Elks Care, Elks Share -- throughout the year
Lodge members from Milwaukie #2032 in conjunction with the North Clackamas School District have adopted the Riverside Elementary School to participate in the County "Back Pack Buddy" program. This program provides two days of child friendly, nutritious food to be sent home on Friday of each week for those children who are enrolled in the County's subsidized lunch program. Without this program, these children would in most cases go hungry until they return to school on Monday.
To date Milwaukie Lodge has provided weekend meal packs to the needy children of Riverside School, starting with 24 packs at the beginning of December and adding more students each school week until the present count stands at 43 students per week. The Lodge has also provided eleven new coats for the most needy children.
Milwaukie chose to add a tagline to the "Elks Care, Elks Share" slogan by adding the words "Throughout the year" Milwaukie members have been very generous in giving money and food for the program as well as helping with making up the packs. Many members have joined the Back Pack Buddy Century Club with their donations of $100.00 or more. At Milwaukie Lodge, they have adopted the position is that in order to nourish the mind, you must first nourish the body.
Care And Share Throughout The Year
Milwaukie lodge has a long standing tradition of helping those in the community. One of the biggest programs is fondly known by the members as Care and Share.Twice a month and during the holiday season, members of Milwaukie Lodge along with the local Lions club, the Eagles and other groups assemble and satisfy over 600 requests for food and toys to the more needy of our community. These deliveries included enough food for several meals to each family, along with a turkey or a chicken for the main holiday meal. Milwaukie members also provide toys for each of the children of these families. Care and Share has always been a huge part of Milwaukie Lodge, and the lode has seem members in their eighties clear down to the children of our younger members picking up, sorting, making up orders and driving the packages to their destinations.
As important as Care and Share is, it is a seasonal event, After the holidays, life goes back to normal and many of our community revert back to a life of deprivation and hunger. The most vulnerable are usually the small children. While many of them receive a meal through the school lunch program, they frequently go home for the weekend only to face the gnawing pangs of hunger until they return to school on Monday. These little people find it hard to sit through the morning and frequently become discipline problems because of their hunger.
In working with the North Clackamas County school district, it has been determined that of the 16 schools in the area, there are currently 517 children identified as being in need. Five of the schools lack a sponsor and there are approximately 350 to 400 more without proper winter clothing and the outlook given the present economy is very bleak.
Milwaukie Lodge has "adopted" the Riverside Elementary school and is currently collecting food and money enough to feed the needy students. Milwaukie prepares a "Backpack" package for each child registered to receive two days worth of child friendly, nutritious food to take home for the weekend. It is our commitment to do this throughout the school year. Milwaukie Lodgereceives both money and food items from its members along with many volunteers to make up the packs. This year, Lodge membersadditionally bought 11 new winter coats for those children most in need.
At this time the Lodge is providing from 40 to 50 weekend backpacks for the school and hope to be able to take on the local Head Start program with an additional 10 backpacks. Lodge members usually make up the packages on our lodge night for delivery to the school on Friday. The Lodge has also started a "Back Pack Buddies" Century Club and list the contributors of $100.00 or more in our monthly Bulletin.
Milwaukie lodge has made an alteration to their"Care and Share". For Lodge members, it is now "Care and Share Throughout The Year." Lodge members are proud to be nourishing minds by first nourishing bodies for these children, our future workers, leaders and Elks..
