind you choose. This will go for the entire month of May. Maybe you’ve noticed a box by the front door of the lounge….That’s where you can put the pasta. We are collecting this shelf stable item for our local food bank-Impact of Southern Arizona. The donations really help our community partner to stock their shelves with much needed food. Thanks for participat-ing. AND, believe it or not… September will be here before you know it. We will be assembling 10 teams of Elks to cook and deliver full home-cooked meals to our local firehouses on 9/11/26. We need between 3-6 folks for each firehouse and we will need to deliver the cooked meal that afternoon. More infor-mation will be coming. Let me know if you’re interested in help-ing out. It’s a really rewarding project to participate in.
Thank you.
HOUSE COMMITTEE
Ann Girvin
Holy Cow, or maybe I should say Holy Elk!
What a whirlwind this month has been! I am still learning ALL the numerous responsibilities behind being the House Committee Chair. But what I have learned so far is that the House Committee is not just about making food and serving drinks, but that it is also about meeting budgets and generating the funds that enable many of the activities and goals for our beloved lodge. The House Committee is behind the running of the Elk business side and comes with bylaws and calendars and spreadsheets and a lot of information. I realize that while it will take me some time to make heads and tails of it all, I want to thank those numerous individuals who have helped me navigate this new (scary) position so far. There is so much to learn and although I feel that I have made some mistakes thus far, I will learn from any errors to become better. You would think coming from a small business owner I would have transitioned easily, that isn’t consistently how it happens. But there is always tomorrow and hopefully I will be able to get a better grip on things and work with you all to move forward. The volume of great things that are accomplished behind the scenes here at Catalina Mountain Elks continues to amaze me. I truly wasn’t aware of the measure of activity by the people who regularly work to better the lodge when no one else is there. While I always knew Mimi as the printer of the membership cards, I now see how much she accomplishes on a regular basis, and I still haven’t figured how she gets it all done! And I so appreciate Alane, who is always keeping our figures up to date so that I can check on my budget and finances at any time. And The Elves (yes, we have elves), who come in behind the scenes to do their magic. They collectively are an amazing well-oiled machine. My personal goal for the month of May is to try to always put the principles of the Elks first when making decisions, by actively listing to stakeholders, thinking actions through, and to continuing to learn. Let's continue to work together to make the place we love continue to be a great place to be!